His Sister's Wedding by Carol Rose Read Free Book Online Page B

grin.
    *   *   *
    Lillie wiggled the key in the lock of her front door. "Hang on a second. Sometimes
     this lock is stubborn."
    Luke stood behind her, his nearness setting off her internal radar. It had taken her
     two weeks after their interlude in the rain to set up a time to view other possible
     wedding sites. The hours in his presence this afternoon, driving from one church to
     another, had tried her endurance. Somehow, without ever really getting out of line,
     he'd managed to make her hypersensitive to every nuance between them.
    She couldn't forget that kiss, couldn't banish the melting sensation from the pit
     of her stomach. More than that, she couldn't help thinking about Luke's fiancée dumping
     him. Somehow he didn't seem the type to let one fickle woman warp his whole life outlook.
    "Here, let me do it," he offered as her fingers fumbled with the lock.
    "I'll have it open in a second and get those brochures for you. It just needs a certain
     twist."
    "It needs to be replaced," Luke corrected. "If you had a man around here, he could
     take care of these kinds of things."
    "Locksmiths are less trouble," she retorted.
    He laughed. "Don't be so sure."
    "I'm sure--" Lillie broke off as the sound of footsteps on the sidewalk caught her
     attention. Both she and Luke turned, the steps drawing nearer.
    An attractive woman in her mid-fifties stood on the walk to Lillie's bungalow, her
     dark hair and delicate features strangely familiar.
    "Excuse me, are you Lillie Parker?"
    "Yes, I am." Lillie took a step forward.
    The woman smiled, her face relaxing as she offered her hand. "Good. I'm Janet Howard.
     I understand you're coordinating..." Her words trailed off as her gaze traveled to
     Luke for the first time.
    "Luke?" the woman asked, incredulous and shaken at the same time.
    "Hello, Mother," he drawled, his voice as cold as a desert night.
    Lillie's head snapped around to stare at him. This woman was his mother?
    He stood unmoving on the porch next to Lillie, his face like granite, his eyes hard
     and flat.
    Confused, Lillie glanced between mother and son, questions crowding her mind. Somehow
     she'd gotten the impression from Scott that Melanie and Luke's mother was dead. But
     here the woman stood in the flesh.
    "Luke," Janet Howard repeated tremulously. "I wasn't expecting you here."
    "Obviously." The single word held both contempt and dislike.
    Lillie frowned up at him. Why was he being so hateful? Belatedly, she realized that
     the woman hadn't immediately recognized her son. How long had it been since these
     two had seen each other?
    "I saw the announcement of Melanie's engagement in the newspaper," Janet said haltingly.
     "Weddings take so much work. I thought I might be able to help."
    Eager to turn the conversation to steady ground, Lillie jumped to say, "That would
     be nice--"
    "It won't be necessary," Luke interrupted. "Since Melanie's off at college, I'm taking
     care of the wedding details with Ms. Parker's help."
    "Oh." Disconcerted, the older woman stared at him helplessly.
    The hurt in her eyes skewered Lillie's heart. Impulsive words tripped off her tongue.
     "It would be nice to have a mother's touch, we could--"
    "I'm sure my...mother is too busy." Steel couldn't have been colder than Luke's tone.
     "We'll be able to handle things quite well ourselves."
    "Of course, you will." A touch of bitterness entered the woman's voice. She raised
     her chin. "Could you give me Melanie's address at school? I seem to have mislaid it."
    "How...unfortunate." Luke's sneer was obvious as he recited the address while his
     mother quickly scribbled it on a scrap of paper.
    "Well, thank you." She turned to Lillie, offering her hand once more. "It was nice
     to meet you, Ms. Parker. I hope we meet again soon." She threw her son a last pleading
     look as she turned to go.
    "Nice to meet you, too," Lillie murmured, feeling as though a sunny August day had
     taken on tones of the Twilight Zone . In the flash of an