Luck of the Draw (A Betting on Romance Novel Book 1) Read Online Free PDF

Ruth?”
    “Read ‘em and weep, ladies!” Ruth fanned her cards face-up in front of her.
    June sloshed gin and tonic on the tablecloth. “Ruth Pearson, if you weren’t chair of the Gifts for the Greater Good campaign, I’d swear you were cheating. You’ve won five hands in a row!”
    “Oh, stop your belly-aching.” Ruth gleefully pulled the pile of photographs toward her as if it were cold hard cash and not the winning pot in their own personal twist on poker. She’d only won the right to talk about anything she wanted for the evening —old stories or new—but it was exciting nonetheless. “Did you see my cards? Don’t you know what that means?”
    “A royal flush —?”
    “In hearts !” Lydia chimed in meaningfully, her silver bangles jingling excitedly.
    “They think it’s a sign.” Claire tapped the deck and slid the playing cards into their box.
    June looked at her friends as if they were showing signs of early dementia, which was entirely possible given they were all well past menopause. “A sign of what?”
    “That someone in the pot will get married!” Lydia tittered.
    June snorted indelicately.  “What kind of hooey is that?”
    Ruth continued to sort photos. “Not hooey. Don’t you remember? It happened before with Claire’s son, Barry. Within three months of lying in the winning pot next to Lydia’s niece... married .”
    “Oh, I can barely breathe!” said Lydia. “Who do you think it’ll be this time?”
    Ruth scanned the photographs in front of her. “Hmm. After I take out all the children and married men, I’m left with my grandson. But the only woman is your granddaughter, June, and she’s in mourning, poor dear.” She swept her small pile of photos into the box on her lap and sighed. “Oh, well.”
    “So much for fortune-telling cards.” Claire muttered, wiping a brownie crumb off the front of her late husband’s bowling shirt.
    Lydia reached across and picked up the two pictures, her coral-polished fingertips shaking slightly as she looked at them through her bifocals. “Too bad, too. They would have made a handsome couple. See?”
    June peered over Lydia’s shoulder. “ Hmm . I shouldn’t be saying this, him being dead and all, but I wouldn’t be disappointed to see Katie move on to someone more reliable than that deadbeat she was married to, may he rest in peace. She was planning to kick him out, you know. And none too soon, if you ask me.”
    Claire tsk tsked . “Young people take marriage too much for granted these days.”
    June downed the rest of her drink and resisted a third brownie. She had her waistline to consider, after all. “There was a time I would have agreed with you. But after seeing all my Katie did to make that marriage work, she needed to get him out of the house. If not for herself then for the sake of that precious little one.”
    June shook her short silvered hair. “Oh for heaven’s sake, now you’ve got me talking out of turn. Ruth, it’s your turn. You won bragging rights. What do you want to talk about?”

    June 13
Why is it that going on vacation with a toddler feels like preparing for a trip up Mt. Everest? Gone are the days when I could throw a few things in an overnight bag. I have to plan for food, water, wardrobe changes, entertainment, Acts of God and Calls of Nature. And that’s just for the ride there.  Wish me luck tomorrow. Here’s hoping the Sherpas know where they’re going!
    CHAPTER FOUR
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    K ATE STEPPED OUT OF HER CAR AND took a deep breath, glad to be free of the hot, stuffy interior. She could think of plenty of things she’d rather do than drive five hours with a temperamental A/C and cranky toddler. Dental work came to mind. But her aging Corolla was all she could afford for the time being. Maybe ever.
    She swiped a hand across her forehead and looked toward the cottage that would be their home for the summer.
    Faded white clapboards, odd dormers and a slightly tilted front porch spoke