Read Online Tender Vow by Sharlene MacLaren - Free Book Online Page B

passing over her remark.
    “As in a grief counselor, you mean? Not that it’s any of your business, but, yes, I have. I’m in a support group at church.” Of course, she wouldn’t mention that she’d missed the last few sessions. Even though her friends and parents all readily offered at different times to watch the kids so that she could attend the weekly meetings, she’d begun to find them tedious and had started making excuses for not going.
    “That’s good. I have, too.”
    Briefly, she wondered what he’d learned at his meetings and whether they’d helped him cope, but she chose not to inquire, drawing her knees up to her chin now and hugging them. “Good for you. Look, I’ve got to go, okay?”
    “Mind if I call you again?”
    “Yes, I do, actually. I’d rather you left me alone.”
    “Sorry, I’m gonna continue making a pest of myself.”
    “Please don’t.”
    “Rachel, I—”
    “Good night, Jason.” She put the receiver in its cradle, and when the phone rang a couple of seconds later, she ignored it.
    ***
    Just after eleven that night, Jason found himself on Rachel’s front porch, pressing the doorbell and pacing with impatience. When she didn’t answer, he put his hand on the doorknob and turned, finding it unlocked. Crazy lady doesn’t even lock her front door! He entered through the well-lit living room. The couch looked rumpled and was stacked with pillows, a balled-up blanket, and a wrinkled magazine. He wasn’t the best housekeeper, himself, but he knew Rachel. Before John’s passing, she’d been a regular neatnik.
    Like a spy on reconnaissance, he skulked across the room, into the kitchen, back out through the formal dining room, and then down the hallway, past a powder room and a spare bedroom, its door open to a bunch of boxes, stacks of unfolded clothing, toys, books, and other things he couldn’t even name. This must be the catchall room , he figured. John would have had a fit. He’d liked order, not chaos. This was Chaos with a capital C. Another light glowed at the end of the hallway, but the house remained as quiet as a morgue.
    “Rachel?” he called, tuning his ears for the slightest sound.
    Nothing.
    Any other time, he wouldn’t have fretted, but in view of the way she’d sounded earlier, he didn’t like the feel of things. Turning, he headed around the corner and up the stairs, tripping over a stuffed animal and then kicking it. If she’d gone to bed, why had she left half the lights on? He climbed the stairs two at a time, huffing when he reached the top. A hasty glance in Meagan’s room revealed no Rachel, so he moved down the hall. Just then, a door swung open, and Rachel emerged, wet hair dripping, long robe dragging on the floor, bare toes peeking out. One look at him, and she released an earsplitting, spine-tingling, roof-raising scream.
    He grabbed her to him, muffling the sound with his shoulder. “Rachel, it’s me,” he said soothingly into her ear. “Shh. You’ll wake up the whole town.” She fought him wildly with both arms, flailing her fists until he grabbed hold and secured them tightly between his hands. When she settled down, he eased his grip on her wrists, but she broke free and unleashed her anger by giving him a good pound on the chest.
    “Don’t you ever do that to me again, Jason Evans!” she yelled. “You scared me to death!”
    “Well, don’t leave your front door unlocked, woman! Don’t you know how dangerous that is? I don’t care if you live in a nice, quiet neighborhood; you should have your door locked at all times, even during the day. No telling who could come walking in. There’re a lot of weirdos out there.”
    “Yeah, I see what you mean,” she remarked, looking him up and down with disdain before giving him a stinging slap on the arm and stepping away. “What in the world are you doing here at this time of night, anyway?”
    “I didn’t like your tone on the phone. You sounded stressed. And when you made that