Home with My Sisters by Mary Carter Read Free Book Online Page B

to throw this guy in the back.”
    â€œSave that decision until after you meet Joy,” Hope said.
    * * *
    An hour later, after stopping for Hope to throw some clothes in a bag and get coffee and gas, Austin’s truck rattled along the highway with Christmas carols playing on the radio. When he got to the station playing them, Hope started to hum along with it. His hand was halfway to the knob as if he’d been about to change it, when he stopped. It wasn’t lost on Hope that he’d left it on for her. Michael wouldn’t have even noticed that she’d been humming along. Not that it meant anything.
    She tried calling Joy and Faith. Neither of them picked up their phone. Were they screening? The thought that they would see her name flash across their screen and not pick up was beyond painful. She’d never done anything to them. She wasn’t bossy like Faith and she didn’t badger anyone for money like Joy. Yet still they ignored her. Well, not this time. This was a family emergency of sorts, wasn’t it? She’d keep trying on the drive. She was going on to Leavenworth whether they came or not. Maybe her grandmother would tell her where she could find her father. Joy and Faith claimed to have no interest in confronting him, but there were some days it was all Hope thought about. She at least wanted to look him in the eyes and say, How could you? Do you know how much we missed and loved you? Are you even sorry? Even a little bit? But most of all she wanted to know that he was still alive, and doing okay. As okay as a man who abandoned his three daughters could be. Would he have left them if they were boys?
    The dog was lying half on the seat and half on Hope. God, he was just a big sweetie. She loved running her fingers along his soft, floppy ears. With the heater going in the truck, and the music gently playing, and her close proximity to Austin, it struck her as ironic that here they were, perfect strangers, in a uniquely intimate setting. She thought she could even smell a touch of wood smoke on him. He glanced at her and she quickly averted her gaze, feeling her face heat up yet again. Thank goodness it was dark. She always liked riding in a car at night. The gentle hum of the road, the glow of streetlights, a dog’s body heavy and comforting across her lap, the feel of him breathing in and out, and a gorgeous man at the wheel. Total strangers, yet they felt so familiar, and truth be told she was loving every second of it. That was the really weird part. She tried calling Joy again and once more it went to voice mail.
    â€œAre you and your sisters close?” Austin asked. From the soft tone of his voice she knew he had picked up on the fact that they were anything but.
    â€œWe used to be,” she said. When we were children. When we had nothing but one another. She didn’t say any more at first, and Austin didn’t pry. He just nodded. It wasn’t a distracted nod either. She could tell he was really listening to her. It prompted her to say more. “But I keep trying.”
    â€œThat’s good,” Austin said.
    â€œIs it?” Hope mused.
    â€œIt is. You should never give up on family. Never.”
    He sounded passionate about it. She liked that about him. If only her sisters felt the same way. “Do you have brothers or sisters?”
    He shook his head. She thought she caught a look of grief pass across his face, but she was only looking at him in profile and in the dim cab it was hard to tell. She decided not to ask any follow-up questions; she was here for her grandmother and answers, not because the neighbor was wildly attractive.
    â€œAre you hungry?” Austin asked. “We could stop for a bite.”
    â€œStarving,” Hope said. “I was supposed to be going out to dinner tonight.”
    â€œAnd Maui tomorrow,” Austin said.
    Hope glanced at him. “I broke up with him,” she said.
    â€œI’m