Abound in Love by Rosemarie Naramore Read Free Book Online Page A

minutes.”
    Thomas
refrained from mentioning he could have ridden along with his mother.  “I’m
leaving in five.  Be ready.”
    Kenny
dropped onto the sofa beside his aunt.  His eyes lit on her swollen eye. 
“Dalton got you good, didn’t he?”
    “I
didn’t mean to!” he cried, for the umpteenth time.
    “I’m
fine,” Laura said, as she rose from the couch.  She bent to give Kenny a hug,
and then excused herself.  “I think I’m going back upstairs and try to get some
shut-eye for an hour or two.”  She gave a dubious chuckle.  “And considering
the shape—literally—of that old mattress, it may be easier said than done.”
    Thomas
laughed ruefully.  “Yeah, it’s definitely seen better days.  It’s as old as
me.”
    “But
not quite as soft,” Dalton teased.
    Thomas
picked up a pillow and hefted it at his friend.  “I’ll show you soft…  I can
take you any day of the week.”
    Laura
shook her head and decided to get while the getting was good.  If the two men
began wrestling around on the living room floor, she wanted to be safely
clear.  She remembered how they used to go at it when they were kids, forever
flexing their muscles and arguing about who was the tougher of the two. 
    While
Thomas was a bit taller than Dalton, Dalton was more solidly built.  Both men
still appeared to be in good shape, but Laura suspected Dalton probably spent
more time in the gym.  His broad chest and well-muscled arms were a testament
to his dedication to physical fitness.
    When
Dalton met Laura’s gaze and gave a broad grin, she realized she’d been staring
at him, and that he had caught her.  Her face flamed crimson.
    “Uh,
have a good day, everybody.”  As she fled the room, she heard Dalton chuckling
behind her.
    “What
was that about?” Thomas asked.
    Laura
braced for his answer as she topped the steps and lit on the landing upstairs. 
    “I
don’t have a clue,” Dalton said, but she could still hear the laughter in his
voice.
    Back in
her old bedroom, Laura dropped onto the bed.  She abruptly sank into the center
of it.  Was there even a box spring beneath it?  
    As she
lay back against the pillow, and stared at the ceiling of her old room, she
felt transported back in time.  She remembered every crack in that ceiling, and
every feature of the wall.  She turned toward the single window in the room and
stared out at the sky.  Though the window was closed, a draft caused the lacy
curtain to sway in the slight breeze.
    She
turned away.  Thomas really should replace those old windows.  She couldn’t
imagine how much his heating bill was each month.  It had to be high.
    She
couldn’t help wondering what had possessed him to buy the old farmhouse. 
During her drive into town, she couldn’t believe the numbers of new housing
developments she could see from the main strip through town.  Why hadn’t her
brother purchased something new and modern and energy efficient?
    Laura
sat up and reached for one of the blankets at her feet.  She tugged it up to her
chin.  It really was chilly.  She remembered how often she and Candace had
complained to their parents about the chill in the room.  Out of necessity, the
family had simply learned to dress for the cold, but there was many a morning
Laura had been hard-pressed to leave her bed. 
    When
she heard the sound of Thomas’ truck start up, she knew he and Kenny had left
for school.  That meant she was alone in the house with Dalton.
    She
wasn’t certain how she felt about that.  It was disconcerting that the boy she’d
‘loved’ had grown into a man, and that that man was currently kicked back in a
recliner downstairs.  Of course, seeing Dalton in her home wasn’t unusual.  He
had spent a lot of time at their house when they were kids.  Laura’s mother had
essentially taken him in, since his mother had died when he was young, and then
his father had been killed several years after, while on the job as a