What Lies Beneath (Count on Me Series #7) Read Online Free PDF Page B

what anyone says. There is nothing good about water falling from the sky. At least there never was before.
    Today was different.
    We actually changed up the routine.
    Mom says that we can’t do that a lot because Belle doesn’t handle it well, but I think that’s just something she says so we don’t have to go out and do anything fun, because Belle was fine.
    She didn’t cry, hit her head or have any accidents. 
    She loved the park!
    And even though it’s silly, I loved that she loved it.
    It’s always so hard to get her to smile. And laugh? No way. I should know. I spent months trying to get her to do it a couple of years ago.
    Should have just taken her to the park.
    Mom found this tree when we got there that was near some flowers, purple ones that Grace called weeds, but that looked nicer than some of the stuff my mom’s planted before, and after getting us to eat some lunch, we were allowed to run off and do whatever while they stayed there watching.
    I brought my soccer ball, so when Mom said I could go play, I picked it up and went to kick it around. After doing that for a bit, Belle finally got off the blanket, but instead of coming to play with me, ran halfway across the field and straight into a pile of leaves.
    Wet, sticky leaves.
    It was crazy, but when she came out and was shaking the ones that were stuck to her off, she was laughing.
    I tried everything to get her to laugh and nothing ever worked, but give her some leaves and all you hear for miles is her high pitched squeal.
    There was this sick feeling in my stomach watching her. I didn’t understand it and still don’t. She was happy, so I wanted to be happy too, but I wasn’t.
    I guess my sandwich was bad though, because when I finally made my way over to her, the sick feeling was gone.
    Like it never even happened at all.
     
    “You were jealous.” Belle interrupts, pulling my attention away from the book. “Kay…”
    Okay. I love the softness in her eyes as she’s looking at me right now, but I don’t have the first clue why she’s doing it. Don’t even get me started on the way she’s saying my name.
    She only does that when I do something sweet and unless she’s reading something different than what I am, I don’t see anything sweet here. Just a bunch of rambling about the day.
    “Huh?”
    “That sick feeling in your stomach watching me laugh and play. It’s because you were jealous.”
    “Still don’t follow.”
    Placing her finger down on the page, calling my attention to one particular line in what I’ve already read, it clicks.
    I was jealous.
    Of leaves.
    Holy shit.
    “Kay,” she sighs. “That’s so sweet.”
    “Since when is being a jealous idiot sweet?”
    “It usually isn’t, but you wanted to be the reason I laughed. It’s the exception.”
    Can’t exactly argue with that. She’s right. Just like I wanted her smiles and laughter to only be for me when we first got together, I did then.
    Some things never change.
    Bringing her in close and pressing a kiss to the top of her head, I clear my throat and instead of answering her back, start reading again. Surprised by the amount of words on the page considering how long I spent avoiding writing.
     
    All I remember after that is the chill from the wet leaves as she dumped them on me after pushing me into the pile. Giggling before ripping some of the grass out of the ground and dumping it on top like a cherry on a cake.
    She never stopped laughing either. Not even when I told her to stop.
    Pretty sure her doing that means my mom doesn’t know Belle as well as she thinks she does.
    She doesn’t know her as well as I do, and now that I know what makes her happiest, I’m gonna make sure we do it again.
    Because when Belle is happy, I’m happy too.
     
    “It’s true.” She quietly says when I finish the entry. Looking up at me before lowering her eyes down to the open book and running her hands over the perforated and bent pages.
    The way she looks as she runs