Read Online Audition - Southern Belles Part 1 (Erotic Romance Series) by Amanda Heartley - Free Book Online Page B

country!”
    Annie nodded, but she was still on edge. She forced herself to let go of the table, and wiped her sweaty hands on the legs of her pants. “I know, I just -” She shrugged. “I guess it’s been a long time since I’ve been home. I’m just not used to all these animal sounds”
    Marti nodded. “You want to come over to my house tonight? It’s not as big and rambly, you might feel a bit safer?”
    “No.” Annie shook her head. “I need to get used to this old house if I’m going to stay here.” She looked at Marti. “How about you stay the night over here? I know you have to leave early, but -”
    Marti smiled. “Of course, hon.” She grinned, “It’ll be just like the good ol’ days, when we had slumber parties.”
    Annie sighed. She didn’t feel like talking. It had been a long, emotional day. The two girls made their way up the rickety old stairs to Annie’s old room.
     
    *****

Chapter 2
    “You sure you’re alright, hon?” Marti asked for the third time on the phone. Annie nodded, even though Marti couldn’t see.
    “Of course I’m alright; I’m going to be fine. I just had the heebie jeebies the other night. I grew up in this house, I’m a big girl, shouldn’t be scared of it at all.”
    “ Alrighty then,” Marti said, though she didn’t sound so sure. “Just holler if you need anything, okay?”
    “Okay. Relax, I’ll call ya if I need to.”  Annie said, hanging up the phone. She was glad that Marti cared about her, but she started to sound like an old lady, worrying like that. Annie needed to do this. It was her home and if she was going to stay here, she had better get used to it.
    She returned to her daily task of cleaning the house. God, how she hated to clean. She should’ve hired someone but thankfully, the chore was almost complete.
    Her Granddaddy had been awfully sick in the end, so a lot of simple things hadn’t gotten done. Georgia wasn’t like L.A. – In Georgia, if you didn’t clean the house, it started to fall apart. So she’d spent the last few days battling the eternal onslaught of mold and dirt. She only had a few more rooms before she was finished, and she was pretty proud of herself.
    Of course, once she was done inside there would be the matter of the outside. Porch needed fixing, screens needed replacing and God only knows what else. It wasn’t like Granddaddy had done a lot of farming or fixing things in the last year of his life, but he’d tended his peach groves like they were his baby, and she hated to see them go to waste. She was sure that someone in town would be able to help her figure out what needed to be done.
    When the job was finally done, Annie brought her cleaning buckets and supplies back into the kitchen and mud-room. She emptied the buckets and threw the last of the cloths into the washing machine, then into the huge kitchen to grab a late night snack and something to drink. The same as the night before, animal sounds were beginning to echo out in the darkness, and Annie was glad to have the warm lamplight all around her.
    She turned on the TV, to catch a late night movie when she heard the back door rattle a little. She jumped; her heart felt like it was going to beat out of her chest. The door was locked and bolted, but it shook, and the latch sounded like it clicked up and down a few times.
    Annie took a deep breath, telling herself that it was just Marti, or the wind. But she didn’t hear the wind; and Marti said she was going to stay at home that night. Hesitantly, she called out. “Marti? Marti is that you?”
    For a moment the door quieted, but she didn’t hear Marti’s cheerful voice either. She tried to call out louder, but it just made her voice wobble more. “Marti? Hello? Girl, is that you?”
    Nothing. After a long pause where Annie barely dared breathe, the door rattled in its frame. Annie screamed and ran. She suddenly felt trapped in the big house, with its big picture windows and old creaky doors. She