June (Calendar Girl #6) by Audrey Carlan Read Free Book Online Page B

her pants, I reached back under me and yanked my phone out of my back pocket. Then I pulled up the image I’d sent Ginelle last week. “This is what you’re up against.” I handed her the phone. For long moments, she inspected the image.
    “These women are young enough to be their daughters.” A slightly shaky hand lifted in front of her mouth. “Some possibly even their granddaughters.”
    I nodded. “Yep. That’s why I’m here.”
    A horrified look crossed her face. “No, nuh uh, not because of what you think. His reasons are actually really altruistic.”
    That’s when her do-I-look-stupid face graced her features along with an eye roll. 
    “Okay, it’s weird, but I get it. He needs his own bimbo,“ I ran my hands in the air closely over my form. “To make him look like he’s one of them. It’s all for a good reason though. He has this project that he needs these rich guys and a bunch of stodgy politicians to support so he can get medicine and vaccines to third world countries.”
    Recognition must have dawned on her because she started to nod and lean closer. “You know, he mentioned this project. It’s been in the making for years. I honestly thought he’d given up on it.” Then she huffed. “Yet another thing he’s doing in her memory.” The tone when she said ‘her memory’ seemed put-out and on the ugly edge of scathing.
    My eyes narrowed. “What do you mean, ‘in her memory’?”
    Right then, Kathleen responded in a way I would have never pictured. She tipped her wine glass up to her lips and glugged back the crimson liquid until it was gone.
    “Ketty Shipley.”
    “Who’s Ketty Shipley?” I asked, completely lost.
    “Warren’s dead wife.”
    “Oh, that Ketty Shipley.” With that, I sucked back the last of my wine and waited a moment. “So why the nastiness?”
    Kathleen rubbed her forehead and pulled out the hidden clip. To my extreme surprise a wild mane of long hair fell well past her shoulders in beautiful, big, bouncy waves.
    With a shake of her head she ran her hands through it a couple times and groaned. “It’s not that I didn’t like her. For a while, she was my best friend. It’s that I don’t like that she’s been dead for twenty- five years, and Warren is still in love with her. You can’t win the man’s heart when it still belongs to his dead wife.”
    Her shoulders slumped, and I looped an arm over hers and locked her to my side. “Honestly, it can’t really be that bad.”
    “Oh no,” she said mockingly. “You think I’m full of piss and vinegar then?” With a burst of energy she was up and out the door. I sat there completely dumfounded. What the hell did piss and vinegar have anything to do with it anyway? I swear, older folks said the weirdest shit.
    A few minutes went by, and I worried that I’d offended her. I played out the conversation and although it was uncomfortable at best, I hadn’t said anything inappropriate that would cause her to rush out of the room. Before I could go over it again, the door was flung open and she pushed in a food cart. The same kind that you get when you are staying in a really fancy hotel and the bellman brings your dinner.
    “What’s this?” I asked even more confused.
    In a second, she was at the side of the bed. “Come now. Let’s hop along.” She patted the top of the cart. “I have to show you something that will prove my point.”
    “What point?” I hopped up and then she helped me sit down on the cart. Then she pushed me out of the room and down the hall.
    “The point that he’s not over Ketty!”
    Gripping the cart, I cringed. “If I say I believe you, will you not scare the hell out of me by dragging my gimpy ass around this McMansion on a deathtrap? If you accidentally push too hard, I could end up flying down the stairs.”
    She stopped and then patted me on the back. “I used to run Aaron around the house in this all the time. He loved it. It’s perfectly safe. No worries. Besides,