Evenfall Read Online Free PDF Page A

first she doesn’t recognize the figure pushing the mower. She thinks Aunt Gert must have hired a landscaping crew and forgotten to tell her, and is unreasonably annoyed as she looks at the boy stripped to the waist, grass flecking his shoulders.
    But then the dog rises to its feet from the shadow cast by the house. It wags its tail, tentatively at first, then harder and harder as she strokes its head, until the air around her legs is fanned by a steady breeze.
    Cort catches sight of her and cuts the power. The mower idles, fades into silence. He wipes his face on the T-shirt draped across his neck, and Andie is mortified to find that she uses this time to stare at the long, flat expanse of skin above his shorts. As he approaches her, she averts her eyes.
    “Morning,” he says, and there’s no way she can look at him. She focuses instead on the dog, now leaning into her leg and panting madly, so that it looks as if it’s grinning.
    “Morning. Guess you decided to keep her.”
    “It’s more like she decided to stay with me, I think. She’s pretty smart, aren’t you, girl?” He squats, rubbing the dog’s head, and Andie is forced to examine him. His black hair is a little long, falling over his eyes and trailing down the back of his neck. His shoulders are wide, with just the hint of a sunburn. He glances up and his brown eyes meet hers.
    Andie blushes. For crying out loud, he’s just a kid, she tells herself fiercely. Get a hold of yourself.
    “Did Aunt Gert ask you to mow?” she inquires, and her voice is cool even to her own ears.
    “Nope. Looking around here yesterday, it just seemed like the thing to do.” He shrugs and stands up, so that she has to tilt her head to keep eye contact. “Your uncle always kept this place perfect. The grass looked a little high yesterday, so I figured I’d come back and take my chances. With Gert and the law, I mean.”
    “Well, thanks. We’ll pay you, of course.”
    “I probably should have called first, especially after yesterday.”
    “Probably,” Andie agrees.
    “I figured you’d be staying over at the cottage, though. Hope I didn’t wake you.”
    “No.”
    “Well, I guess I’ll finish up. It won’t take long.”
    He turns around and is almost at the mower when some impulse she can’t explain makes her call after him.
    “Cort!”
    He wheels around.
    “Have you had coffee yet?”
    “Nope.”
    “Well, if I can find some, you want a cup?”
    “Sure, if you don’t think it will stunt my growth.”
    Andie eyes his six-foot-plus frame and can’t help but laugh. “Not much chance of that. Come in when you’ve finished.”
    Cort turns back to the mower, and an instant later the sound of his whistling is drowned out by the engine. Andie heads for the house, the dog following.
    Once inside, the dog makes straight for the kitchen. It’s as if she’s been here before, but Andie can’t imagine how. The dog sits in front of the kitchen cabinet and barks expectantly.
    “I don’t know what you’re looking for, girl, but you’ve come to the wrong place,” Andie tells her, wondering what she was thinking inviting Cort in. “The cupboard is bare.”
    But when she opens the door, she finds—next to some cans of green beans and creamed corn—coffee filters and a small glass container of coffee. Tucked behind them is an almost empty box of dog biscuits.
    “Here you go.” She hands the last one to the dog, who lips it daintily from her palm and carries it under the kitchen table to eat. Andie opens the jar of coffee and sniffs. It smells okay, so she sets about measuring the grains into the ancient coffeepot. There’s nothing in the refrigerator, so they’ll have to drink it black, which is fine by Andie.
    She finds two mugs and rinses them before setting them out. She’s wondering what she can possibly serve with the coffee when she feels the lightest touch against her leg. She jumps, but it’s just the tip of the dog’s bushy tail. She’s finished her