Sinister by Lisa Jackson, Nancy Bush, Rosalind Noonan Read Free Book Online

car enthusiasts, but, thankfully, the sound was muted as her father was scanning the newspaper.
    “Call it off, Dad. Call it off and I will stand behind you one hundred percent. Or at least postpone this wedding. Give yourself some time to grieve for Mom and readjust to life on your own.”
    He stared up at her as if she were speaking a foreign language. “I’ve made the adjustment, and I don’t have to live alone. Pilar and her boy moved in two months ago.”
    “Pilar’s half your age.”
    “I know how old she is.”
    “You’re old enough to be the grandfather of her son. The great-grandfather even! It’s kind of sick.”
    “American families are no longer the typical two parents, two point five children.” Ira glared at her over his glasses. “You of all people should know that.”
    Ricki frowned and turned back to the clock. “Thanks for reminding me.” Yes, she was divorced with a fourteen-year-old daughter and a wayward ex-husband back East, and she wasn’t a perfect parent, but she was trying.
    “We’re not talking about me, Dad. We’re talking about you marrying Pilar, a woman young enough to be your daughter who just happened to have had an affair with your son. A woman who’s already sent one husband to his grave.”
    “Damn it, Ricki. You sound like a broken record!” He yanked off his reading glasses. “I’m marrying Pilar because I love her and I don’t want to spend the rest of my years alone.”
    “Mom hasn’t been gone a year.”
    “Ah. So now we’re getting to it.” He reached down and hit the lever that lowered his footrest. “How long am I supposed to wait?” Climbing to his feet, he squared his body in a stance Ricki knew well from police work. Confrontation.
    She hated confrontation, but she had learned to stand her ground. “The last time our family was together, we were burying Mom. To come together again, ten months later, for your wedding ... it just feels wrong. All I’m asking is for you to give it time.”
    “What’s an acceptable waiting period for you, Ricki?” His voice was rising. “Am I supposed to read Emily Post or consult a high-priced therapist to figure it all out?”
    “Dad, calm down.”
    “I was calm until you sashayed in here and started telling me what to do. You think I was born yesterday? I know Pilar is younger than me. I know she dated your brother. I know exactly when your mother died, thank you, and I loved her all my adult life. But she’s gone, Ricki. And I’m not one to sit around and cry in my whiskey.”
    “No,” she agreed reluctantly.
    “You’re wasting your time and mine.” He threw himself back down in the recliner and grabbed the newspaper, snapping it open. “The wedding’s in less than three weeks, and I’ll thank you and your siblings to shut up and show up, if you know what’s good for you.”
    “What are you going to do, send us to bed without supper?” She fought back the annoyance flaring in her chest. “I’m over thirty, Dad. Idle threats don’t work anymore.”
    “Don’t let the door hit you on the way out,” he muttered, eyes glued to his paper.
    “Fine.” Nothing was more infuriating than her father when he was in a snit. Ricki stalked out, pausing in the hallway to retrieve a stack of mail that had been left for her. “If I can’t get you to postpone the wedding, at least leave Colt out of it.”
    Again, he refused to look up at her. “My plane leaves in the morning.”
    “Then have a great trip.” She tucked her mail under one arm and wished she could make a more dramatic exit, but she had to pause to put on her boots. Still, she gave the door a good slam behind her.
    Ira was an ornery cuss ... and so was Brook, his granddaughter, Ricki thought as she headed down the path to her “home.” The place looked charming right now with its windows glowing against the snow. Ricki had tossed out the idea of stringing up some Christmas lights around the door, but Brook had just told her