Once Craved (a Riley Paige Mystery--Book #3) by Blake Pierce Read Free Book Online

“Don’t worry, I can take care of myself.”
    “But you have not
been sola since so many bad things have happened,” Gabriela said. “I
worry.”
    Gabriela’s words
gave Riley a slight turn. What she was saying was true. Ever since the ordeal
with Peterson, at least April had always been around. Could a dark and
frightening void open up in her new home? Was the abyss yawning even now?
    “I’ll be fine,”
Riley said. “Go have a good time with your family.”
    Gabriela grinned and
handed Riley an envelope. “This was in the mailbox,” she said.
    Gabriela hugged
April, then hugged Riley again, and went downstairs to wait for her cab.
    “What is it, Mom?”
April asked.
    “I don’t know,”
Riley said. “It wasn’t mailed.”
    She tore the
envelope open and found a plastic card inside. Decorative letters on the card
proclaimed “Blaine’s Grill.” Below that she read aloud, “Dinner for two.”
    “I guess it’s a gift
card from our neighbor,” Riley said. “That’s nice of him. You and I can go
there for dinner when we get back.”
    “Mom!” April
snorted. “He doesn’t mean you and me.”
    “Why not?”
    “He’s inviting you
out to dinner.”
    “Oh! Do you really
think so? It doesn’t say that here.”
    April shook her
head. “Don’t be stupid. The man wants to date you. Crystal told me her dad
likes you. And he’s really cute.”
    Riley could feel her
face flushing red. She couldn’t remember the last time someone had asked her on
a date. She had been married to Ryan for so many years. Since their divorce she
had been focused on getting settled in her new home and decisions to be made
about her job.
    “You’re blushing,
Mom,” April said.
    “Let’s get your
stuff packed,” Riley grumbled. “I’ll have to think about all this later.”
    They both went back
to sorting through clothes. After a few minutes of silence, April said, “I’m
kind of worried about you, Mom. Like Gabriela said …”
    “I’ll be fine,”
Riley said.
    “Will you?”
    Folding a blouse,
Riley wasn’t sure what to answer. Surely she’d recently faced worse nightmares
than an empty house—murderous psychopaths obsessed with chains, dolls, and
blowtorches among them. But might a host of inner demons break loose when she
was alone? Suddenly, a week began to feel like a long time. And the prospect of
deciding whether or not to date the man who lived next door seemed scary in its
own way.
    I’ll handle it, Riley thought.
    Besides, she still
had another option. And it was about time to make a decision once and for all.
    “I’ve been asked to
work on a case,” Riley told April. “I’d have to go to Arizona right away.”
    April stopped
folding her clothes and looked at Riley.
    “So you’re going to
go, aren’t you?” she asked.
    “I don’t know,
April,” Riley said.
    “What’s there to
know? It’s your job, right?”
    Riley looked into
her daughter’s eyes. The hard times between them really did seem to be over.
Ever since they’d both survived the horrors inflicted by Peterson, they’d been
linked by a new bond.
    “I’ve been thinking
about not going back to field work,” Riley said.
    April’s eyes widened
with surprise.
    “What? Mom, taking
down bad guys is what you do best.”
    “I’m good at
teaching, too,” Riley said. “I’m very good at it. And I love it. I
really do.”
    April shrugged with
incomprehension. “Well, go ahead and teach. Nobody’s stopping you. But don’t
stop kicking ass. That’s just as important.”
    Riley shook her
head. “I don’t know, April. After all I put you through—”
    April looked and
sounded incredulous. “After all you put me through? What are you talking
about? You didn’t put me through anything. I got caught by a psychopath
named Peterson. If he hadn’t taken me, he’d have taken someone else. Don’t you
start blaming yourself.”
    After a pause, April
said, “Sit down, Mom. We’ve got to talk.”
    Riley smiled and sat
down on