Read Online Restorations (Book One Oregon In Love) by Bonnie Blythe - Free Book Online

to.
    Once ensconced in a rental car, she realized
Brian had taken care of all the details. Admittedly, she felt
grateful for his presence and didn’t know how she could’ve managed
without him. She thanked him, but reminded herself to keep him at
arm’s length in case he tried to inveigle his way into her good
graces. Then, remembering the blonde flight attendant, Sara
acknowledged Brian hardly needed to go to such effort to capture a
female’s attention.
    Her headache worsened.
    Soon they arrived in Sara’s neighborhood,
located in a poorer section of town. Sara stiffly climbed from the
car and looked around. She tried to imagine how things might appear
as seen through Brian’s eyes. The struggling neighborhood contained
run-down houses amid newly renovated ones. Cars on blocks occupied
weed filled yards and some young men hung around in a group.
    Despite her tight resources, Sara could’ve
afforded a place in a slightly better area, but she preferred older
buildings full of history and character. Her building, once a
sprawling Victorian mansion, was now carved up into five separate
apartments.
    She usually ignored the peeling paint, but
sensed Brian’s disapproval as she led him to the entry. The door
boasted a large sheet of wavy glass bordered by small squares of
stained glass, although she didn’t remember seeing so many cracked
or missing panes before.
    Inside the foyer her landlady, at one time,
had penciled the word ‘manager’ on the wall next to another door.
Sara led Brian down the hall and up a flight of creaking stairs
flanked by an often-painted balustrade.
    “Glad to see you don’t live on the first
floor at least,” she heard him mumble.
    Sara bristled but refrained from responding.
She opened the door of her apartment and ushered him in. Compared
to the outside, the inside presented an oasis of sun-filled rooms
with brightly painted walls, antique furniture, and colorful
pillows, rugs and pictures. The stained glass, which graced most of
the windows, created harlequinade patterns on the oak floor and
bathed the room in pastel hues.
    Sara tossed her keys onto a nearby oak table
and turned to Brian. “Well, thanks again for all your help. I’ll
see you in what, three days?”
    Brian glanced around the room and then
walked over to the main window, gazing out onto the street below.
He turned back to Sara with his arms crossed over his chest. “I
can’t leave you here alone. It’s too dangerous.”
    Sara sputtered.
    He held up a hand. “Hattie charged me with
your safety and it would be unconscionable to leave you here in a
neighborhood filled with guys who’d as soon slit your throat as say
howdy.”
    Sara went to the window, and just to annoy
Brian, waved to the boys below. They waved back.
    “Get away from the window!”
    Planting her hands on her hips, she turned
to him. “Let me inform you that I’ve lived here for almost six
months with no problems and furthermore, you are leaving to go
visit your sister!”
    “My sister will have to wait. I’m not
leaving, Sara.”
    “You...are...not...going to stay in my
apartment!”
    Brian’s face creased into a smile. “No, I
suppose I can’t do that, now can I?” He rubbed his chin
thoughtfully and startled Sara by disappearing out the door.
    On wobbly legs, she leaned against the wall.
She wasn’t interested in what Brian was cooking up because she knew
it would only manage to cause her displeasure. All the same, she
headed into the bathroom to freshen up before he returned.
    A few minutes later, Sara sat down on the
couch in the living room and blew out a breath. Out of the corner
of her eye, she noticed the red flashing light of her answering
machine. She pressed the button and leaned back against the
cushions with her eyes closed. Most were old messages from Hattie,
one from a friend at work wondering when she’d be back, and one
from a guy she dated once before.
    “Hi, Sara, this is Daryl Cummings. I thought
we had a date last