Her Faux Fiancé Read Online Free PDF Page B

wine out of the way. “You haven’t ruined anything, Mom. You just need to back off a little. We’re newly engaged, that’s all, and we haven’t discussed wedding plans. We’re here for Gran and Gramps’ sixty-fifth. Let’s just concentrate on that for now. Okay?”
    Because he wasn’t going to even fictitiously plan a wedding with a woman who ran the second things got tough.
    Besides, he had other things to concentrate on while he was here. Like making sure the man responsible for Karen’s death paid the price.
    Yes, he’d fix the past, enjoy the present, and then figure out what he wanted for his future.
    • • •
    Analise stepped down the narrow hall and walked back in time. She opened the door to her old room, automatically stopping the door before it creaked.
    She might as well have been eighteen again. The room hadn’t changed. Posters of Arabian stallions and long-forgotten pop stars still adorned the walls. A hairbrush and curling iron sat on the dresser, waiting to be called to action. She noticed a small vase of daisies next to the bed. Her grandmother had always kept fresh flowers in every room, even in winter. There were none left alive in the garden.
Afi
must have made a special effort and bought some just for her.
    “I hope it’s okay. I washed the sheets, but I’m not very good at making beds, so you might have to fix it.”
    “It’s wonderful,
Afi
. Thank you,” she whispered. A lump was stuck in her throat.
    “I’ll let you rest now. Then maybe we can get some dinner at Rosie’s when we go to pick up your vehicle.”
    Her grandfather backed out of the room and closed the door behind him.
    Analise sat on the bed, sinking into the soft mattress. A framed photo of her and Karen was propped up against the bedside lamp. She picked it up and ran the tip of her finger over her best friend’s face.
    What would my life be like if Karen had lived? If I had stayed on in Akureyri? Worked with Afi in the stables?
Married Erik and had his babies?
    A tear trickled down her face and landed on the glass covering the photo. She had to be more tired than she’d thought for the tears to fall so freely. Flipping the photo over, she released the clips at the back and removed the cardboard holding the glass and photo in the frame. Sandwiched between the backing and the photo was another, smaller picture. One she’d stolen from her best friend.
    Erik looked so much younger, yet her heart rate still accelerated when she saw his face. He’d been her first love, the reason she hadn’t gone with Karen to the party that ultimately led to her death. Instead of celebrating with her fellow grads, she’d stayed at home and prepared for her first proper date with Erik. After he asked her granddad, they were going to drive into the city and, well, dinner and a movie weren’t the only things on the agenda.
    Putting the photos away in the bedside table, she shut off the memories. Wishes wouldn’t change the past, or the future for that matter. She grabbed her handbag from where she’d slung it on the bed and searched inside for the vial of antibiotics. A swig of water from the bottle she’d bought at the airport helped two of the pills down.
    She bit her bottom lip as she eased her jeans past the large bandage wrapped around her upper thigh. Thankfully, there was no sign of blood or oozing. Still, it hurt like heck. Wishing she’d also filled the prescription for painkillers, she lay back on the bed and covered herself with the homemade patchwork quilt, wrapping herself in her grandmother’s love.
    • • •
    The room was dark when Analise woke. A faint shaft of pink light came through the gap in the curtains. A glance at the clock revealed it to be five thirty in the morning. She’d slept for over twelve hours. The pain in her leg had lessened to a dull throb, and her stomach protested the lack of food.
    Gingerly, she climbed out of bed and opened her duffel bag, instinctively stepping over the floorboards