Read Online Beside the Brook by Paulette Rae - Free Book Online Page B

of distance learning?”
    Beth raised her eyebrow, looking rather like Tyler as she did so.
    “I’m not saying that.” Kirsten clenched her hands together in her lap. “You probably already know that’s not what I think, and that’s why you have jumped to the defensive on the subject. I think Sarah should be at a school with other children her own age. She should be open to all the possibilities, all the stimulations she can get at her age. But that’s not my decision. She’s not my child. I work for you, and I will respect your decisions when it comes to Sarah.”
    “Well, good.” Beth seemed puzzled.
    “Alright then.” Kirsten stood up. She didn’t want to give Beth a chance to realise what had just happened. Right now she had the upper hand and she wanted to leave on that note.
    “Kirsty-,”
    Kirsten turned as the older woman spoke. “Oh, can I just say one thing? I hope you don’t take this the wrong way, but Sarah is not Brook. I may be way out of line in saying so, but I think Sarah needs to learn to breathe without being mollycoddled by her family. She’s not going to disappear if you give her some room to experience life for herself. But when she gets old enough to realise there’s a whole world out there that she’s been kept from, you will lose her.”
    Beth simply stared, open mouthed at Kirsty, as if she had been slapped in the face. Kirsty disappeared quickly, deciding it was probably a good idea if she laid low for a few hours. She thought if she even so much as stuck her head out the door it may be chopped from her neck.
    She blamed her red hair more than anything else. It always managed to get her into so much trouble. Why couldn’t she learn to keep her mouth shut? So far she had managed to alienate Jamie, even though she couldn’t put her finger on what may have caused that, and now she had more than likely upset the matriarch of the family. That was called biting the hand that feeds , she remembered her father saying once. God, what she wouldn’t do to see her father’s friendly smile right now. He would know just what to say to make her feel better. But she wasn’t about to go running to him right now. She needed to act like the adult she was and just keep it together. She could handle this.
    What she needed was something to take her mind off the job. Dragging her bathing suit from the wardrobe, she exchanged it for her clothes, feeling sure that a hot soak would be just the thing to ease her mind. Tomorrow she may not have a job, so why not make the most of her time here before Beth sent her packing?
    She took the lift to the bottom floor, which brought her down into the back passage and to a shortcut out through the laundry door. She walked down the damp concrete path, maiden hair ferns rustling against her bare legs as she passed. The sweet scent of Jasmine wafted on the night air as she neared the pool, its thick crawling growth providing shelter as Kirsty slipped behind the fence. With some difficulty she pulled back the cover of the pool, and dropped it onto the paving beneath. Thick steam rose in contrasting shards of warm against the cool black sky. Kirsten stepped down into the heat. The smell of chlorine assaulted her nostrils as she dipped into the water. She leaned over and found the button to start the bubbles. The gurgling water surged around

    her, and she lay back against the vinyl headrest, her eyes skimming the expanse of brilliant stars that seemed endless. The sky here was clearer, the air cleaner with no city smog to coat the atmosphere. Kirsten had never seen a night sky like it. After a few moments she felt the tension melting from her body, and she relaxed completely, letting the stress wash away.
    “You’d look better with a glass of mulled wine in your hand.”
    She opened her eyes to see Tyler staring down at her, a playful grin at the corners of his mouth.
    “Definitely not.” She smirked as she watched him throw his towel onto the tiles and climb