Circle Eight Millennium: Lazarus Read Online Free PDF Page A

with a baseball bat and a snarl. She printed a sign that said “ TEMPORARILY CLOSED. WILL REOPEN SOON. THANK YOU FOR YOUR PATRONAGE. CARTWRIGHTS. ” She used a staple gun to hang it on the wall beside the front door. Her anger at the senseless crime simmered in her gut like acid. She needed to step away from the store and get the plywood.
    The afternoon heat washed over her like a hot, wet washcloth when she stepped outside. To make things worse, the sun was midway down the sky. It turned the world into shadows and painful shards of bright light. She shaded her eyes but it didn’t help.
    “A damsel in distress?”
    Bea whirled around to find Samuel Graham standing on the sidewalk. The cowboy was the biggest of the lot with massive arms and shoulders, the same blue-green eyes as Laz, and a scar on his jaw from a horse kick when he was twelve. He was a charmer, sweet as honey and more dangerous than any of the Grahams.
    He smiled at her and held out his arm. “I’m yours to command, darlin’.”
    “Pfft.” She waved her hand in dismissal. “I’m not a damsel and I sure as hell aren’t in distress, Sam. Why are you here?”
    “Rose tells me Laz was around. I came to see if it was true.”
    She shook her head. “You’re a gossip and I have things to do.”
    He glanced at the store. “I’m sorry about this shit. Laz will find whoever it is.”
    “I’m on my way out. Is there something you need?” She frowned at him. “I won’t be selling any inventory for a few days.”
    “I came into town early to get some ammo and pick up a few things at the feed store. I’ll come back after you’re open.” He smiled, tipped his hat and walked back to the enormous, shiny black pickup parked nearby.
    She shook her head. He came by to find Laz and for no other reason. Sam might be charming but he was trouble walking. There was a reason he was on the hunt for his cousin, not that it was Bea’s business. She didn’t want to be involved with the Graham men. They were nothing but trouble.
    Then why had she hugged Laz or tried to kiss his cheek?
    Momentarily lack of reason. Temporary insanity. Full-on stupidity. Any of those reasons would suffice. If she dug deep and examined the why, it might have been because she’d always been attracted to him, no matter if he’d been a jerk. Bea hadn’t been with many men and even then, she was super picky.
    Or she might have hugged him to keep him off balance and to control their relationship, in whatever form it took, for once. She wanted the power and the ability to guide her fate.
    No matter where it took her.

Chapter Four
    ‡
    T he sun kissed the horizon with pink and orange licks as Laz drove into Brier Creek. His gut tensed at the sight of the familiar sight of the large magnolias his ancestors had planted so long ago. They had grown wider in the years Laz had been gone. Their blossoms’ sweet scent drifted through the vents in the car.
    He pushed away the memories, unwilling to get drawn back into his old life. Yet here he was driving back to Cartwrights to face the woman he’d not done right by. Perhaps it was a salvation for him, to right the wrongs of his past. That meant confronting who he’d been and what he’d done. That wasn’t exactly what he wanted.
    Fate seemed to have intervened, regardless of his plans. It yanked him back into his past. The emotions of the day before had left him exhausted and he hadn’t slept well. His thoughts ranged from the softness of her lips, to the violence of the crime against her store, then they swung back to the brief moment her breasts had been pressed against his chest.
    He was a complete fool to think simply helping her solve a crime would grant him atonement. Laz hadn’t just burned bridges when he left Brier Creek. He’d blown them sky high, along with everything around them.
    He sipped at the coffee, but it was bitter and lukewarm, as hotel coffee usually was. If Laz was honest with himself, he’d left early to avoid