Read Online Breath of Dawn, The by Kristen Heitzmann - Free Book Online

ached to do worse. The truck was in there, so he fetched Livie and banged on the front door.
    He’d intentionally come when Rick and his family were otherwise occupied so they wouldn’t get ideas and feel freer with advice than they already were. His younger brother’s nudges irritated him, even when they sometimes happened to be right. Clearing out the house was a big job for one person.
    Quinn opened the door tentatively, then, seeing them, pulled it wide and spoke to his child. “Hi, you.” She gave Livie a puckish smile, then raised her gaze. “If you really don’t want people falling for her, you ought to keep her locked up.”
    “No use. She’d shine through the cracks.”
    Her eyes sparkled. “No doubt. So what did you want?”
    “Just seeing if you need help with cupboards or anything.”
    She gave him a puzzled look. “I do know where you live.”
    And thanks to Rick, he now felt stupid, a feeling he had little acquaintance with and less affection for. “Any luck with your search?” He glanced into the dining room still heaped with paper. She’d made progress but not a whole lot.
    “The best I can say is I haven’t lost my mind.”
    Kind of endearing how committed she was to someone else’s cause. How would RaeAnne even know if she scooped the whole mess out with a bulldozer?
    She said, “I’m not bothering with the unopened mail. Anything else could be relevant.”
    “Sold any more cupboards?” He moved on to the kitchen.
    “As you see, we’re down to one hutch besides yours and a couple of tables. I’ll probably let the Salvation Army have the rest.”
    He eyed the pieces and agreed. “Let them.”
    “What are you doing for furniture?”
    “Getting some.” He set Livie down.
    “Mmm. Well, unless you want to dive with me into the dining room . . .”
    “Not happening.”
    “Yeah. If I don’t finish the stacks today I’m coming back with matches.”
    Again the amusement caught him. She wasn’t trying to be funny, she just was. “Any luck with keys?”
    “I told you, I haven’t—”
    He walked over to the box that surely held every size and shape of skeleton key made. Reaching in, he grabbed a handful and tried them one by one.
    She rolled onto the balls of her feet, eager in that childlike way she had, like Livie waiting for ice cream. “What are you going to do if it opens?”
    He cast a glance over his shoulder. “Show you the bottles you’re dying to see.”
    Hyperextending her fingers, she bounced the tops of her palms together, hardly containing her anticipation. He doubted the contents could be that exciting, but the ongoing experiment with Quinn was certainly entertaining.
    From the corner of his eye, he saw Livie crouch and then creep under a rickety drop-leaf table. Bending, he saw the hole in the baseboard she was making a beeline for. Every speck and crevice fascinated her, which was why she picked up more lint and fuzz than a Swiffer mop. “Don’t go there, Livie.” He bent under the table, caught her by the waist, and hoisted her to the surface.
    Quinn squealed.
    “What!”
    “That’s it!”
    “It’s what?” He looked down at the gold thing clutched in Livie’s little fist.
    Quinn reached out and spoke sweetly. “May I have it?”
    He knew from experience it wouldn’t be that easy. But Livie floored him by dropping the item into Quinn’s hand.
    “It is it. I can’t believe it.” Her excitement animated each word. “I search every nook and cranny—”
    “Not every cranny.”
    “A mousehole? That’s diabolical.”
    “Unless you’re two. Then it’s irresistible.”
    Quinn squealed again. “Thank you, thank you, thank you.” She kissed Livie’s cheek. “You’ve saved me from the dining room.”
    “She doesn’t comprehend the magnitude of that gift.” Morgan said, toting his daughter to the sink and washing her hands.
    “I can’t begin to express it.”
    “You gave it a pretty good shot.” Killing a laugh, he dried Livie’s and