Hot Pursuit Read Online Free PDF Page B

thought of Matt there made her
body tingle in ways it hadn’t in a very long time, there was no way
she was going to repeat the mistakes of her past. They might not be
teenagers, and she might not give a damn what anyone said these
days since she was no longer vulnerable, but sleeping with Matt was
just a bad idea all around.
    Her feelings for Matt had always been a giant
tangle, like a ball of Christmas lights buried in the garage all
year, and she really didn’t want to start sorting them out
again.
    “He won’t be there, Jules. Mark my
words.”
    Julie sighed. “Fine. But he will be in town
for a few days, so do yourself a favor and don’t push him away when
he comes around. You definitely need to get laid.”
    Evie shook her head. “Maybe so, but he’s the
wrong man to do it.”
    Julie snorted. “Well, I can promise you one
thing. If he looks at me that way, I’m not saying no.”
    “Go for it,” Evie said, though a little
twinge of jealousy speared into her at the thought.
    “There’s always Jimmy Thibodeaux, if you
insist on saying no to Matt. He’s been asking after you since he
got back.”
    Evie frowned. Jimmy had been one of the worst
back in high school after Matt had left. Always calling her Easy
Evie and grabbing her ass. She’d hated him then. She didn’t much
care for the idea of him now since she’d heard he hadn’t changed
much. Thankfully, he’d been away in Montana on a hunting trip for
most of the month and she hadn’t yet had the dubious pleasure of
running into him again.
    “I’ll pass.”
    Julie shrugged. “Probably best. Jimmy’s not
been quite right in the head lately. He pulled a knife on Ginny
Temple a couple of months ago.”
    Evie’s heart somersaulted. “What do you
mean?”
    “She said something about his hunting dog
crapping on her lawn and Jimmy waved that knife around like he was
some kind of avenger. But nothing came of it.”
    Evie shook her head. Damn crazy Cajun
redneck. She hadn’t missed that about Rochambeau at all. “And you
were seriously suggesting I should sleep with him?”
    Julie’s mouth turned down. “Of course not! I
was kidding. Geez, you’ve lost your sense of humor lately.”
    “It hasn’t been a good few months,
Jules.”
    “Which is why I said you should get laid.
Take your mind right off it. But no Matt and definitely no Jimmy.”
She patted Evie’s arm. “We’ll find someone.”
    “I’d rather we didn’t.”
    Julie grinned. “We’ll see. Now let’s stop
talking about it and get going.”
    Evie’s little sister looked up from her
position in front of the television as they walked through the
living room. Evie’s heart twisted at the look on the girl’s face.
Evie had been home a month now, and Sarah was still sullen and
withdrawn.
    Not that she could blame the kid. There was
ten years difference in their ages, and Evie hadn’t exactly been
around for the past few years. No, she’d been off doing her own
thing and calling home on occasion rather than making an effort to
be a part of her little sister’s life. She hadn’t thought of it
much at the time, but being home and seeing the effects—well, it
made her feel rotten every time she saw that wary look on Sarah’s
face.
    “Where are y’all going looking like that?”
Sarah was curious, but her tone said she couldn’t care less.
    “It’s a party.” Julie put her hands on her
hips. “For adults.”
    Sarah snorted. “Yeah, I figured that.”
    “I don’t have to go,” Evie said, though Julie
made a noise when she did. “Is there something you want to do
tonight? We could go for pizza, or maybe a movie?”
    Sarah turned back to the TV and pressed the
channel button. “I ate pizza for lunch. And there’s nothing at that
lame theater I want to see.”
    Evie sighed. “Mama’s at the Moose Lodge for
the evening. Are you sure you don’t want me to stay?”
    Sarah’s eyes flashed. “I know where Mama is.
She’s been going to bingo every week for the past four