Forever Grace Read Online Free PDF

people…what if Barry caught wind of a woman and four children camped out in a cottage?
    Panic licked through her, kicking paranoia into overdrive. Maybe she should just leave him in the rain after all. Or maybe tomorrow, when she got into his cottage, she could take his cell phone…and his car keys. If he couldn’t go anywhere or talk to anyone—
    “Is something wrong?”
    Sean McKittrick’s voice shattered her wild imaginings. She met his narrowed gaze. Uncurled her fists. Set aside her wholly inappropriate plan to become another Annie Wilkes from Misery . She was being ridiculous—and probably raising all kinds of suspicions in her neighbor’s head.
    “No.” She shook her head, forcing a smile. “No, nothing’s wrong. And it’s Grace. My name is Grace.”
    She switched on the flashlight and stepped around his outstretched hand to scoop up the shotgun from the deck.
    “We should go,” she added, shining the light onto the stairs. “Before the rain starts.”
    Her neighbor regarded her for a long, silent moment before he lowered his hand to the crutch again and swung himself around. “Of course,” he agreed. “After you.”

CHAPTER 5
    ………………
    THE SHORT TRAVERSE BETWEEN THE cottages seemed to take forever. Even with Grace walking backward, shining her flashlight on the trail to light the way, Sean had one hell of a time keeping both himself and his crutches aligned with the packed surface. Too many times to count, one crutch tip or the other sank into the soft earth at the sides, throwing him wildly off balance. Most times he steadied himself against a nearby tree. Twice, Grace had to dart forward to catch him and hold him upright until he regained his footing.
    She smelled like strawberries.
    Which he totally had no business noticing.
    Kids, he reminded himself. You don’t do kids.
    Especially not four of them.
    At last, his leg on fire and throbbing from the repeated jarring it had received, they emerged from the woods at Lucien Tremaine’s cottage. Which reminded him…
    “So how do you know Luc, anyway?” he asked, pausing to flex fingers aching from their death-grip on the crutches. “Are you family?”
    Grace-with-no-last-name stopped a few feet away, a shadow among shadows, flashlight pointed at the ground near his feet.
    “He’s a friend.”
    Sean waited for more. An owl hooted in the trees behind them.
    “You’re not really the talkative type, are you?” he asked.
    “Not really.”
    He tended to like that in a woman. Hell, he preferred the trait in most people. But something about Grace niggled at him, making him want to know more. He squinted at her through the dark, wishing he could see her face, judge her expression. Decide if this was normal reticence on her part, or—
    The flashlight’s beam flicked impatiently. “Are you ready yet?”
    Well. He could figure that out tomorrow.
    “Of course,” he said. “Lead the way.”
    He negotiated the last stretch of path to the cottage—including the three steps up to the porch—without mishap. Ahead of him, Grace knocked at the door.
    “Josh? It’s me.”
    Footsteps sounded inside, the porch light came on, and the door opened. The boy who had triggered the entire evening’s chain of events stood framed in the opening, his wire-framed gaze zeroing in on Sean. Brown eyes widened, and he stumbled back. Sean frowned. His bellow hadn’t been that scary…had it? He cleared his throat, but Grace forestalled any words of greeting with a quick, fierce look over her shoulder. She stepped into the cottage and put an arm around the boy, pulling him in for a hug, resting her chin atop his head.
    “Everything’s fine, sweetie,” Sean heard her murmur. “We got locked out of Mr. McKittrick’s cottage, so I had to bring him back here with me. He’s going to spend the night on the couch, and then we’ll help him get back home in the morning, all right? It’s all good, I promise.”
    Despite the reassurance, tension riddled the