Snow Falling on Bluegrass Read Online Free PDF Page A

hope for would be some very chilly hikes and shivery trust circles.
    True to our luck, at that very moment a misting rain speckled the windshield. So no outdoor activities at all, then.
    Awesome.

2
    In Which the Lights Go Out in Kentucky
    Bouncing between my colleagues’ streams of chatter kept me distracted from the gloomy weather and my ex’s sociopathic tendencies. Gina and Theresa debated the relative merits of the Real Housewives series versus Big Rich Atlanta . Josh and Sadie argued over the color of the kitchen walls in Josh’s new (bigger, less sad) apartment. Josh wanted blue to reflect his alma mater, University of Kentucky. Sadie was an earth tones person and a University of Louisville graduate, so she refused blue on principle. Tom seemed to be grumbling to himself about his kids, who were texting him, asking for his credit card number for online purchases. And Jacob was reading aloud from a book of Chuck Norris facts that I got him for the office Secret Santa exchange. It was nice that my gift was appreciated, but I didn’t necessarily need to know that Chuck Norris could tie cherry stems with his ear.
    The weather seemed to be getting worse as we got closer to our destination. The drizzling mix of rain and tiny sleet pellets started to freeze to the windshield, giving it a crackling stained glass appearance. Josh mercilessly defrosted the windshield and kept up his color debate with Sadie, but I couldn’t help noticing that he frequently drifted into the other lane. Interior decorating angst was, apparently, a worse driving distraction than texting.
    I worried about Bonnie Turkle, yet another office soul mate, who worked out of a satellite KCT location four hours away from Frankfort in Mud Creek. She was one of the smartest women I knew, but she had a history of vehicular disasters. Icy roads were not going to help her chances of arriving safely. I pulled out my phone, frowning at its 40 percent charge. I had several missed calls and voice mails from a number I didn’t recognize. Maybe Darrell had used someone else’s phone? I’d kept my cell on silent just in case he tried to call, a common occurrence after a breakup when he ran out of clean underwear and friends who would let him crash on their couches. Also, I didn’t want to hear about any extra bills he found in my name.
    Shaking my head, I sent a quick text to Bonnie. U OK? DON’T respond if you’re driving. Wait til U stop!
    â€œI’m sure Bonnie is fine,” said a smooth voice to my left. My eyes darted to Charlie’s face, but he’d gone back to looking at his magazine.
    I nodded and tried to tamp down the pterodactyl-size tummy butterflies set loose by his mouth being so close to my ear.
    I’d been with the KCT’s marketing department for about three years. I majored in English literature, which meant that without a master’s degree I was basically qualified for nothing when I graduated. My parents lived in Frankfort and I had been desperate to move out of their house. I’d walked into the state department of tourism offices because I’d confused the address with that of the insurance company down the street. I was sitting in the lobby, explaining the mix-up to my (unlikely) potential employer, copying down directions to the insurance office with one hand and dabbing at a coffee stain on my blouse with the other. My ability to keep my cool and multitask in less than ideal circumstances caught then marketing director Ray Brackett’s attention.
    Ray pulled me in to interview for the assistant’s position and hired me on the spot.
    I adjusted to the position more quickly than I’d thought possible. Running someone else’s life? That I could do. It was like juggling a dozen little balls, and the reward for keeping them in the air was a schedule that ran smoothly. I was not a particularly creative person. I would never paint a great masterpiece or invent some