Hearts On Fire Read Online Free PDF Page A

he?
Yes he did. No strings. No commitments. Could a man ask for a better deal? “I’m
not worried, just curious.”
         “Well don’t be,” JD told
him with a frown. “That girl is nothing but trouble. She’s either going to wind
up in prison or dead someday, you mark my words.”
         JD was right. Of course
he was right. Josh didn’t know what all Katy got up to and he didn’t want to.
He just knew she was fun on a cold winter’s night. Or a hot summer’s night for
that matter. An image of her slipping into the stream at the back of his
property came to mind. The full moon casting a glow on pale, silky skin. Her
devilish grin as she dared him to follow her. Yeah. She was fun. And that’s all
it could ever amount to.
         JD looked to the empty
seat at the table. Julie had yet to come down. Their mother was up in her room
now trying to get a rise out of her. JD had to admit he was worried about
Julie. She was taking Ken’s death very badly. But it wasn’t just that and he knew
it. Something else, something deeper, was eating at his sister. It was time to
start digging a little. “Julie ever talk to you?”
         Josh blinked at him.
“About what?”
         “I don’t know. She just
seems…” He tried to conjure up a word and the best he could come up with was,
“Jumpy.”
         Josh considered while he
spread blackberry jam on a piece of toast. “Yeah, I guess she has been lately.
Even before Ken’s accident.” He sighed and wondered how much, if any, he should
tell his brother.
         “Out with it,” JD pressed,
knowing his brother well enough to know he was holding something back.
         “Damnit, I hate it when
you do that. Use your lawyer super powers of observation on me,” he grumbled.
         “You wear shit on your
sleeve, little brother. Sorry. You’d make a piss-poor criminal. Now what is it
you so desperately don’t want to tell me about our little sister?”
         “Well, a few weeks ago I
saw her coming out of the Moniker Hotel in Freeport.”
         “Maybe her and Ken—”
         “Ken was on business in
Denver. As it was I was just in Freeport on an emergency, so no one would have
expected to see me there.”
         “What did she have to say
about it?”
         Josh jerked his head up.
“I didn’t confront her about it!” he whispered loudly, shaking his head. “I was
curious though. I walked into the hotel and asked if she was still registered.
They didn’t look like they wanted to tell me so I explained I was her brother
and wanted to surprise her with dinner later. They told me she’d checked out.”
         JD shrugged. “Maybe since
Ken was away on business she decided to treat herself. That hotel has a nice
spa, you know. Mom used to go there all the time. Matter of fact, it’s where
she sent Jules to be pampered before the wedding.”
         “Maybe,” he agreed. Then,
warming up to the idea which had not occurred to him he nodded enthusiastically.
“Yeah. You’re probably right!” Christ, and he’d been thinking his little sister
had been having an affair. Crazy. That was just plain crazy.

 
    Chapter 6
     
     
     
         Things were finally settling down. A couple missing cows, a shoplifting and a guy bitching about
his speeding ticket and threatening to take the police department to court. It
sure beat the hell out of people missing in the snow and one car wreck after
another. Matt thought maybe he could actually catch his breath now. He even
decided to take a break. A cup of coffee and a fishing magazine. But of course,
the gods had different ideas. He no sooner laid the glossy magazine out on his
now cleared desk when a knock came to his door. “Go away,” he hollered, only
half joking.
         The door cracked open and
a head of frizzy mouse-blonde hair poked in. Blinking eyes which had way too
much shadow and mascara, Constance trilled laughter at what she considered to
be the