2 Unhitched by E.L. Sarnoff Read Free Book Online Page A

deal with pathetic paint chips when I’ve got a much, much bigger chip on my shoulder.
    Randomly, I point to the middle one.
    “Do you really think so?” She studies the three paint chips. “Hmm. Maybe I should paint the nursery lavender.”
    A typical response. Why did she bother to ask for my opinion in the first place? I wish this evening would just end. I need to be put out of my misery.
    Cinderella continues to play with the paint swatches, contorting her face as if she’s making a life or death decision. “Jane, maybe you can get Armando to work his bippity-boppity-boo magic on the nursery.”
    Ever since my fairy godmother Armando redecorated our palace in Fairytale Regency (and since opened his latest emporium, Armando Home, to great success), it’s been the talk of the kingdom. It was time to say good-bye to Snow White’s so-yesterday flowery décor and to create an environment that showed off some of Gallant’s masterpieces that now hang on our walls.
    Like the one facing me of me holding Calla in my arms. I gaze at it, and a stabbing pain shoots through my heart. Gallant painted it when he was madly in love with me. The memory of beholding this painting for the first time, thinking that Gallant was dead and that I’d never see him again, fills my head. My heartache was deeper than a bottomless pit. I glance over to the man I soon after married. The beautiful man who swept me off my feet and filled my life with light. Playing a game of thumb wars with his brother, he’s totally oblivious to me. Of course. My Prince is in love with someone else. “Forever in my heart” no longer has meaning to him. I fight back the tears that are forming in my eyes.
    A blood-curdling scream hurls me back to the moment. Cinderella’s mouth is agape. Her eyes, round as blue marbles, gaze down at the table.
    Holy crap! Henry, The Frog Prince, has jumped onto her dinner plate. But it’s not Henry that’s freaked her out.
    “My water just broke,” she shrieks.
    Great! She’s late for everything. Who would have ever thought that giving birth would be the one thing for which she’d be early?
    She breaks into panicked sobs. “The nursery isn’t ready!”
    Charming staggers over to her and takes her into his arms. He hiccups.
    “You must stay calm, my love,” he manages. Beads of sweat are clustering on his forehead, and his skin is turning a ghastly green. He’s either going to pass out or throw up.
    Gallant leaps up. “Quick, send for Dr. Grimm!” he shouts, slurring every word.
    Doesn’t the drunken bastard know that our help has left or retired for the evening? My mind races; thank god, I’m still thinking straight. Our coach is parked by the stables almost a mile away, and it’ll take too long gear it up. It makes sense to use Cinderella’s which is parked right outside our front door. Charming’s in no condition to drive… and neither is Gallant. There’s only one person who can— Moi!

    The wind whistles as Cinderella’s pumpkin-shaped coach races through the moonlit countryside. Having only once before driven a vehicle like this, I should be worrying about losing my life. Instead, all I can think about is losing My Prince. Gallant’s confession totally consumes me. How could he cheat on me? How could he betray me like that? My shock and sadness once again morph into rage and hatred. I don’t know whom to hate more. My deceitful, infidel husband? The Sleeping Slut? Or myself? For trusting the man I married. And being so stupid.
    My stomach lurches as the coach flies across potholes. With lightning-fast reflexes, I duck a dangling tree branch. A close one. Focus, Jane. Focus. Stop thinking about that lowlife whore! Cinderella’s life is at stake and so is her baby’s!
    I slap the reins to make the two horses pick up their speed. My pulse gallops. The wind kicks up, sending a shiver through my body. My cloak flaps loudly as my hair whips across my face, making it difficult to see ahead of me. Thank