Sometime Yesterday Read Online Free Page A

now over a decade, but present throughout in the sweet, simple touches scattered throughout the house. There, a colorful afghan folded over the couch and here, a cheerful teapot collection.
    Memories of another loss closed her throat and she immediately cut them off. She wasn’t going to go there tonight.
    “Vannie?” her father called from the kitchen. “Is that you?”
    She found him making snack platters. “Poker tonight, Pop?”
    He nodded and grinned. “Yep. The boys will be here soon. Wanna stay and see if you can double your paycheck?”
    “Not with you, old man, you cheat. Besides, I write the payroll now.”
    He laughed and turned to wash his hands in the sink. Van noticed how stooped his once broad shoulders had become.
    “Did you finish the Whitney job today?”
    “Yes, and thank God for it.” She grabbed a beer. “If that harpy wanted us to change six things, she wanted us to change a half dozen of another.”
    He patted her shoulder. “Now, Vannie, Stella Whitney isn’t that bad.”
    Van turned her chair sideways from the table so she could stretch her denim clad legs out and debated whether she should tell him about Ms. Whitney offering her silicone inflated double Ds as a bonus to the final check she was writing. It had been a sticky, ha-ha situation, and Van considered herself lucky she got out with the payment and a pretty harmless pinch on the ass. Instead, she lifted her beer and mumbled, “Mmm,” figuring her dad didn’t need to know that bit of gossip. She gave him a brief rundown of what else was scheduled that week and then tossed her empty bottle into the recycling bin. “I’ll leave you to your game, Dad. I’m going out for a while.”
    Once out on the highway, she passed the turn to her house and continued to her favorite bar. She felt uneasy and kept checking her rearview mirror. When she reached the door, she turned to look over her shoulder. There was nothing there, but the feeling of being watched stayed with her all night.

    *

    Natalie barely noticed the view as she drove home. Her thoughts kept going back to the fact that her house was haunted. No wonder that real estate agent was so happy and pushed everything through so fast. Sneaky broad.One of the first things she was going to do when she got back was call her mother. She hadn’t talked to her much since the divorce, not that her mother didn’t try. Even though Jason was the one who cheated and left her, Natalie still felt ashamed.
    Well, for good or for bad, as Stan had said, the house was hers and she couldn’t give it back.
    Her mind was racing a mile a minute and Natalie slowed as she took the last bend in the road before turning off. Coasting the driveway toward her haunted house, she looked up.
    The bedroom window was open . This sucks.
    Her car was full. Natalie dragged the bags to the front porch before she unlocked the door. She repeated the process to get them just inside the door. She stood in the foyer with her purchases and shut the door.
    She looked around carefully. Nothing seemed to be disturbed. With the late afternoon sun streaming into the kitchen, it was hard to believe anything spooky was going on. Maybe she was wrong? Even as she asked herself the question, she knew she couldn’t explain the strange situation. As she unpacked her groceries, Natalie made a mental note to call Karen Small first thing in the morning and then sat at the table to call her mom. She twitched when the cell phone rang in her pocket just as she was reaching for it. She looked at the caller ID and grinned.
    “Hi, Mom. I was just going to call you.”
    “I know, dear. That’s why I called you first. What’s the matter?”
    “What makes you think there’s something the matter?” Natalie didn’t bother waiting for the answer. Her mother always knew when something was wrong, even if she chose not to say so. She usually waited for Natalie to discuss her problems when she was ready. “Evidently, my new house has other