Scarlet Awakening (Sweet Secrets #2) Read Online Free PDF Page A

as he stood up.
    “Hey girls, your grandmother and I were wondering if you felt up to running a few errands for us.” He glanced between the two of us curiously.
    I furrowed my brows and met Ella’s confused stare. Obviously they didn’t want to tell us what they knew, and instead were trying to change the subject.
    Ella sighed, but said, “Sure.”
    “Great,” Grandma said. “There’s a short list on the refrigerator. I just need you to grab some stuff for dinner tonight.” It wasn’t even nine in the morning yet, and they wanted to send us out to grab stuff for dinner?
    Grandpa dug into his pocket and handed me a few folded bills. “That should be enough for you two to get something small for yourselves too.”
    “Take your time, and while you’re out you two should grab something for breakfast. It’s the most important meal of the day. Go sightsee a little too. It’s been a while since you’ve been home.” She strained a smile as Ella and I stood and went to grab the list from the kitchen.
    I glanced over it before heading up the steps to change out of my pajamas. Once we got to the top of the steps, Ella murmured, “Weird,” dragging the syllables out.
    “I know,” I replied before we went to our respective rooms to change for our grocery run. I changed fast and met Ella in the foyer once I was done. As we exited the house, list in hand, I thought about asking my mom about the picture, but instantly decided against it. If my grandparents didn’t even want to talk about it, then surely she wouldn’t either. Besides, I was still nervous about her state of mind. A part of me just didn’t think she could handle a question like this.
    “We have to find another way,” Ella said as we left the property, heading down the street. It was like her words had echoed my thoughts.
    “Don’t worry. We will.”

 
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
    Chapter 5
     
     
    “Cleanup on aisle five, cleanup on aisle five,” droned a monotonous voice over the loudspeaker.
    I groaned as I followed Ella down another aisle in search of a bag of yellow rice. My grandmother’s list of food items needed for tonight’s dinner was short, but contained items that we had trouble finding in the unfamiliar supermarket. We had spent half an hour searching for heavy cream, which I assumed was going to be whipped and used for dessert.
    “Stop groaning,” Ella chided, tossing me a glare over her shoulder.
    I huffed, coming to a stop behind her as she began to glance over the shelves. “This is taking forever. I have other things I could be doing.” I poked out my bottom lip in a pout.
    “Oh, really?”
    I nodded my head, crossing my arms over my chest.
    She raised an eyebrow at me, looking away from the shelves momentarily. “Like what?”
    “Unpacking,” I answered quickly.
    Ella raised her eyebrow even higher. “Is that supposed to be a joke?” She returned her gaze to the shelves to scan for the rice. “You and I know damn well that if you weren’t here you still wouldn’t be unpacking.”
    I crossed my arms over my chest and raised my chin. “No, I was serious. I could be unpacking, but honestly, if I wasn’t here then I probably wouldn’t be.” If I wasn’t here then I probably would be back at the house just hanging out and relaxing. I had to admit that I loved the San Diego weather, but I was kind of nervous about leaving the house. There were so many people I didn’t want to run into. Old friends, an ex-boyfriend, and the mean girls who had made Ella’s life hell last year. I figured that my best plan of action was to hide out in the house for the next two months and just spend as much time with my family as possible. Really, they were the reason why I was here anyway. So far my plan had been working. It had only been two days, but if I stuck with this all summer, and limited my time going out, then everything should go smoothly.
    “Trust me, I know,” she responded, getting lower as she continued to look