Best Laid Plans by Elaine Raco Chase Read Free Book Online Page B

looked
at him. "Is that the reason you've been wriggling in this bus seat for the
past ten hours?" She laughed. "My parents know all about you, Lucas.
They think you've been a healthy influence on me." Her voice toughened.
"If you dare squeal about my working at Seymour's, I'll cut off more than
your supply of free clothes."
    His jaw dropped. "You mean they
don't know about your job?" She gave him a Cheshire-cat grin. "Where
did you tell them you were getting your money?"
    "From working at the campus
bookstore." Amanda interrupted his strangled rebuttal with: "By the
way, Crosse, even though my dad retired from the Army last month, he still
expects to be saluted twice a day."
    Brigadier General (Ret.) William Wyatt
may have commanded troops during various wars, but it was evident he had little
say in the operation of his own home. Amanda's tall, slim mother, Anne, ruled
the sprawling white ranch house, filling it with little formality but lots of
food, laughter and easy conversation.
    Instantly, Lucas felt at home. The
general did teach him the rudiments of golf, but they both preferred fishing in
Salem Lake. Between swilling cans of beer and hooking white perch, they swapped
Army stories and Amanda stories. "That daughter of mine is as independent
as they come. If she had ever enlisted she would have only seen the
stockade." Clouds of fragrant pipe smoke emphasized each word. "I bet
she's given you more headaches and indigestion than you thought possible."
    Lucas could still feel the splinters
from the weathered boat seat stab through his clothes. "Amanda certainly
has kept me from being bored, sir." It was still true. You could accuse
Amanda Wyatt of many things, but she was never boring.
    North Carolina and the Wyatt's'
became his home during the next three spring breaks. Later, Lucas enjoyed their
hospitality during his vacations from the district attorney's office. Amanda's
introduction to the Crosse clan came at the end of her first year.
    "When are you heading home?"
Lucas had inquired while they were soaping up the side of his blue Mustang.
    "Don't yell," Amanda
forewarned, bending to scour what were supposed to be whitewalls. "I've
taken my dorm room for the summer. Seymour's cousin - "
    "Another cousin?"
    "Seymour is smothered with
cousins," she said grinning. "Anyway, I've signed on to cut patterns.
It's great experience. I talked to my folks. And I mean talked. But they
finally agreed. When you come back for law school, you'll have a couple of
winter suits and I'll have a rejuvenated bank balance and lots of firsthand
knowledge."
    He threw the sponge in the direction
of the soap-filled bucket. "Let me guess: This is all under the table, and
I bet it's sweatshop conditions."
    "I'm counting on you to have
your law degree and defend me by the time the IRS catches on."
    "I don't like it."
    Amanda stood up and glared at him.
Her icy-gray eyes defied the authority in his voice. " You don't
have to like it, Crosse. I start in two weeks."
    "Then you'll spend the next
fourteen days in Maine with me," he told her rudely. "At least you'll
get some type of vacation."
    "There's still snow in
Maine."
    "Very funny. I've got a job
working on bridge construction with my father's company. I'm sure my mother and
sisters would be delighted to have your sweet personality grace their
home." He gave a warning yank on her braid. "I expect you to be on
your best behavior. A little humble, a little meek, a little ingratiating and
no steamroller tactics."
    Amanda picked up the green garden
hose, aiming it toward the soap-covered fender. "Don't you think I can be
all those things, Lucas?" He had made the mistake of shaking his head.
"You're absolutely right!" She turned on the nozzle, swung the hose
and caught him full in the face and chest.
    Amanda had spoken the truth. She was
never anything but herself, yet his family was immediately captivated. His
mother, Vera, took him aside, telling him she wished his sisters, Kathy and
Margaret,