Read Online Blood Ties by Judith E. French - Free Book Online

she knew
how to use it. She'd just taken a few steps toward the
hill when Matthew shouted.
    "Hey! Dr. Knight! Your daughter's coming."
    Karen turned toward him. Whatever had caused her
apprehension had vanished at the sound of his voice.
She felt a little foolish. All this talk of ghosts and spirits
was getting to her. She took a deep breath and hurried
to meet Abbie. Her apprehension was nonsense, simply the result of too little sleep and the excitement of a
new project.
    "Anati!" Abbie called. "Sorry I'm late. But Emma
insisted on sending lunch." She held up a wicker picnic basket. "Wait until you see what's in here. It smells
delicious."
    "Good," Karen replied. "I'm starving." She glanced
over her shoulder. Nothing there that shouldn't be.
No ghosts, no angry Indian shamans, and no predators. Maybe Matthew was right; maybe she was giving
too much credibility to superstition.
    Maybe, the quiet voice in her head whispered, but
maybe not.

     

Bailey looked at the clock. It was 7:38, and she'd told
Daniel that she'd have dinner on the table at 6:30
sharp. It wasn't like him to be late, not for a meal.
With a final glance at her shriveled baked potatoes,
she slid the cooling plate of crab cakes into the refrigerator beside the salad and poured herself another
glass of iced tea. Puzzle, her corgi pup, cocked her
head and watched every move.
    "If you're hoping for a treat, you're out of luck.
You'll be fat as ... fat as me." Bailey made a face.
    Despite her own queasy stomach, she'd wanted to
show off her newfound cooking abilities. Whenever
Daniel arrived, she could heat the crab cakes in the
microwave and serve them as a sandwich. But the baking potatoes she'd picked out so carefully at Dori's
were destined for the compost pile.
    Wondering if maybe the phone service was out, a
common occurrence on Tawes, she picked up her
house phone. Hearing a reassuring dial tone, she
checked her cell. It seemed to be working, and she had no missed messages. Daniel had told her that he'd
be finishing trim on the cabin all afternoon, so there
was no logical reason why he should be late. Growing
more frustrated by the moment, she punched in his
number on her cell.

    "Hey. This is me. I'm not picking up, so you're out
of luck. Leave a number, and I might call back."
    "Funny. Very funny." Scooping up her glass of tea,
Bailey went out onto the screened back porch. Emma
was right. It was time to tell Daniel about the coming
baby. Twice, she'd started to, but each time something
had occurred to make her reluctant to share her secret. She knew that he would insist on setting a date
for the wedding.
    The trouble was, she didn't know if she was ready to
be married again. Her first marriage to Elliott had
proved a disaster, both emotionally and financially.
And since she'd come to Tawes, little more than a year
ago, her entire life had changed. She was happy about
the baby ... about having Daniel's baby ... at least
she thought she was. It was the commitment part that
had her scared.
    She and Daniel both brought considerable baggage
to their relationship. She loved him, but she just
wasn't sure she could trust her own judgment. Hadn't
she thought she loved Elliott when they'd eloped to
Las Vegas? And hadn't she known him a lot longer
than she'd known Daniel? It wasn't as if she couldn't
provide for her child. She had a home, money in the
bank, a job she was crazy about. For the first time in
her life, she felt whole.
    Complete.
    Puzzle whined and ran to the screen door, her
round corgi rump bouncing. Bailey set her tea on the
antique sewing-machine cabinet she used for an end
table and followed the now barking dog onto the porch step. "What is it, girl? Is Daniel here? Is it
Daniel?"

    But, she saw with a sigh of disappointment, the tall,
lean figure that rounded the house wasn't Daniel. It was
Will. "Come in." She forced a welcoming smile. "You're
just in time for dinner. Supper." It would