Sweet Tea at Sunrise by Sherryl Woods Read Free Book Online

making fun of the town. “If you ask me, it’s a good thing,” she said.
    “I couldn’t agree more,” he said. His gaze darkened and he reached out as if he intended to touch her, butthen dropped his hand back to his side. “In fact, I’m counting on pretty much everything being out in the open before long.”
     
    Sarah puzzled over Travis’s comment for most of the afternoon. How a man capable of being so secretive could want things out in the open made no sense. She’d repeated the gist of the conversation to Grace, who didn’t know what to make of it, either. Now Sarah tried it out on Raylene, as they sat on the patio with their sweet tea while the kids played in the backyard.
    “I swear I think it was a hint,” she told Raylene. “I don’t think he was trying to be cryptic at all. But what could he have meant?”
    “Maybe he’s a spy, or an investigative reporter and he’s here to do an exposé,” Raylene suggested.
    Sarah regarded her with skepticism. “A spy in Serenity, South Carolina? What’s he supposed to be spying on? Or exposing, for that matter? It’s not as if there’s a lot of dirt to dig up in a town this size. Like I told him, Grace knows most everything that goes on around here, anyway. She certainly knows more than the local weekly newspaper.”
    “Then I’m out of ideas,” Raylene said.
    “I suppose we’ll all know soon enough,” Sarah said with a sigh. “I think I got through to him about not dragging this out much longer.” She turned her attention to Raylene, who looked drawn and nervous. “You okay? Did something happen around here today?”
    If anything, her friend looked even more upset. “I had another panic attack,” she admitted. “The kids were out here playing, and I was sitting here watching them,when Tommy went around the side of the house. When I called him, he didn’t answer. I tried to go after him, but when I got to the edge of the patio, it was like I ran into a wall or something. I couldn’t make myself take one more step. I started sweating and my hands were shaking. I finally managed to shout for him and, thank God, he came right back, but I think we need to take another look at me being alone with the kids, even for an hour or two.”
    Sarah could see the worry and fear in her eyes. “I have every faith that if Tommy hadn’t come when you called, you would have gone looking for him.”
    Raylene regarded her with frustration. “You’re not listening to me, Sarah. I couldn’t make myself move. I couldn’t!”
    Sarah didn’t want Raylene to see that the incident worried her. She reached over and squeezed her hand. “It’s okay. Nothing happened. Tommy’s fine.”
    “Next time, he might not be. I mean it, Sarah,” she said earnestly. “I’m happy to help out with the house, but I just can’t risk being responsible for Tommy and Libby. I know you’re trying to be supportive, but right now the only thing that matters is the well-being of your kids.”
    “I know,” Sarah acknowledged. No matter how much faith she had in Raylene, she knew she couldn’t take a chance that it might be misplaced. “I just don’t want to see you taking another step to shut yourself away here. You know this is more than some temporary thing, Raylene. Not only has it gone on for months now, but you’re getting worse. You need to see someone, not for me or for the kids, but for you. Call Annie’s shrink. Youalready know Dr. McDaniels from back when Annie was in the hospital with her anorexia. It won’t be like talking to a complete stranger.”
    Raylene shook her head. “I know that makes sense, but I need to try to beat this on my own. I don’t want my independence to be one more thing my husband took away from me.”
    “Hasn’t it already happened?” Sarah asked in frustration. “You’re already holed up here. You don’t see anyone except the people we invite over and the kids and me. That’s not living, Raylene.”
    Raylene’s expression