Read Online A Family Homecoming by Laurie Paige - Free Book Online Page B

was there before they could ring the bell. “Come in,” she urged.
    She tugged Sara inside. Danielle and Kyle followed them as Jessica came to greet them.
    â€œI’m so glad you could come. Kyle, it’s nice to meet you again. Here, we’ll hang your coats in the closet. There’s a peg for your hat,” she told Kyle.
    In a couple of minutes, they filed into the living room while the girls scampered off to Jenny’s room where her dog was banished for the evening.
    Jessica introduced Kyle to Sterling—the two men had already met that week, Danielle learned—and to the other couple, Angela and Shane.
    Angela, who was about five or six months pregnant, wore a holly-red maternity outfit with matching tights. Her cheeks were pink, and she looked healthy and happy. With her dark hair and green eyes, she was a perfect foil to Shane’s clean-cut good looks. Shane was around Kyle’s age, Danielle thought. Angela was in her late twenties, early thirties.
    The two were clearly in love. It showed in the way they glanced at each other, in the way Shane’s hands were there to help her up or hold her chair when they went to the dining room, in the way her tone changed each time she spoke directly to him.
    Danielle’s throat closed in the alarming way it did when Kyle had appeared on her doorstep, dusted with snow, during the blizzard. She followed Jessica into the kitchen where the girls were sitting down to their supper. Sugar, Jenny’s dog, sat quietly by Jenny’s chair.
    â€œSara wants a dog,” Jenny told them. “She could ask Wayne if Freeway and Daisy have had any more pups.”
    Danielle noted the light in her daughter’s eyes asshe gazed at Sugar and couldn’t say no. “We’ll see,” she promised vaguely.
    â€œA dog might be a good thing,” Jessica suggested.
    â€œIt would bark at night if strangers tried to get into your house,” Jenny said earnestly, her blue eyes solemn. “And it could bite the two bad men who took Sara.” She squeezed her friend’s arm. “A dog is a very good thing.”
    Sara nodded, then looked at her mother, her heart in her eyes.
    Danielle sighed and gave in to fate. “I’ll ask Mr. Kincaid next time I see him,” she promised.
    â€œI’ll help you remember,” Jenny said. “Wayne is my brother, just like Clint. I’ll tell him if you forget.”
    Danielle couldn’t help but laugh. “Thanks.” She helped Jessica serve the crown roast and roasted potatoes. After taking her place at the table, she was startled when Kyle leaned close.
    â€œYou were laughing,” he said. “That’s the first time I’ve heard your laughter in two years.”
    She glanced into his eyes, then away. She couldn’t face that heated gaze without melting, and she couldn’t afford to do that. Kyle would be gone soon, back to his old life, the one he’d had before meeting her, she had realized during the long months of loneliness. The one he preferred.
    â€œWhat was funny?” he persisted.
    â€œI…nothing.” Longing rose in her, along with the grief she thought she’d learned to live with.
    â€œJenny thinks Sara needs a dog,” Jessica mentioned when she was through serving. “I think Freeway and Daisy have some pups that are about four months old. You should ask Wayne about them.Sugar has been a wonderful pet. She’s smart, a good watchdog and she adores Jennifer.”
    â€œA mutual admiration pair,” Sterling added. “It’s very humbling to know you come in second to your child’s dog in her affections.”
    The six adults laughed. Shane patted Angela’s tummy. “Maybe we should ask Kincaid about a dog for our girl here,” he suggested, a world of warmth in his tone.
    The tears rose perilously near the surface. Danielle fought to keep her smile in place.
    â€œYou know you’re