Buried (Twisted Cedars Mysteries Book 1) by C. J. Carmichael Read Free Book Online Page B

could handle seeing Jamie’s disappointment and hurt face-to-face.
    He’d have a few beers with his meal. Then he’d call Jamie.
    It was a short walk to the Linger Longer, and Dougal grew hungrier with each step. But the moment he stepped in the door, heard the blaring nineties rock music, and saw the couple on the dance floor, he realized he should have ordered pizza to his room. His sister and her fiancé were here. His chest tightened at the glow on Jamie’s face. God, she looked happy.
    They made a striking, if mismatched couple. Kyle, blond, tall and lean was a total contrast to his petite, curvy, dark-complexioned sister.
    Jamie had grown her hair long since he’d last seen her, on the trip to Hawaii that he’d organized as a treat to their mother shortly after her diagnosis. The longer hair emphasized her resemblance to their mom.
    And hit him hard.
    It was so hard to believe she was really gone.
    And now he finally understood why he’d put off this trip for so long. Because until he’d actually come here, he’d been able to pretend, in some weird way, that his mother hadn’t really died.
    But she had.
    And Dougal, the ever-disappointing son, hadn’t paid his last respects.
    But then, he hadn’t been very respectful when she was living either. He remembered how ashamed he’d been when he’d seen her get all dolled up before heading out to the bar. Why couldn’t she be respectable and boring like his friends’ mothers? Why did she have to go out drinking and dancing, often not returning to the trailer until after dawn on Sunday morning?
    “I work hard, Dougal,” his mother would tell him. “I think I deserve a little fun on the weekend.”
    A little fun. Is that what you call sleeping around with all the men in town, Mom? He’d never actually said those words to her, but he was sure she had read the message in his eyes all too clearly.
    Now he hated himself for being so bloody judgmental. His mother had been right. She’d deserved whatever fun she could find.
    The music changed. The new song was soft and romantic. From the corner of his eye, he saw Kyle pull his sister in way too close.
    He had to get out of here, before they saw him.
    But just as he pivoted to leave, a young server stepped between him and the exit. She wore tight black jeans and an even tighter T-shirt with “Linger Longer” printed suggestively on her chest. She’d probably been in third grade when he’d left town.
    So eyes off the merchandise buddy .
    “Would you like a drink?”
    “No, thanks. I’m not staying.” He’d almost made it to the door, almost executed a clean escape, when a voice came to him above the barroom din.
    “What the hell? Dougal, is that you?”
    He turned slowly, realizing that if he’d wanted to plan the worst possible reunion with his sister, this was it.
    He attempted a smile. “Hey there, Sis. Surprised?”
    She just looked at him with a familiar, wounded expression. “Damn it, Dougal. You can’t do this, you know. Just show up out of the blue…”
    Tears began to form in her eyes, which was a bad sign. Some women grew soft and sentimental when they cried. Not his sister.
    “Why didn’t you call? Tell us you were coming? And why in blazes were you creeping out the door...as if you didn’t want me to see you?”
    He was damned now. Utterly damned. He didn’t know what to say.
    The music was still playing, but other than that, the bar had gone completely quiet. Everyone was watching the Lachlan family reunion, including, he suddenly noticed, Charlotte and Wade.
    Since anything he said would only make the situation worse, Dougal left.

chapter five
     
    jamie couldn’t believe her brother had come to town without telling her. And that he’d turned his back on her at the bar. She’d been too hurt to run after him and Kyle had agreed it would be better to just let him go.
    Presumably Dougal was here for her wedding...so why sneak into town without so much as an email or a phone