Walker Pride by Bernadette Marie Read Free Book Online Page A

Eric, but said nothing to him. Then he turned back toward Eric’s father.
    “Everett, I’ll have what’s mine. All of it. You can’t keep her. And you can’t keep my land.”
    Elias and the men he’d come with walked back to the two trucks they’d driven in and sped off, kicking up mud in their wake.
    Eric watched his father stand still and no one spoke for a long moment.
    “What did he mean, you can’t keep her?” Eric asked nearing the edge of the porch, his feet now frozen against the wooden planks.
    “Go make some coffee. I’m going to call Ben and Russell. I think we need to make a plan,” his father said, pulling his phone from his pocket.
    “Dad, what did he mean? You can’t keep her?”
    When his father looked toward him, Eric’s heart nearly burst. There were tears in his father’s eyes.
    “He wants to move your mother.”
    Eric felt dizzy.
    No one would disrupt his mother’s resting place. They’d have to kill him first.
    Perhaps it was time for him to meet Elias face to face.
    But as his father began walking toward the house, the phone to his ear calling Eric’s brother Ben, he realized he’d have to do that later—and no one could know.
    Right now the men needed coffee. And he’d find something they could put in it to kick it up a notch.
     
    ~*~
     
    Susan sat at her desk in the corner of the living room. Her computer was a vivid display of colorful spreadsheets and lists.
    She’d meet with the head of the library at eleven. Then she had plans to take lunch to Eric. If that went well then she’d go to Costco on her way home and pick up the items for tomorrow’s job.
    If the drop by at Eric’s didn’t go well—she didn’t want to think about that. She had a curiosity about the man and it just needed to be satisfied.
    She could just ask Bethany, who still hadn’t climbed out of bed and it was nearly ten o’clock, but what fun would that be? There was a story behind the little lines on Eric Walker’s face and Susan wanted to find out what it was.
    When the front door opened, she nearly fell back in her chair.
    “Oh, did I scare you?” Bethany walked toward her. Her long red curls were pulled back in a ponytail and her iPhone was strapped to her arm.
    “Did you go running?”
    Bethany nodded, still catching her breath.
    “I thought you were sleeping.”
    “Heavens no. I’ve been running for nearly two hours.”
    “Why?”
    Bethany laughed. “You can’t even get looked at for movie roles if you don’t keep up your body. I keep healthy. Some of those girls are just skinny because they don’t eat and they live on coffee.”
    “You look great.”
    She smiled. “Thanks. I need to get a shower. What are you doing today?”
    How much did she want to tell her? “I have a meeting in an hour, then some shopping to do. I have a corporate event to cater tomorrow. Are you free to help and learn the ropes?”
    “Free as a bird.”
    Bethany gave her a brilliant smile and then ran up the stairs. Susan wasn’t sure after two hours of running how you’d have enough energy to even get up the stairs let alone run them.
    She turned back to her spreadsheet. There were enough jobs planned for the next month to get a little money into savings. Tuition for summer semester was going to be a little tight if she was paying Bethany to help. But in the long run, it would all be worth it.
    She’d paid her dues married to a man who hated every idea she’d ever had. Now she was forging her own life, doing what she wanted to do. That restaurant she’d build wasn’t too far down the path, she thought. Every day the reality of it grew closer and closer.
    Susan looked at her watch again. She needed to head out for her meeting.
    Turning off her computer, she gathered her paperwork and headed to the kitchen. On the counter was her cooler with everything she’d need for lunch at Eric’s—china, silverware, and glasses. Of course, a lovely chicken salad she was trying out. She’d pack herself a nice