Along Came Love by Rita Hestand Read Free Book Online Page A

followed his dad into the
living room.
    "I'm real proud of you passing the bar, son."
Cal said softly.
    "Yeah…." Jake didn't want to expand on this
subject. He wasn't ready.
    "Have you talked to the people at the firm
yet, I know they want to
    offer you a position there. Joe's been
talking about it for years now."
    "No, not yet…. Dad."
    All the kids came into the living room and
broke up the conversation.
    Jake wrestled around the living room floor
with Little Clint, and Tammie who was all tomboy,while Sammie Joe
watched and shook her head.
    "Better not let Mom catch you wrestling in
the house," Sammie Jo said lifting her chin arrogantly.
    "You gonna tell?" Tammie cried out as Jake
pinned both kids to the floor and had Tammie laughing so hard her
face turned a bright red.
    "I might," Sammie Jo returned. "It's so
adolescent."
    "Adolescent, huh?" Jake laughed, "Well, in
that case, we better get her down here so she can't tell on
us."
    Just then he grabbed her and pulled her on
top of him so that they were all a big huddle on the floor.
    "Get him, Sammie Jo," Little Clint
hollered.
    "I can't he's got me…" Sammie Jo cried out in
laughter.
    Cal shook his head as he passed them going
into the hall, "Kids, you should have had a passel of them
yourself, Jake."
    "Nope, that's why I come home for vacation…I
can love 'em and leave 'em," Jake called after him with
laughter.

Chapter Three
     
    Friday night came way too soon for Jake. If
it hadn't been for Sammie Jo he'd have copped out. Besides, maybe
it would be fun.
    Donning a dark grey shirt, and slacks, Jake
threw on his black leather jacket and waited in the living room for
his niece. Sammie Jo came out in a plain black velvet dress, and
instead of her boots, she was wearing black patent leather shoes.
She looked terribly nervous and Jake couldn't help but feel just a
tad sorry for her. He remembered his first dance, he was all
feet.
    "You look beautiful pumpkin." Jake
smiled.
    "Thanks, so do you Uncle Jake. I’m so glad
you are going to be there. I'm so nervous." Sammie Jo admitted as
Cal and her siblings came into the room.
    "Wow, she's wearing a dress!" Little Clint
snickered.
    "Well, she's a girl, silly," Tammie defended.
"Don't pay any attention to him, you look like Mama."
    Sammie Jo smiled and grabbed her sister's
hand. "Come on, help me get my necklace on."
    "Okay…I can't wait till I’m old enough…."
    "Yes, you can, "Cal hollered behind
them."Kids, they grow up too fast."
    "I know. I can remember when we were carrying
Sammie Jo to the hospital for that Grannies Elbow thing, seems like
yesterday."
    "Well, you look nice too. But aren't you
going a little early?" Cal asked checking the clock and realizing
it was only four thirty in the afternoon.
    "Uh…yeah, but I volunteered to help decorate
the gym. Actually I was supposed to do it yesterday, but I got tied
up. I called the school and told them I'd come early tonight and do
it. Besides, I figured Sammie Jo might be a big help." Jake
replied.
    "They rooked you into it this year, did
they?" Cal chuckled.
    "Kinda made it feel like it was my duty."
Jake said.
    "You didn't say much about meeting Sammie
Jo's teacher the other day. How did that go?"
    "It wasn't her teacher. It was the counselor.
And you won't believe who it is, either."
    "Uh Oh, who was it?"
    "Samantha Wilson, well…no, Samantha Courtland
now, but she used to be a Wilson. You remember, the girl I used to
pick on all the time…'cause she was stuck up."
    "Oh yeah, her, well, I'll be. So how'd she
turn out?" Cal asked as he put the game pieces back in the box.
    "She's a living doll. Her and her mother
moved back here, bought the old Turner house. You see her mom's
real sick, had cancer." Jake said finding a piece of the game and
handing it to his dad.
    "Oh, that's a shame. I bet I know her
too…"
    "I'm sure you probably do. She lived here a
long time ago."
    "Small world isn't it?" Cal chuckled. "So
what kind of trouble was Sammie Jo in?"
    "Ah, not much