(Mis)fortune Read Online Free PDF

My stomach did its strange flutter again.  Apparently, my sleep-deprived brain hadn’t imagined how good he looked.  He watched the door.  It felt like he was looking right at me, but I knew that wasn’t possible.
    He had left his jacket off and wore a plain, white tee with his jeans.  I blinked slowly and looked at his hands.  He held a plastic bag in one hand and a paper bag balanced on top a drink-carrier in the other.  Food.  I opened the door and stepped back so he could enter.  He nodded at me as he stepped in.  When he walked past, he seemed to slow, and I couldn’t help but notice he smelled good, too.
    The boys perked up and inched toward Emmitt when they saw him enter.  He smiled reassuringly and waved them over to the table where he set the paper bag and drinks.
    “There’s a fast food place nearby.  Since everything’s been quiet, I made a quick run,” he said as I closed and locked the door.  When I turned around, he offered me the plastic shopping bag.  “I noticed you didn’t have much, so I also picked up a few things.”
    I took the bag, opened it, and blinked at the contents: toothbrushes, toothpaste, new socks, and t-shirts for all three of us.
    “Thank you,” I murmured, not looking up.  Gratitude warred with suspicion.  He’d bought us things .  He didn’t even know us but saw our need and shopped for us.  Instead of trying to resolve my feelings over his kind gesture, I nudged the boys toward the bathroom.
    While the three of us crowded around the sink and brushed our teeth, Emmitt set the food out on the table.
    The boys brushed longer than usual to make up for the missed brushings—Liam’s idea.  I smiled at them.  When they finished, we closed the door so they could change into their new clothes. The best part was the clean socks.  Aden’s little feet got so sweaty when he had to wear shoes for an extended period.
    Emmitt leaned against the wall near the motel door, looking relaxed with a hand in his pocket as he drank his coffee.  Two fast food wrappers already littered the garbage.
    The boys settled at the table and tentatively reached for some food.  I went straight for the coffee then sat on the edge of the bed.  I finally glanced at the bedside clock.  I’d slept for five hours.  Good enough for now, but it would catch up with me fast.  At least I could think better.
    Suspicions I should have already considered continued to creep in.  Why would a complete stranger want to help me to the extent he had?  Was it just chance he’d hung around so long at the diner?  Feeling watched, I glanced at Emmitt and met his gaze.  Did something lay hidden there?  I couldn’t tell anything beyond the intensity in which he watched me.
    “Sorry for waking you up so soon.  I could hear the boys saying they were hungry,” he said quietly, shifting his gaze to look at my brothers.
    Having his attention diverted brought relief.  Perhaps I was just being paranoid, but it felt like he constantly watched me.  Maybe he just wanted to figure out what he’d gotten himself into.  Or maybe he already knew.  The suspicion that he’d been planted at the diner rose in my mind, but I quickly killed it.  David had been following me.  I’d picked directions at random, never knowing where I wanted to go until I turned.  He’d been halfway through his meal when we’d arrived.  There was no way he could have been there for me.
    I followed his gaze and smiled at the boys.  They took huge bites, plowing through their burgers.
    “Slow down, you two, or you’re going to choke,” I warned them.  I glanced back at Emmitt.  “We haven’t been eating right, so it’s good that you woke me.  They needed this.”
    “And you need more sleep.”
    The soft concern in his voice made my stomach do a very large, very crazy spiral, and I decided to change the subject.
    “I’m rested enough for you to tell me who you are and why you’re helping me.”
    He nodded.