Until the Stars Fall From the Sky Read Online Free PDF Page B

about Mom. She won’t let me go over to see her. She gave me some bogus line about being afraid Gabriel might get sick. She hasn’t left her house in a week. I don’t even think she’s hanging out with her country club friends,” Donda explains, her voice trailing off until I could barely hear it.
    My heart sinks; I wonder how callous and malicious my step dad is being now to cause my mom to retreat from the world. “Sis, I’ll try to talk to her when I get home in a couple of weeks. But, you know how she is. For some reason she protects him even after all the crap he throws at her,” I say, as I sigh.
    “Hurry home please , Jeff. I don’t know how much longer she can hang on,” Donda pleads.
    “I’ ll get out of here the minute my contract is up, I promise. Thanks for taking care of Mom while I’ve been gone. I love you,” I reply, emotion choking my voice.
    “Sure thing, Little Bro. You have to go make the big bucks so that you can become a big-shot lawyer and save us all. I love you too,” Donda says as she hangs up the phone.
    I feel so helpless. I need to be two places at once. I have a lot of seniority here since I’ve worked here almost every summer since I turned 18. I make a pretty good wage and I’ll need every penny of this money for law school. The downside is that it puts me half a state away from my mom and sister. I know I can’t adequately protect them from this distance. It’s very frustrating to try to balance everyone’s needs.
    I look at the bottle of Half-and-Half in my hand. Something tells me that my life isn’t about to get any less complicated. Yet, for once , I think I’m okay with that prospect. In fact, I’m actually looking forward to it. I start humming the ‘80s anthem Eye of the Tiger as I fill out forms in triplicate.

Chapter 8: Kiera
    I am exhausted. My shoulder is throbbing in pain from my unexpected swim in the lake. It is a sad reminder of why I can no longer swim competitively. All I want to do is crawl in bed and sleep for a week. Unfortunately, I can’t do that just yet because I smell like lake water.
    Heather and Tara are at Panera’s getting some warm soup and sandwiches. I need to hurry up and take a shower before they get back with dinner. As exhausted as I am, I’m even more ravenously hungry.
    I catch a glimpse of myself in the full-length mirror as I wheel past it on the way to the shower. It is impossible not to laugh at the incongruous sight. In all of the confusion and stress of the rescue, I forgot to return Jeff’s bomber jacket. It is so large that it seems to swallow half of my body. I reach up and run my fingertips down the sleeve. The leather is amazingly supple and luxurious, but rough and imperfect. I can see that the jacket is cared for, yet well worn.
    I tilt my head toward my shoulder and inhale the glorious scent. It smells like a man in the best sense of the word. I smell the deep earthy scent of leather, yet the woodsy evergreen scent is deeply erotic. Unbidden, memories of Jeff effortlessly carrying me float into my mind. Jeff smelled as phenomenal as his jacket and my lips had been mere inches from the hollow at the base of his neck. I am regretting my choice to play it safe and not kiss him while I was safely cocooned in his arms. Silly me! I had an incredibly handsome guy who smelled beyond yummy, and I couldn’t figure out what to do or say. I need serious help in the romance department.
    I sigh and reluctantly remove the jacket. I carefully hang it in my closet and wonder how I’ll return it to its rightful owner.
    I go to the mirror and start try to untangle my dishevelled mop. Oh yuck! My hair is slightly stiff from the lake water. A shower is an absolute must, no matter how tired I am. Therefore, I drag my weary body into the shower with the water as hot as I can stand it. I scrub my skin with a shower puff until it is rosy red and wash my hair three times. I wish that I could wash away my tumultuous thoughts as easily as