A Sound Like Hope (Fallen Tuesday #3) by Karolyn James Read Free Book Online

his head and he quickly fought to pull it down over himself as he stood in
his underwear.
    “ What
the hell? ” he cried out.
    Emily turned her head. “ Sorry. I was just coming to
check on you. ”
    “ Get
out of my room, ” Nicholas
yelled. His face was a shade of dark red. “ Can
I get some privacy? ”
    “ I
didn ’ t mean to upset you, ” Emily said. “ I wanted to …”
    “ What? ”
    “ Did
you do your homework? ”
    “ I ’ m not in school anymore. ”
    Shit .
    Emily nodded. “ Sorry. I forgot. ”
    “ What
do you want? ” Nicholas
asked.
    “ Do
you need anything before bed? ”
    “ Yeah.
You to leave my room. ”
    “ Nicholas,
this is my house. I ’ m kind
enough to let you live here. ”
    “ Then
kick me out, ” Nicholas
said. “ See if I care. ”
    Emily bit her tongue, knowing her
words needed to be chosen carefully. She didn ’ t
want Nicholas to feel as though he wasn ’ t
welcome there, but at the same time she didn ’ t
want him to walk all over her.
    Most people had years to prepare
for this. If Emily had been Nicholas ’ s
mother, she would have had ten years to get ready for this. Instead, Emily was
on a crash course. And frankly, she was crashing more than getting through the
course.
    “ Well,
have a good night, Nicholas, ” Emily said. “ Just please
remember what we talked about today, okay? I want you here. I ’ m happy you ’ re here. You just have to listen …”
    “ To
the rules, ” Nicholas said. “ Yeah, I got that. Can I enter
that skateboard competition? ”
    “ You
set a barn on fire, ” Emily
said.
    “ So
that ’ s a big no. Thanks a
lot. ”
    “ Nicholas …”
    “ Goodnight. Emily . ”
    Nicholas turned off the light and
walked to the bed. Emily backed away and shut the door. It hurt when he called
her Emily. It was never Aunt Emily anymore. Not since he moved in with
her. It was always Emily. As though Emily meant nothing to him. In her
heart, Emily knew Nicholas loved her, but the way he acted and talked, it was
hard to believe. Even still, Emily couldn ’ t
imagine giving Nicholas up.
    Standing in silence for a few
minutes allowed Emily to listen and make sure Nicholas wasn ’ t trying to sneak out of the
house. She didn ’ t hear any
noise and while the urge to go back into the room and say something else bugged
her, Emily retreated and went downstairs. She collapsed on the edge of her
couch and put her fingers to her lips. Things had been going so well for her
before Nicholas came crashing into her life. She had worked with Terri for so
long, and then she had been asked to become co-owner of the fitness center.
Terri even let her live in this nice house for next to nothing. It had been
Terri ’ s aunt ’ s house, before she recently
moved to Florida to enjoy better weather and hopefully better health. All Terri
wanted was the taxes to be paid and the house to be taken care of.
    It was as if life had been setting Emily
up for Nicholas to come into her life. She was being offered this challenge, or
opportunity, and now all she could do is wonder why.
    Emily settled back and tried to
watch television. She kept her cell phone handy in case Terri needed her for
anything, but Emily knew Terri wouldn ’ t
bother her right now. That, however, annoyed Emily. If she was part owner of
the fitness center, that meant helping when needed, no matter what. Terri had
such a big heart but it wasn ’ t
helping Emily to feel isolated and alone. Tomorrow would bring another day of
classes to teach and phone calls to field regarding Nicholas ’ s legal troubles. Maybe Tim had
been right. Maybe there was a program for Nicholas to be part of. He could be
mentored by someone that could break through his shell. She couldn't help but
feel like a failure, but if it would help Nicholas, if it would save him from
the dangerous cycle he was in, then it would be worth it.
    Emily went back to the steps and
crept upstairs to check on Nicholas. She told herself he wasn