The Reading Circle by Ashton Lee

Author:Ashton Lee [Lee, Ashton]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Fiction, General
ISBN: 9781628990843
Google: n0zPAgAAQBAJ
Amazon: 0758273428
Barnesnoble: 0758273428
Goodreads: 18167484
Publisher: Kensington
Published: 2014-01-01T05:00:00+00:00

Maura Beth felt so guilty she could hardly stand it. “Here I was, so mad at Jeremy because he didn’t show at the meeting tonight, and now I find out he was doing his best to get down here to Cherico. I’m being punished for such mean-spirited thoughts, I just know,” she told Connie and Douglas as she began to tear up.

The three of them were standing just outside Jeremy’s hospital room on the second floor of Cherico Memorial, and the McShays had just told Maura Beth everything they’d learned from the visit with their nephew and his doctor. “Don’t be ridiculous. No such thing is happening,” Connie said, giving her a hug and a few pats on the back. “It’s wrong to even think such thoughts.”

“She’s right, you know,” Douglas added, nodding sympathetically. “You need to lighten up a little. This isn’t the time for second-guessing yourself.”

Maura Beth was sniffling now. “Well, you just ask Periwinkle what I said to her after the review tonight. I couldn’t have been bothered with giving Jeremy the benefit of the doubt. Oh, no, not me!”

Connie pulled away and gave Maura Beth her sternest glare. “You are not going to help Jeremy one bit if you go in there and break down in front of him. Just be thankful he’s basically walked away from this with only a mild concussion and one fractured rib. From the looks of his car, they say it could have been much, much worse.”

Maura Beth looked skeptical. “Who are they?”

Douglas stepped in at that point. “Dr. Tillman said the state trooper, or the park ranger or the paramedics, I forget which—anyway, somebody said that the driver of that car shouldn’t have survived at all. But somehow Jeremy did. That could be a sign, you know.”

“There were angels on his shoulders,” Connie added. “And they’re probably looking after you, too. So stop beating yourself up. Stand up tall, march straight in there, and the two of you get things back on track. That’s what you want, isn’t it?”

Maura Beth wiped her eyes with the back of her hand and then a smile broke through. “I didn’t realize how much until you called and told me what had happened tonight.”

“You just hold on to that, then,” Connie said. “You lift his spirits, and you’ll be lifting yours at the same time.”

Maura Beth gave them both her best smile, pointing to it with her index finger. “How does this look?”

“Dazzlingly white,” Connie told her. “And no spinach between your teeth. Now, go on in there. You channel Scarlett and Melanie together the way only you can. And don’t forget to give Jeremy that little gift from those lovely people.”

“Thanks, you two.”

Indeed, when Maura Beth walked into Jeremy’s room, she noted with great relief that he did not look particularly compromised. There was a big bandage on his head, and he was hooked up to the usual equipment monitoring his vital signs, but it was clear that the car and not Jeremy himself had suffered most of the severe damage.

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