FAMILY FALLACIES (The Kate Huntington mystery series #3) Read Online Free PDF Page B

recognize and translated
Maria’s replies for Kate.
    She smiled at him.
“Most of the time these days I have no clue what I’m eating. I just relax and
enjoy.”
    Kate suspected Skip and
Maria were discussing more than just the meal. She heard the word bebé several times and the word she thought meant bed. Sure enough, when they had
eaten their fill, Maria wiped the baby’s face and hands, then scooped her out
of her highchair. “You tire, Kate. I put la niñita bed. You talk Señor Skip.”
    “Tire- d ,” Kate
gently corrected her English. “Thank you for putting the baby to bed,
Maria. Gracias .” Kate leaned over and kissed Edie’s cheek, then snuggled
the child’s neck. “Goodnight, little one.”
    As the stout little
woman bustled out of the room with her babbling burden, Skip stood up and
started clearing the table. “You don’t need to do that,” Kate protested.
    He ignored her and
carried the stacked dishes to the sink. “Dishwasher dirty or clean?”
    “It should be empty.”
Kate began putting plastic wrap over the leftovers.
    When the dishes were
rinsed and loaded, Skip said, “You are going to tell me what’s going on
eventually, aren’t you? The suspense is killing me.”
    “Come on in the living
room.”
    Kate motioned him to
the sofa as she pulled the note out of her briefcase, then handed it to him.
She sat down in an armchair.
    He read the note. SHE
LIES YOU KNOW. SHE’S TEARING US APART WITH HER LIES AND YOUR HELPING HER. Not
sure where to put it, he opted for sliding it back into her open briefcase on the
floor.
    “You have any idea who
sent it?”
    Kate shook her head.
“I’m probably overreacting. It’s been a long and stressful week. It’s not like
the note’s really threatening. I guess it’s just... disturbing, is all.”
    “I’ll say it’s
disturbing,” Skip said. “They won’t be able to do anything about it but you
should probably file a police report, just in case.”
    “Yeah, that’s pretty
much verbatim what Rob said.”
    Skip’s forehead
wrinkled as he attempted to suppress a frown.
    Kate noticed the
aborted expression. “Look, I’m too damned tired tonight to deal with...,” she
started to snap at him, then stopped herself. She wasn’t sure it was a good
idea to acknowledge out loud the subtle tension between the men in her life.
“He works right down the hall from me,” she continued, in a more matter-of-fact
tone. “I wanted his legal advice, and some emotional support.”
    Then her voice lost all
of its annoyed edge and dropped to a whisper. “But when I started for home,
I...”
    Skip had stood up and
was walking over toward her chair. Squatting down beside it, he said, “I’m
honored, Kate, that you wanted my advice and support as well.”
    She stared at him.
“Damn it, Skip, how is it that you always manage to say just the right thing?”
    He gave her one of his
slow, easy grins. “It’s a gift.”
    After a beat, he added,
“What can I do to help, Kate?”
    “I don’t know. Well,
actually I do, but everything I can think of involves touching. It’s already
helped a lot just having you here.”
    “Darlin’, first and
foremost, I am your friend. I will always be here when you need
me.”
    Kate gave him a small
smile. “Thank you for putting up with me.”
    They decided to watch a
video. Kate apologized that all she had were sappy chick flicks. “When I watch
TV, I want total escapism.”
    “Sappy chick flick
works for me. Here, you stretch out on the sofa. I’ll take the chair.”
    Awhile later, she heard
Skip calling her name. “Kay-ate, oh, Kate.” She opened her eyes and realized
she had drifted off. The movie’s credits were rolling.
    He was grinning at her
from the chair. “I’d come over and carry you to your bed, but I’m assuming that
would be a bad idea.”
    Her mind flashed back
to her walk that afternoon, which now felt like several days ago. What had she
been thinking? If this man was acting neurotic