Unraveled (Love in Salem, book 2) Read Online Free PDF

home.  I’ll see you in the morning.”
    Atayla shut off her desk lamp and waited outside the doors while Bill locked up for the night.  He always walked her to her car after hours.  Salem was a charming city to live in, but it wasn’t a stranger to crime.  Especially crimes against anyone who was dumb enough to walk in a back alley by one’s self in the evening.
    Saying their final goodnights, Atayla settled into her car and locked the doors.  She didn’t waste any time lingering in the small parking lot behind the law office.  The place gave her the creeps in the evening. The light was always obscured by the surrounding buildings, garbage was strewn about, and it smelled like unwashed bodies.
    She pulled out of the alley and headed west towards The Sandwich Shoppe.  The restaurant’s name was deceiving.  Claire Daley, the owner, offered many delightful dishes for all times of the day and night.  It was one of Atayla’s favorite places to eat.
    Claire had become a good friend of hers over the years she had been living in Salem.  She and Abby were as thick as thieves, which is how Atayla met her.  The girls all liked to meet up at least once a month for margaritas.  It was a night they all looked forward to gossip and laughter, shared their joys and frustrations. 
    It was a way for them to keep in touch during their busy lives.  But the truth was their lives were so intertwined they did see each other nearly every day.
    The ringing of her phone caught her attention as she pulled into a parking space in front of The Sandwich Shoppe.  After putting her car in park, she rummaged through her bag until she found her cell phone.  Racing to answer before her voice mail kicked in, she flipped it open without checking the caller ID.
    “Hello?”
    A whiskey rough voice chuckled in her ear.  “Atayla, did I call you at a bad time?  You sound a little harried.”
    Aidan. 
    “No!” She cleared her throat.  “I mean, no.  I was just getting ready to pick up some dinner and head home for the night.  My phone was buried in that bottomless pit I call a work bag, and I was trying to find it before it stopped ringing.”
    Laughter again trilled in her ear.  “Women and their bags, never could understand that.”  Nervous tension filled the line for a few seconds.  “Listen, I, ah, I just finished up with my last client for the day.  How about you tell me where you are eating dinner, and I’ll meet you there.”
    “Oh, uh, I called and ordered it to go.  I’m not actually staying to eat…” Her words trailed off.
    “Okay, that’s fine.  It was worth a shot.  The truth is you have been on my mind a lot the last few days” the last few months actually “and I just really wanted to see you.  Maybe some other time?”
    Goodness the man defined sweet.  How could a woman resist?  She could admit that she was just as anxious to see him also.  Atayla giggled nervously. 
    “I’m at The Sandwich Shoppe, do you know where it is?  I can tell Claire to toss my food onto a plate when you get here.”
    “Perfect.”  Relief evident in his voice.  “I’ll be there in ten minutes.”
    Atayla hung up the phone, shaking her head.  Though surprised, this definitely brightened up her day.  A nice meal with a handsome man, what more could a girl ask for?  It was a bonus that they would be having their first meeting, date, whatever, here at her friend’s restaurant. 
    It was a safe place, and she knew Claire would be keeping an eye on them.  She still didn’t know Aidan all that well and felt better knowing she wouldn’t be alone.  Silly really, since she was an adult and shouldn’t need the support of another just to get through a dinner date.
    Atayla walked up the sidewalk with a little bounce in her step.  She had ten minutes to explain things to Claire and hope there was a table opening up that provided a bit of privacy.
     

 
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
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