Deception (Absent Shadows Trilogy Book 3) by S.M. Spencer Read Free Book Online

decided it was best for everyone if I didn’t. But we did have one man at our table on Christmas Eve. Raye invited a new boyfriend, Luke, and decided to turn on all her culinary skills to impress him. Indeed, dinner was extraordinary. The table was set beautifully, and the meal was without a doubt the most elaborate and delicious Christmas dinner we’d ever had.
    It was easy to see the strong bond between Raye and Luke, and I was happy for her, definitely. But watching them together also sent pangs of longing through me. I hated the jealousy that overcame me, knowing she and Luke might have something that Sam and I could never have—a normal family life. It was awful, having these conflicted feelings, but there was nothing I could do to stop it. I put on the bravest face I could, and tried to remind myself that I really was happy for Raye. I struggled through the evening with polite but sparse conversation.
    Luckily, I slept well and when I woke, Ceylona was already up and out of bed. I found her sitting on the floor in the living room, legs and arms crossed as she stared at the Christmas tree and all the presents that had appeared overnight. Seeing how happy she was diminished the jealousy I’d felt the night before, and I reminded myself how lucky I was to have her in my life.
    When the others finally got up, we began to open the presents, and each time Ceylona was given one to open, she drew in her breath and opened her eyes wider than the last time. She carefully opened each one, and made all the appropriate sounds as she admired each gift.
    Amongst them was a huge box sent up by Claire that held a set of brightly coloured plastic shovels, buckets and moulds for the beach. Ceylona started playing with them straight away, pretending to be shovelling things into the little buckets. Finally she looked up at me and smiled, and asked when we could go to the beach.
    I felt a slight pang of sadness that Sam wasn’t here with us, but then I sighed and remembered to feel grateful for all that I did have. What did I have to complain about anyway? I had a wonderful family. Mom, Ceylona, Raye—they were my family. And in actual fact, I had two families. Sam, Ben and Henry, Crystal and Michael, Debs and Ian—they were still my family, even if I couldn’t be with them right now. I was the lucky one. I just had to keep reminding myself of that.
    ~~***~~
    Winter pressed on, and the cold wet days made it harder for me to get outdoors with Ceylona. We still made it to the park and beach now and then, but mostly we stayed indoors. And on the bleak days, my mood became sullen, and I found it hard to take my mind off Sam. I hadn’t heard from him for ages, and it was obvious that even though I constantly thought of him, he was getting on without me.
    But then spring arrived. The weather improved, and the days got longer. Flower gardens started showing signs of new growth, and the beach and park beckoned more regularly. We spent more and more time outdoors, and both Ceylona and I seemed happier for the fresh air. Each day my spirits seemed to lift, and I once again found I could sometimes go a whole day without thinking about Sam and the life we would never have.
    Then in the first week of May, three weeks before Ceylona’s third birthday, we had one of those rare windless days where the cloud cover is so thick that the sun doesn’t have a chance of even casting a shadow. These were my favourite days to go to the beach because even though it wasn’t cold, there were never many people around. Generally, on days like this, I could let Ceylona run around without fear of her getting in people’s way. I decided we would bring a picnic lunch and make a day of it.
    Sure enough, as we pulled into the parking lot there were only two other cars there. The beach was deserted, and the kayaks and windsurfers hadn’t even been put out for hire. Crowds were not expected on a day like this.
    I laid our blanket on the sand in our usual spot, and