Read Online When Snow Falls by Brenda Novak - Free Book Online Page B

catch a second glimpse of her when she came into the station. And this morning…he’d felt so protective when those tears welled up.
    “Glad to hear it,” his father said. “Eve would be a much better bet.”
    Joe propped his elbows on his knees. “What’s wrong with Cheyenne?”
    “She’s had a hard life. If anyone has the right to carry excess baggage, it would be her. Just look at her sister.”
    The way his father automatically dismissed Cheyenne bothered Joe. “She’s done well, considering what she’s been through. Like you said, it’s Presley who’s out of control. She propositioned me at the Sexy Sadie Saloon a few weeks ago.”
    “How does a woman do that these days?”
    “She said for twenty bucks she’d take me in the girls’ restroom and ‘blow my mind. ’”
    “I take it you declined.”
    “I did—and that didn’t embarrass her in the slightest. She told me to go to hell and started scanning the bar for her next mark.”
    “See what I mean?”
    “Presley isn’t Chey,” Joe argued.
    “Doesn’t matter. You marry the girl, you marry the family.”
    He understood that concept only too well. But he was feeling contrary enough that his father’s disapproval pushed him further into Cheyenne’s camp. “It wouldn’t hurt to befriend her.”
    “You’ve never paid much attention to her before.”
    “She belongs to Gail’s group. And I’ve been busy.”
    His father motioned at the clock. “You’re not busy tonight. Maybe after dinner you should take a bottle of wine and head over there.”
    “Maybe I will.”
    “She could probably use some company.”
    “No doubt,” he said, rising to the challenge. But once he caught sight of his father’s grin, he realized that Martin had been manipulating him the whole time. “You think you’re so clever,” he complained.
    “It’s not hard to lead someone right where they want to go,” he said with a laugh. Then he nearly drove Joe crazy whistling as he finished making dinner.
    * * *
    No one ever came to the house, unless it was one of J. T. Amos’s sons, looking for Presley. Sometimes Presley partied with them down at their place, which was a rambler along the river half a mile away. Since it was nearly eight o’clock on a Saturday night, Cheyenne felt confident it had to be one of them—confident enough that she wasn’t the least concerned about her appearance. She’d already scrubbed her face so she wasn’t wearing any makeup. She wasn’t wearing shoes, either—just a pair of holey jeans with a sweatshirt. She’d stand behind the door, tell Dylan, Aaron, Grady, Rodney or Mack that Presley was out for the evening, and be done with it.
    But it wasn’t the Fearsome Five, as they were often called. Cheyenne couldn’t believe her eyes when she saw Joe standing on her rickety porch. She hadn’t even realized he knew where she lived.
    “Hey.” He offered her a grin that made her stomach flip-flop. “Looks like you’re in for the night.”
    She resisted the urge to raise a self-conscious hand to her messy bun. Did her hair look as bad as she thought it might? She could feel wet tendrils clinging to her face. “Yes. I, um, I’m not planning on going anywhere. I mean, I can’t. Presley’s out. I have to stay with my mother.”
    “That’s what I figured.” He lifted the bottle he carried in one hand. “Would you like to have a drink with me while you do your caretaker thing?”
    She blinked several times before finding her voice. “Did you come to talk about Eve?”
    “Eve?” he repeated.
    “She’s crazy about you, you know. I’m sure you’ve guessed what with all the trips we’ve made to the gas station.” She laughed, hoping to appear less off balance. “And…she’s so great. You wouldn’t want to lose out on someone like her.”
    A strange expression flitted across his face. “Thanks for the encouragement. I think she’s nice, too. But I’m not here to talk about Eve.”
    He didn’t indicate whether or