Viator (The Viator Chronicles Book 1) by Jane Ralston-Brooks Read Free Book Online Page B

don’t have the means to do any remodeling, but it’s comfortable. My grandparents used to live here.”
    “I like the house the way it is.” He looked around at the worn but comfortable furnishings. “And here’s your piano. You’ve got to play something tonight.”
    “We’ll see. I’m not sure if I want to. I might not live up to your expectations.”
    “You’re not getting out of it so easily.” He looked at the books on the shelves, and stopped when he saw a small, ornate silver flask. He picked it up and turned to Erin. “This is interesting.”
    “The flask? It belonged to my grandparents. It’s very old.”
    He put it back on the shelf and sipped his wine.
    “The pizza will be done soon. I’ll call the kids down,” Erin said.
    “Okay.”
    The girls giggled as they filed down the stairs, and Matt and Jacob followed close behind.
    “My children, Matt and Gwen, and their friends, Jacob, Lauren, and Rose. Kids, this is Gary.”
    He said hello and offered to show them his car. Matt and Jacob exchanged glances, shrugged, and said sure. When they walked out to the front, Erin heard the boys. “Wow! Is that a Porsche? This is your car? Can you give us a ride?”
    The boys came back inside, laughing, and Gary followed them, a wide grin on his face.
    “Did you see Gary’s car, Mom? It’s so cool,” Matt said. “Can we go for a ride with him?”
    “You’ll have to ask him,” Erin said. “But it’ll have to wait—pizza’s ready. Go wash your hands, kids.”
    They ran off to the bathroom. She leaned against the counter again, and Gary picked up his wine glass, still grinning.
    “I’d love to take them for rides.”
    “They’d be talking about it for days.”
    They all sat down at the table, and it wasn’t long before the pizzas were devoured. Matt asked if Jacob could spend the night, and Erin said that would be fine, so all the kids went back upstairs to play.
    Gary refilled their glasses with the last of the wine. They sat in silence for a minute, enjoying the calm. Erin ran her finger around the rim of her glass. “What do you think of the kids?”
    “They’re the best. This is the most enjoyable dinner party I’ve been to in years.” He looked into his glass, and his smile faded into a frown.
    “Tell me more about what you’re doing now. I really don’t know that much about you,” Erin said.
    He shrugged. “I’ve been lucky. You know I’m in imports. That’s how I ran into William again after college. I was handling some parts for the navigation systems his company was building.”
    “Yes. I remember now. About five years ago?”
    “Right.” He drained his glass, walked into the living room and sat on the sofa. “We were good friends in college. After running into him at work we stayed in touch. We used to play basketball when I was in town. He was a great friend.”
    Erin used to love watching William play basketball. She got up from the table, not wanting her feelings to get the better of her. “Would you like some coffee?”
    “No, thanks. Why don’t you come sit down?” He patted the seat on the sofa next to him.
    Erin sat down in the overstuffed chair facing him. She looked at the designs in her rug, tracing the patterns with her mind.
    “These last two years have been hard for you,” Gary said quietly.
    She nodded.
    “I always thought William was especially lucky,” he said.
    She looked at him with questioning eyes and shook her head.
    “You,” Gary said. “He had you.” He stood up and stretched his arms over his head, walked to the window and looked out. They were both silent a few minutes. He turned around and looked at the floor with a frown while Erin studied him. Fine lines fanned out from the corners of his eyes in his golden-tan face. His blond hair was neatly trimmed but a curl formed around his ear, and his shoulders and arms looked powerful under his shirt. As she watched him, a flicker of memory from her last dream came back to her, when she