Bait by Samantha Keith

Author:Samantha Keith
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Kensington
Published: 2018-07-18T00:00:53+00:00

Chapter 14

The gentle breeze blew in through the Carolina porch screen. Riley tucked her hair behind her shoulder, and then dropped her fingers to smooth over the soft leather of Hanna’s journal. Ethan was inside, still talking on the phone.

She closed her eyes and relaxed her shoulders. If Ethan hadn’t been there when she’d found the snake, she would have lost her shit. The only thing that had kept her sane was his steady calm and the way he’d taken over. Willies raced over her skin, leaving raised goose bumps. She’d never be able to stay in that house again.

She pushed all thoughts of the morning from her mind, tucked her feet under her, and cracked open the journal. She thumbed through the pages and pages of Hanna’s cursive writing that she’d already read. She had more than half the book left to read. Oh well, best to get started. The rough timber of Ethan’s voice drifted out of her thoughts as she sank into her best friend’s world.

Stories from her work as a kindergarten teacher made her smile. Hanna had loved teaching. In this entry, she had mused about what birthday gift to get one of her students. She turned to the next one, but the smile faded from her lips as she read.

I miss Riley so much. I’m kicking myself for encouraging her to move to Boston. It just isn’t the same without her, nothing is. We text here and there and have a monthly phone date, but its light-years away from seeing her every day. I won’t be able to make the surprise trip to Boston for her birthday anymore. Stupid car needed new brakes. Maybe I can convince her to come home.

“You okay?”

Her head shot up. The screen door closed softly behind Ethan, two glasses of lemonade occupied his hands. He sat the glasses on the patio table and sank down next to her. She dashed a tear away from the corner of her eye.

“Find any other clues yet?” His arm slipped behind her shoulders, his fingers toyed with the bare skin of her arm. She rested her head back against his forearm and met his gaze.

“There’s a lot of entries, I’m hoping to find something else that’s more helpful than the one creep at the bar.”

“Do you want me to leave you alone?” His knuckles traced lazy circles over her shoulder, then down to her elbow and back up, leaving a trail of fire in its wake.

“No, I want you to stay.”

“All right, maybe I’ll grab my tablet and work beside you, and if you find anything interesting let me know.” He pushed himself off the seat, and then disappeared into the house. She leaned forward, sipped the ice-cold lemonade, letting the sweet and sour liquid tickle her taste buds and run down her throat. Ethan returned a minute later and settled back beside her.

The gentle inhale and exhale of his breath next to her while he worked gave her a feeling of calm. She returned to the entry and they sat in silence for well over an hour.

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