No Place Like Home by Debra Clopton Read Free Book Online Page B

hoped she wasn’t on the run because of something she’d done. It was a logical possibility.
    For all involved, the sooner he found out the facts relating to Cassie the better. The last thing he needed was for her to win the hearts of all the townsfolk only to do something to harm them.
    And then there was Dottie. It wasn’t like he went around winking at women all the time. It just happened. He had nothing to gain by it.
    Besides, for all he knew, Dottie’s story could be false. Hey, she and Cassie could be involved in something together…con artists came in all shapes and ages. And the good women of Mule Hollow would be easy game.
    Clenching his jaw Brady picked up a pen from his desk and rolled it between his thumb and forefinger. His gut tightened and he told himself he was being ridiculous. He understood where the tendency came from, a man who’d seen it all and heard it all grew cynical.
    He gave the pen tip three hard strikes to his desktop.
    You’re not that guy anymore. Remember.
    For a while, in the city, he’d lived on the excitement. The fast-paced rhythm of the precinct, the city lights, the adrenaline rush that came with every bust…
    He closed his eyes, tightening his fingers around the pen…
    I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
    Dottie’s words…good, open-hearted Dottie. Just thinking of her prompted a smile. He was a cop. His duty demanded that he check all details. Pick up on all possible angles.
    In his old life, everyone was a suspect—he closed his eyes—but not anymore.
    Dottie Hart was the real deal. He knew it and he refused to allow his fight with his past taint what he knew was true.
    He opened his eyes. So why had he flirted with her? Because you couldn’t help it. Something about her, the inner beauty that radiated from her reached out to him.
    Leaning back in his chair, he stared up at the ceiling and refocused on the problem at hand. Cassie.
    It was true there could be any assortment of horrible reasons that the girl had been hitchhiking yesterday. But there was still a small ray of hope that everything she’d told Dottie was true. That she’d really come to Mule Hollow because of Molly’s articles.
    He prayed that this was the case.
    Not to mention how happy it would make the matchmaking posse of Mule Hollow.

Chapter Five
    T he welcome committee had grown to include several other women by the time Lacy and Cassie came rolling back in the Caddy.
    â€œWe’re not gonna let you girls leave here,” Esther Mae declared as Dottie set a pan of fresh fudge on the table that now had a rug beneath it and flowers in its center. “You two fit in with us like peas in a pod.”
    â€œThat’s right,” Norma Sue agreed. “Why, the moment Sam told Adela you were here and Adela called me, I had a good feeling.”
    Dottie laughed. “I thanked the Lord for letting me break down in such a nice place.” She was trying not to think about what was cooking in their one-track minds.
    â€œI think that’s so neat the way you followed Molly’s stories, Cassie,” Lilly Wells said, giving the girl a thumbs-up. “You just might find yourself a cowboy, if you really want one.”
    â€œI’m glad my articles are making an impact,” Molly Popp added, flipping her rust-colored hair over her shoulder before placing a piece of fudge on her napkin. “I’m having unbelievable fun writing those stories. And the response has been overwhelming.”
    â€œThe post office has never seen so much mail,” Esther Mae added. “Hon, this fudge is so good my hips are expanding just smelling the stuff. And I don’t even give a hoot.”
    Lacy’s nail tech, Sheri Marsh, paused before shoving a huge piece of extra-dark fudge into her mouth. “Where did you learn to make this? You need to know that I might be skinny, but I’m training to be a professional