Summer's Night Read Online Free PDF Page B

you."
    Summer's face heated from the unaccustomed attention and praise. "I would love to have more, but there simply isn't room. I also adopted a dog, Murphy. She keeps me busy and makes wonderful company."
    "Your family must be quite proud of you." The older woman patted her hand.
    "It's just my mother, but she says she is." She stuck another forkful of food in her mouth.
    "Your father?" Night asked while shoving the final bite of food around his plate.
    "Sperm donor." Summer answered, battling to keep the smile off her face at their reactions.
    Night bristled and scowled. "He wouldn't man up to his responsibilities?"
    Her lips twitched as she chuckled. "No. I meant a real sperm donor."
    Mrs Kensington's mouth dropped open, while Night stared at her in bafflement.
    "My mother wanted a child badly and couldn't find a man to love. So, she sought the services of a sperm bank. Supposedly, she chose a tall, blond athlete with a high IQ."
    "How… unusual." Mrs Kensington stammered, her mouth hanging open.
    Summer just grinned. "A bit radical maybe, but since I wouldn't be here without it, I'm glad she went through with it." She grabbed her juice glass, emptying it in a couple of gulps, amused at the stunned expressions on both faces.
    "So, she never married?"
    "Nope. It's just been me, her, and grandmother as far as I can remember. Grandpa died when I was three, so I don't remember him at all. Grandma passed two years ago."
    "What about you, dear? Do you intend to marry and raise a family? Or visit one of those… banks?" Mrs Kensington pulled a napkin up and patted her mouth.
    Summer's face warmed immediately. Such intimate and personal questions made her uncomfortable and jumpy, as if she expected them to judge her for the lack of a typical life. "I honestly don't know. I guess it depends if the right man comes along or not." She took a moment before turning the tables and addressing Mrs Kensington. "So, have you been married?"
    Night flinched while the older woman's face dropped, her hands clasped in her lap, head down, as if the memory weighted her down.
    Squirming, Summer immediately regretted her words. Should have kept my mouth closed. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to pry. I should just…"
    "No. It's okay." Mrs Kensington looked up, reaching over to pat her arm. "We asked about your family, it's only right you would inquire about ours." She took a deep breath, met Night's eyes, then began to speak. "I haven't seen my ex-husband for nearly thirty years."
    Summer gasped at the revelation. Certainly in her short time working with the woman, she'd never seen a wedding band or heard one word whispered about a husband. She simply chalked it up to the woman being a widow or divorced somewhere along the line, but not that far in the past.
    "We were still young. I guess I was naïve too, being raised on the reservation. I fell in love with Tom, married him against my mother's wishes. He moved us to Montana, closer to his home tribe of Lakota." She picked at her napkin, eyes lowered in remembrance. "It wasn't long before he began drinking. Just now and again. I didn't think much of it since I was busy caring for baby Colton while Tom worked. He never wanted much to do with the baby, always said he was going out with the guys to let off steam. I didn't argue or say anything." She puffed out a breath.
    Night sat tense across the table, a ticking began in his cheek. His blue eyes flashed with anger.
    Summer remained still, unsure what to do or say. She remained mute and simply listened to the woman's story.
    "Before long, it got worse. A lot worse. He drank every night. I questioned him about it when he came home smelling like liquor in the middle of the night. He slapped me. That's when my nightmare began."
    Summer gasped, her mouth fell open. She'd heard that reservations struggled with alcohol abuse and domestic violence. Never did she expect to sit down with one of those victims, hearing her tale first hand, seeing what a horrendous