Dirty Truths Read Online Free PDF Page B

like a glove. His presence always triggered a jittery feeling in her stomach. Silly. It’s not as though she’d ever entertained anything more than a passing acquaintance with him and he definitely never hinted at anything inappropriate.
    He smiled. Dark eyes sparkled with mischief, and her heart fluttered. No matter how engaging Wade’s smile might be, a darkness around him set her on edge. Kristina kept a safe distance from Wade and his wife, Amy. Everyone knew Wade was the man to go to if one needed anything not available through legal channels. He’d even killed men, so the gossip went, but she doubted there was much truth to most of those tales. Wade may have done some dishonest things, and she could imagine him roughing someone up a little, but never murder. Wade and her dad had been friends since she was twelve years old. Her dad wouldn’t be friends with a killer.
    Still, her breath quickened at the sight of him. Maybe it was because he always looked at her as though stripping away the outer layers of her being to reveal her soul and the secrets she hid from the world. What girl wouldn’t like having someone look at them the way Wade did?
    He leaned on the counter, his elbow brushing the lottery ticket display, causing a couple to shift out of their slots. His smile deepened.
    Her cheeks burned.
    “And how is Kristina?”
    “Okay, I guess. And you?”
    “Couldn’t be better. How’s Cadence? She must be growing like a weed.”
    Kristina laughed. The few times Wade had seen Cadence, he’d scooped the baby up as though it were perfectly natural for a six foot four giant with tattoos on his arms and a scarred jaw to cradle a cooing infant.
    Averting her gaze, she focused on an imaginary speck of dirt on the counter. She could never look into his eyes for long. “I can barely keep her in clothes. How’s Amy? She was talking about going back to school the last time I saw her.”
    His silence forced Kristina to glance up.
    He frowned and shook his head. “No, she never bothered with school. She found something else to do. Rather, she found someone else to do.”
    “Oh,” Kristina didn’t know what else to say.
    “It’s okay. Except for the paperwork, we’re as good as divorced. Maybe someday it’ll be official.”
    “I guess.” Kristina said. Amy had always been nice, but she ran around on Wade. Everyone knew about it. Most people in town were astonished he let her get away with it. Kristina’s dad said he had no choice; Amy had too much on him. If he left her, she’d rat him out and he’d do serious jail time. She couldn’t imagine why Amy would want to stay if she didn’t want Wade anymore, but then Kristina wasn’t a good judge of relationships. She’d definitely failed on that front.
    “How many jobs do you have anyway? I saw you last week at the gas station. Your dad said you still work weekends at Maude’s. I haven’t had their bacon and eggs in a while, I should stop by soon. Maybe my favorite waitress will be on,” as he spoke, Wade fiddled with the lock on the ticket box.
    “I have three, but only this one is full time. I only work three days at the Petro and the breakfast shift on Saturday and Sunday at Maude’s.”
    “Is that all?” Wade tilted his head, then reached across the counter and brushed her bangs from her eyes.
    She wasn’t sure how to handle the intimate gesture so she did nothing.
    “What if you didn’t have to work every day and night?” he asked, and lowered his hand.
    “I’d have to win the lottery, unless you know something I don’t. Is there a money tree hidden away somewhere?”
    “Doesn’t he help you out?”
    “Who?”
    “The asshole you just divorced.”
    “Oh—Daniel. He let me have the house, so I don’t have to worry about rent. He’s pretty strapped right now since he’s paying the taxes and the mortgage on the house, so I don’t bother him about the child support. He’ll help when he can.”
    A lump formed in her throat at Wade’s