The Lonely Heart by K.M. Mahoney Read Free Book Online Page B

In fact, it made him furious. Josh seemed so eager to soak up any little bit of praise and seemed surprised when anyone included him in conversations or asked his opinion on something. That school of Josh’s had clearly done its best, but he’d been shocked to find out exactly how many students attended, most of them year-round.
    Josh had simply been lost in the shuffle.
    Josh was, in Isaiah’s opinion, amazing. The kid might not be able to tell stories, but he certainly liked to write them. They would sprawl in the living room at the bunkhouse in the evenings after supper, Isaiah on the couch and Josh in the huge armchair that swallowed his small frame. They’d pull out their battered notebook and talk, Josh writing down his thoughts for Isaiah. Josh had a turn of phrase that never failed to make Isaiah smile, although sometimes that smile was a bit sad, loneliness clear behind the generally light-hearted words.
    Josh did pretty darn well with ASL, too. Isaiah, however, was still learning. Isaiah had gone online and loaded up on books and instructional videos to learn sign language, determined to be able to talk to his brother. He was making good progress, although sometimes his motions would send Josh off into fits of laughter.
    Grady leaned close, briefly distracting Isaiah with his warm presence. Isaiah had to bite back a groan when he realised he was taking deep breaths. A man who had spent all day in a stable shouldn’t smell so good. Arousal was tingling at the base of his spine. Isaiah shifted, www.total-e-bound.com

    THE LONELY HEART K.M. Mahoney 38
    completely unsettled, and tried to stuff the feelings back down. He hadn’t let his ill-advised attraction to Grady be an issue since the first couple of months he’d worked at the ranch.
    “He’s settling in real well, isn’t he,” Grady whispered into Isaiah’s ear, the warm breath sending a shiver rippling along Isaiah’s skin.
    “That he is,” Isaiah agreed on automatic pilot. He was just too distracted to be putting together sentences. Everyone else was pretty much finished eating, while he’d barely touched his own lunch. Grady and Josh would head back to the ranch pretty soon.
    “Oh,” Grady said abruptly. “You got a call this morning from the principal over at Barton. I wrote the number down back at the house.”
    “Shit, I was waiting for that one.” Isaiah pulled his phone out and started scrolling through the call list, hoping he hadn’t erased it recently. Unlikely, but he never knew. Ah, there it was.
    Isaiah nodded and nudged Josh. “I’m gonna go make a phone call, buddy. Why don’t you help Micah clean up?”
    Isaiah hopped off the back of the truck, leaving Josh eagerly assisting Micah.
    Isaiah strode out of earshot and hit the call button.
    He had arrangements to make. Best to quit putting them off.

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    THE LONELY HEART K.M. Mahoney 39

Chapter Six

    Isaiah dropped the box on the floor, his exaggerated groan accompanied by the sound of something breaking. “I think that’s the last of it,” he said, straightening. He put his hands on his back and stretched. He could fix fences all day and only get a pleasant ache in his muscles. Two hours of hauling junk across the yard and he could barely move.
    “I would sincerely hope so,” Grady replied dryly. “My question is how the hell did you get all this crap in that small room?”
    “Damned if I know,” Isaiah replied. It was ridiculous. When he had started packing things up and had realised how much junk he’d accumulated over the last eight years, it was a bit shocking. The closet had been like that fabled bottomless pit. No matter how much he had pulled out of it, more had kept coming. Add in the stuff scattered all over the room he’d been sharing with Josh and he felt like a blasted hoarder. Half of it was probably going straight into the trash when he unpacked, that was for sure.
    “You sure about this?” Isaiah asked, probably for the fifth