An Accidental Family Read Online Free PDF Page B

“Well,” she muttered, “g’bye, then.”
    “See you soon, I hope,” he said, and hung up.
    And if Julie and Amy hadn’t burst into the kitchenjust then, she probably would have sat right down on the floor and cried like a brokenhearted little girl.
    Because that’s exactly how she felt.
     
    Hours later, Lamont was still pacing his big country kitchen, head down and hands in his pockets.
    Just last night, Nadine had seemed reasonably excited about his dinner invitation. What had changed between then and now? Had he violated some unwritten rule? Did she expect him to call sooner? More than once? “Women,” he muttered, shaking his head. “The man who can figure ’em out will be a multitrillionaire for sure.”
    He grabbed a bottle of root beer from the fridge, pocketing the screw top as he strode into the family room. Settled in his recliner, Lamont picked up the remote and aimed it at the TV. The chair’s well-worn brown leather squeaked in protest as he shifted his six-foot frame. Not even his favorite chair felt comfortable tonight.
    Lamont pictured her as she’d looked last night, face aglow in the moonlight and blushing like a teenager as she reminded him that they both had to get up early.
    “Doesn’t take a brick to fall on my head,” he’d joked. “I can take a hint.”
    “No,” she’d said, giggling, “you can’t. I’ve been dropping hints for the past hour!” Then, as if worried that she might have embarrassed him, Nadine said, “Drive safely. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
    Well, it was tomorrow, and he didn’t mind admitting to himself what a letdown it had been when she’d canceled on him.
    Obnoxious padded into the room, rested his chin on Lamont’s knees and whimpered. From the time hewas a pup, the mutt had been attuned to his master’s moods. “Don’t worry, boy,” Lamont said, ruffling his fur, “your old man is fine, just fine.” He got to his feet. “How ’bout we fire up the grill? Who needs a woman around, changing her mind? Besides, we can’t let perfectly good beef go to waste, can we?”
    Obnoxious’s ears perked up, and he answered with a breathy bark.
    As Lamont flipped the steaks over the open fire, the dog sat watching, waiting patiently, grinning doggy-style. “Wonder if you’d be smilin’ if you knew you were second choice as my dinner companion,” Lamont said, cutting one steak into bite-sized cubes.
    Obnoxious tilted his head, fuzzy brows rising as if he’d understood.
    “Truth hurts, doesn’t it, boy?”
    The dog responded with a quiet yip.
    Half an hour later, as Lamont scraped the bony leftovers of their meal into the trash can, he remembered the cool tone in Nadine’s voice. Yeah, the truth hurt, all right, and hopefully, when he shaved in the morning, it wouldn’t stare boldly back at him from the mirror.
     
    The weeks dragged by slower than a donkey-pulled plow. Since Nadine had canceled “steak night,” Lamont had been short-tempered with the ranch hands, and pretty much anyone else who crossed his path, too. His daughter, Lily, had a knack for teasing him out of a foul mood, but in good conscience he couldn’t interrupt the new bride’s zeal to get her house in order, especially not over something that was little more than a foolish infatuation.
    Lamont gave some thought to changing Obnoxious’s name to Oblivious, because if the mutt had noticed hismaster’s beastly behavior, it sure didn’t show. The dog ran circles around him now, leaping and yipping like a puppy as Lamont threw a blanket over the back of his favorite horse. “Long ride on a good horse will cure what ails a man,” he said, cinching the saddle.
    He’d barely slid his boot into Barney’s stirrup when his cell phone rang. Lamont would’ve ignored it if it hadn’t been Nadine’s number on the caller ID. Instantly, his spirits lifted, as if a spring breeze had blown his foul mood deep into the dark and distant winter.
    “Hey, there, pretty lady!”
    A rascally