Read Online Lone Tree by Bobbie O'Keefe - Free Book Online Page A

I
don’t have a grill. And even if I had one, I don’t know how to cook inside and
outside at the same time. You know how to play dominoes?”
    “Yes.” Lainie squinted at her. “It’s hard keeping up
with you. Does your conversation always jump all over the place?”
    Jackie carried the plate of hamburgers to the small
round table in front of the window. “Here’s another jump. Either one of those
two eligible bachelors out there appeal to you?”
    “I thought they were all bachelors except Glen
Charles. No, wait a minute. Carter’s married. He said something about his wife
the other day. And Randy is spoken for. And—”
    “Miles is too old. Nelly’s even older. Andy just
started shaving a couple months back. Luke is divorced and soured on women.
That leaves Mack and Reed. You got anybody back home?”
    “No. I did, until about six months ago. Name was
Jason. We were engaged, but...the relationship lacked depth. The relationship
and the man.” She took a bite of the hamburger sandwich, then said around it,
“How about you?”
    “Same here. There was someone once. It wasn’t good.”
    “So,” Lainie said, returning the question to the
questioner, “either one of those bachelors appeal to you?” If Jackie had
designs on Reed, Lainie figured she better find out now, and was even hoping
that was the case because it’d make it easier to resist him.
    “Well, now,” Jackie said. “I was never one to stand
in line. And Mack not only likes the women, they like him back.”
    Lainie grinned. Mack hadn’t tried to hide that fact
about himself. Due to Reed’s reaction, she wouldn’t have to ward off advances
from the tall cowboy—but she still had to counter the moves from that
particular blue-eyed one who was discouraging everyone else.
    “And Reed’s a good friend, always has been,” Jackie
went on. “Nothing romantic there.” Her gaze lowered to the green-print
tablecloth, but she appeared to be looking inward. “Just happened to remember.
When I first met Reed, I was already involved with...with that someone I told
you about. His name was Carl Henry. Worst mistake I ever made in my life.”
    Jackie grew quiet, then looked up with a quick jerk
of her head. “Pass me that bowl of salad. It was good enough I need seconds.”

Chapter Seven
    Carl Henry Mason slammed his fist onto the top of the
cot. The steel-mesh frame beneath the flimsy mattress bruised his knuckles.
    Stupid to be hurting himself, really stupid, and
that only infuriated him more. But there was no one around for him to hit so he
slammed the mattress again, this time with his open palm, pulling back just
enough to protect himself.
    His parole hearing had been postponed. They could do
that, any shitty time they wanted—didn’t even have to have a reason. It’d still
happen, in time, but that was no consolation. He’d spent enough time in this
hellhole and he wanted out. Now. There were a couple people in his hometown he
wanted to visit.
    He whirled, spotted a magazine on the metal shelf
bracketed into the wall, swept it to the floor and then stomped it into shreds.
Wasn’t his magazine anyway; it belonged to Maynard, his cellmate and huge big
pain in the ass.
    Maynard had been complaining about a toothache. It
was the tooth Carl Henry had broken for him, but Maynard had enough sense not
to mention that fact. The dentist was scheduled for today, and the whining
windbag had complained long and loud enough he’d gotten in to see him. So he
wasn’t here to hit, and Carl Henry had to hurt himself by hitting the damn,
stinking mattress.
    He wondered who was responsible for the parole
postponement. Some bleeding heart, probably a dumb-ass woman scared of her own
shadow. Couldn’t make a move without a man standing over her with his fists and
telling her what to do. Like his ma. His old man sure had beat the crap out of
her. She’d probably deserved it. But when he’d started in on Carl Henry, just a
little kid, wasn’t it a