D is for Drunk Read Online Free PDF

Sofia had finished her story, promised that Van and Violet could come to the Riders of Randorin , and ordered three more tickets on her phone. Saving Jaxon’s life was getting expensive.
    A man in a three-piece suit walked into the backyard of the house next door. He looked like a banker. Sofia raised her eyebrows and looked over at Emily. Emily pretended to howl at the moon.
    Sofia was grateful her neighbors were Tex, the retired Texas wildcatter, and Gray Cole, the movie star. Tex constantly gave her advice on men and lingerie and weapons. Gray played every women’s dream on screen, but really throbbed for other men. He and Sofia were good friends and she’d stood by him while he dumped one weeping lingerie model after another. He was also a constant source of industry gossip, fashion advice, and fancy tea. Tex and Gray seemed so normal compared to what everyone else had to deal with.
    Dinner was delicious. Only one glass broke, Van’s, one plate of spaghetti dropped, Sofia’s with a strong assist from Violet, and Sofia snagged the last piece of garlic bread. She’d swallowed the last bite before Violet said, “Are you and Maloney, Jr. getting married?”
    Ray had a meatball go down sideways, and Emily pounded him on the back and handed him a glass of milk.
    Sofia didn’t say anything and hoped the moment would pass.
    As if.
    “Well?” said Van. “Are you?”
    “I think your father should chew more carefully,” Sofia said. “Are you OK, Ray?”
    “Will you be Mrs. Maloney?” Violet swiped her napkin across her face. “Can I be your Best Man?”
    “Maid of Honor,” her mother corrected.
    “There’s not going to be a wedding. I’m not dating Aidan Maloney. We’re just colleagues. I’m going out for the first time with Mr. Jaxon Ford tomorrow. Maybe you can be Maid of Honor at that wedding.”
    “I want to be the best, not the maid,” Violet said. “Let Van be the maid of honor.”
    “I’m too messy to be a maid. Maids clean things up.”
    “Bed-time.” Ray rose from the table. “I’ll take these two up, and let you have some time for girl talk.”
    Emily smiled over at him. Both she and Sofia knew the endurance event that lay ahead of him. Ray was a good guy.
    He turned to the kids. “Last one in bed is a rotten egg.”
    They flew up the stairs.
    Emily took a slow sip of wine. “How does Aidan feel about Jaxon?”
    “Why should he feel anything?”
    “So, he hasn’t done a full search of Jaxon’s background, turned up a fatal flaw, and suggested you’d be better off dating someone else?”
    Sofia laughed. “He did do a background search, actually, and told me Jaxon checked out. He must be squeaky clean, because Aidan couldn’t find a single piece of dirt on him, except for one parking ticket he paid late, which Aidan said might be a sign of a disregard for the rules, or deep-seated irresponsibility.”
    Emily smiled. “Aidan’s a tough grader.”
    “Then he gave me a long lecture about the dangers of dating people you don’t know anything about. Not because they might be serial killers, which is Mom’s standard lecture, but because they might waste your time. He said dating needs to be more directed.”
    “He does have a complicated system for it.” Emily laughed.
    “Did you know he’s signed on to a new dating site?”
    Emily shook her head. “How many does that make?”
    “Ten. But he claims this one is different. It’s called the Science of Love, and you have to fill out a psychometric test. It’s a hundred pages long.”
    “At least it weeds out people with short attention spans.”
    “I think picking up guys drowning in the ocean is probably as good.” She remembered Jaxon’s long muscular leg spread across the board. “Maybe better.”
    “Maybe you guys are both trying too hard. Maybe love is right in front of you.”
    “Maybe it’s time to clear the table.” Sofia began stacking plates.
    Emily watched her work, with that enigmatic smile Sofia