River Road Read Online Free PDF

I ignored my aunt all these years?”
    “He just commented that you hadn’t come back, that’s all.” Once again Mason tossed the steel wrench casually into the air and caught it with fluid ease. “He said you never returned after that summer when I pissed you off by yanking you out of the party at Harper Ranch Park.”
    That stopped her. “The old Harper Ranch is now a park?”
    “The town took it over a couple of years ago. Grass, picnic tables, a ball field, playground, dog-walking areas, the works. You wouldn’t recognize the place.”
    “I see. Well, as it happens, your uncle is right. This is the first time I’ve returned to Summer River since that night.”
    “Why?”
    She gave him a serene go-to-hell smile. “It’s really none of your business, is it?”
    “Nope, just curious.”
    Thirteen years ago everyone said you didn’t want to mess with Mason Fletcher. Nothing had changed except that he was now the man she had known that he would become and then some. It was as if he had been tempered in fire like the steel blade of some ancient sword. Everything about him had gotten harder, stronger, more relentless. The sharp planes and angles of his face had become fierce. Time had added some sleek, solid muscle and endowed him with the confident air of a man who knows what he wants, what he will tolerate and where he draws the line.
    The years had given him something else as well—the rare, invisible aura of quiet, inner power that was the hallmark of a man in full control of himself.
    He did, however, look considerably the worse for wear around the edges. She had a feeling he’d learned the hard way what every professional guardian angel probably had to learn—that you couldn’t save everyone. For a man as determined and unyielding as Mason, that would have been one very tough lesson.
    In spite of her irritation, she felt herself softening. It was hard to stay mad at a man who was born to do the right thing when the chips were down. He really couldn’t help it, she thought. He was what he was, and there was probably no force on the face of the planet that could change that.
    “Oh, for Pete’s sake,” she said. “Just to clarify, Aunt Sara did not want me to come back here after that last summer. In fact, she didn’t want anyone in the family to visit her in Summer River. We respected her wishes. And while I certainly don’t owe you any explanations, I can assure you that I saw a lot of her. She and Mary stayed with me several times each year. Sara knew that I find the holidays stressful, so she made sure to spend them with me. After she and Mary sold the antiques shop, I joined them on some of their cruises. I can assure you that Sara was not neglected in any way.” Lucy took a breath. “I loved her. And I loved Mary, too, because she loved Sara and Sara loved her. There. Satisfied?”
    Mason had the grace to look apologetic. “Didn’t mean to imply you had neglected your aunt.”
    She gave him her best fake bright smile. “Of course you did.”
    His jaw hardened. “I understand that family dynamics can be complicated.”
    “No kidding. Especially when viewed from the outside.”
    Mason exhaled slowly. “Okay, you’ve made your point. I liked Sara. Mary, too. I was sorry to hear that they had been killed.”
    “Thank you,” Lucy said. She hesitated, wondering if it was too soon to probe for answers.
    “I suppose you heard it was a car accident?” she said.
    “Yes. It’s always a shock. Aaron and I lost our parents in a car accident.”
    “I know. I’m sorry.”
    “It’s been a long time,” he said.
    “Doesn’t mean it didn’t happen and that it didn’t leave some major wounds. You heal from wounds, if you’re lucky, but there are always scars.”
    He looked as if the simple observation had caught him off guard. She got the feeling he was unsure how to respond.
    “No,” he agreed finally. “Doesn’t mean there aren’t scars.”
    She tightened her grip on the straps of