SEAL Brotherhood 06 - SEAL My Destiny Read Online Free PDF Page B

uncomplicated. I like it rich and complicated. Entangled . And I want to be sorely missed when I’m gone.”
    Well, the little lady had gotten her way. Trouble was, there was no fuckin’ way she would ever know about it. It wasn’t fair.
    But it was the way it was.

Chapter 6
    ‡
    J ulie hadn’t talked to her brother in weeks, not since he’d announced his engagement.
    “We’re about to start having rehearsals. You ready for prime time, sis?” Colin asked.
    “Doesn’t Stephanie have some gorgeous friends who want to be her bridesmaids? I don’t want her to think she’s stuck with me.”
    “Nonsense. She’s got five of those already. Besides, I think…outside of her…you’ll be the prettiest gal there.
    Julie remembered trying on the beautiful peach gown Stephanie had chosen for her bridesmaids, and how elegant and regal it made her feel. She wrote a reminder note to herself to schedule her hair, the final fitting, and to go hunting for the right bra, one that would give her the cleavage without looking like she was poured into a too-small dress.
    Julie and Colin’s parents were planning and hosting the wedding, since Stephanie had lost her mother in a commercial plane crash when she was in high school. Her father had been in the military, and had been killed overseas some years before.
    “So, when’s the rehearsal?”
    Colin gave her several dates, including the bridal shower and bachelorette party. She wasn’t very close to Stephanie, and didn’t feel she should intrude on a private party with her girlfriends, but since Julie’s mom was going, she’d make sure they left after a respectable showing, and she’d see to it her mom got home safely.
    School would be out the week before the parties and rehearsals, giving her time to take care of all of the final arrangements, and to give her parents a hand with entertaining the out-of-town guests and decorating the house and garden for the ceremony.
    She had also arranged to rent a cottage from one of her friends so she could have peace and quiet when she needed a break.
    She had to admit, she was looking forward to it. She’d been in a funk for the past thirty days, ever since the wonderful night and then the huge disappointment with Luke.
    This was a welcome distraction while she planned her summer. It would be nice to spend a week up north, where she grew up. Get her summer vacation in gear. Shed the cobwebs of loneliness. It had been more challenging this year, thanks to a couple of whacko parents, but the kids were great, and more exceptional than usual, and she was there for the kids, anyhow.
    After her phone conversation with her brother, Julie glanced over at the brochures for vacation packages she was considering. She used to hate summer vacation, since she’d had no idea what to do with the time off. No man on the horizon. She began taking her summer trips in the middle of the hiatus so she wouldn’t feel so lonely. And here it was again, another trip to Fiji, Hawaii or the Greek islands…by herself.
    But it was better than staying home all by herself.
    The last day of school, her car already packed and gassed up so she could leave straight from school, she turned in her year-end paperwork that morning, and stopped by the principal’s office for an update on a disgruntled parent issue.
    Dr. Connors frowned when she knocked on his door. “Come take a seat.” He stood, pointing to the wooden armed chair in front of his desk. “And close the door, please.”
    Julie’s throat constricted. She did as she was told.
    “I’m not making much headway with the Millers—Mr. Miller more than the Mrs.”
    “They need to get that child into counseling.”
    “Yes, I understand. They are willing to give her extra tutoring, but they do not want her staying back a year. You recommended she pass?”
    “As a matter of fact, no, I didn’t,” Julie answered. “My reasoning is noted in the girl’s report card, which I turned in with the rest just