Unlovable by Sherry Gammon Read Free Book Online Page A

in,
Maggie.”
    Impressive, he actually looked
concerned. I decided that pride was easier on a warm day and
settled into the car. He turned the heater vents toward me as he
had before and set the temperature on high. Our trailer never felt
this warm.
    “ Thanks.” I wasn’t sure he
understood me through my half frozen lips. Holding my hands in
front of the heater vents, the warm air blew up my sleeves and down
my thin sweater, thawing my frozen body. It felt wonderful. He
didn’t make a single comment about my sweater, or the hole in my
sneaker, though the fact that I kept the shoe tucked strategically
under the seat might have been why.
    Or maybe he was a really nice guy, and
I should cut him some slack.
    “ Warm enough?” Short of
starting a small fire, I had no idea what he planned to do to make
it any warmer.
    As I thanked him, I noticed
the undeniable smell in his car. “Why do I
smell food?”
    “ I’m delivering lunches to
some of the local senior citizens.”
    My first thought was to question why,
until I remembered our Mythology class assignment. He must have
opted to do the community service.
    “ Are you sure you’re okay?
What did you have for breakfast?” He felt my forehead causing goose
bumps to dance up my back.
    “ I was in a hurry this
morning and forgot to eat.” And the lies kept piling up! Besides,
he didn’t need to know about our family struggles.
    “ If I give you a lunch, will
you eat it?” He looked at me skeptically.
    Great, he thinks I’m anorexic. Oh,
well, may as well feed the anorexic rumors. My clothes hung on me
anymore, and I’d heard the whispers as I’d walked down the hall at
school. “No thanks, I’ll eat something later.”
    “ You know these lunches
don’t have a home, and if you don’t eat them they’ll go to waste.”
How sweet, he was trying to encourage the anorexic to eat. I
muffled my laugh.
    “ Why don’t you eat it?” I
dared him.
    “ I’ve already had my lunch,”
he said. “Here.” He grabbed two Styrofoam boxes from the back seat
and held them in front of me. “You have your choice of a chicken,
or a roast beef sandwich.” He began reciting the menu as if he were
reading from a brochure. “There’s also a choice of steamed mixed
vegetables, or broccoli smothered in cheese, and a brownie.” He
tempted me once more with the small white boxes, and my stomach let
out a huge growl. Ugh! I thanked him and took one, forcing myself
to pick casually at the food instead of inhaling it. I was
unbearably hungry.
    “ I have two more stops, if
that’s alright with you. They’re on the way, I believe, you said
you live over by the park, right?” He asked right as I took a huge
bite of the chicken sandwich, blowing my casually picking plan. I could only
nod.
    “ The first delivery is to a
man named Frank McSheehy. He was injured in World War II and
struggles with getting around these days. He fell and broke his hip
three months ago, and now he’s temporarily confined to a
wheelchair. Oh, one more thing, he likes to talk. You’ve been
warned!” He winked, causing my heart to skip a beat. For crying out loud, Maggie, get a grip on
yourself.
    We pulled up in front of a tiny run
down cottage on Front Street. A frail-looking man, Mr. McSheehy I
assumed, was sitting by the front window waiting for us. He pushed
open the door when we reached the porch. The petite man all but
disappeared in his oversized wheelchair. A few wisps of white hair
danced around on the top of his head with the wind, and his thick
black-rimmed glasses made his eyes bug-like in
appearance.
    “ Good afternoon, my guardian
angel.” He held out his hand and shook Seth’s warmly. “Who is this
beauty by your side, an angel in training?” He took my hand,
squeezing it softly.
    “ Maggie’s a friend of mine,
although an assistant would be helpful,” he said. “Maggie, this is
Mr. McSheehy, also a friend of mine.”
    “ Come, sit down for a
minute.” He led us inside and