Unraveling Midnight by Stephanie Beck Read Free Book Online

whip up the log of hamburger, but from experience, she knew she’d need a fire extinguisher and maybe charcoal tablets for the impending food poisoning.
    “How about we eat light tonight?” she asked, grabbing a huge brick of cheese and cold cuts. There wasn’t a single piece of fruit in the otherwise well-stocked fridge. There weren’t any veggies either. Maybe Scott hadn’t had a chance to get to the farmers market for fresh. Or maybe he needed a talking-to about a balanced diet for him and the kids.
    “We, ah, don’t eat light,” Greg said, scratching his stomach. Home again, a lot of the tension had eased. Scott slept on the sofa in fresh clothes. She’d helped him a little with bandaging up the abrasions, but he’d very politely kicked her out of his room while he saw to his other injuries. “We could make sandwiches with that stuff, if you want.”
    “Great idea, Greg.” She smiled at the boy who was more mature when necessary. “If you find bread, I’ll start slicing and stacking.”
    Ten minutes later, Lucy tried very hard to keep the shock out of her expression. She’d only seen sandwiches like the ones the boys had put together on extreme food shows. They were at least three inches thick, all meat and cheese between two pieces of grainy wheat bread.
    Jessie was just as bad, eating away at hers like she was starved. They probably were, if they’d been planning ice cream as a snack, but she still couldn’t believe they were plowing through a brick of cheese and two pounds of cold cuts like it was peanut butter and jelly on white bread.
    “Um, do you guys have applesauce or any fruits or veggies you usually eat with sandwiches?” She poured more milk in each of the kids’ glasses.
    “Nope,” Ross said after a big gulp of whole milk. “Dad makes us eat that stuff twice a week, and we already did it this week. Carrots and bananas.”
    The table occupants shuddered as one and she bit back a smile. Okay, so maybe Scott did try. It still boggled her mind though that they ate so much yet all of them were slim to the point of skinny.
    “Can we have ice cream now?” Ross asked, his giant sandwich annihilated to a few crumbs of bread on his plate. “I can get it out. It’s in the back freezer. Oh, and I can take out sausage too, so we can have it for breakfast.”
    Breakfast was usually a bowl of cereal for her, but after seeing them eat, she imaged corn flakes and milk wasn’t going to cut it. Maybe she’d run out to the diner in the morning and load up on breakfast foods for everyone. Another thought made her pause. If Scott’s kids ate like this, how hungry must he be?
    “Go ahead and have ice cream, guys, then wash up and get in pajamas.” She smiled at them, though her mind raced again with worry over Scott. “Is that what you usually do?”
    “Yep,” Jessie said, throwing out the paper plates and stacking the glasses nicely in the sink. “And the boys won’t give you any crap either.”
    “We won’t.” Greg got out bowls and spoons. “We’ll eat and go to bed. We’re tired anyway. Dad ran us most of the day so we’d be good at knitting tonight. I can stay up with him, though, in case he needs anything.”
    “Don’t worry, Greg.” Lucy ruffled his soft brown hair. “I’ll stay tonight and keep an eye on things.”
    He leaned into her hand, like it had been too long since he’d been touched or offered affection. She knew their dad was wonderful about sharing his time and love, yet she also understood that sometimes it wasn’t enough.
    “We’ll eat and wash up,” Ross promised, toting a gallon of ice cream.
    “Good. I’m going to go check on your dad. Maybe he’ll feel like having something to eat.”
    Or maybe not, she thought, remembering one of her brothers who had liked to fight. Before Grandma had taken him under her wing, he’d always had bruises. He’d lamented about food one Thanksgiving when he’d slipped back into his old ways. His teeth had been too sore