Bonded by Wright Laura

Author:Wright, Laura [Wright, Laura]
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Publisher: Little, Brown Book Group
Published: 2015-08-31T07:00:00+00:00

Fourteen

She’d done it.

She’d actually done it.

Granted, the move had been quick and headstrong and maybe not all finely planned—zero furniture until tomorrow—but it felt good. She felt good.

Leaning against the massive broom she’d found in the office closet, Emily stared around the room of her new apartment. One bedroom, one bath, a cute but small kitchen, huge windows, flowers everywhere she could manage, and loads of charm. It didn’t have the space and comforts of home, but it had something else. Something she thought might end up being more important in the end. The ability to teach her autonomy.

She headed downstairs and put the broom away. She’d spent the past hour working on the floors and cleaning the bathroom and kitchen. Now it was time to get her bags. She hadn’t brought much. A week’s worth of clothes and toiletries, some books and music, a few candles. Her brothers were coming tomorrow with all the rest. She smiled as she thought of them, how they’d insisted. That smile waned slightly when she opened the door to her car and saw the two food warmers, each with a Post-it note on top. Her mom. Susie Shiver hadn’t given her any grief when she’d told her the plan. But her eyes had filled with tears, and her arms had stayed around Emily for a good five minutes before allowing her to leave.

Just call me, Em. Let me know you’re okay. I love you, Baby Girl.

Emily swung a bag over one shoulder and scooped up the two food warmers in her hands. She was on her way inside when someone stepped directly into her path. “Shit!” she said on a gasp.

“I’m so sorry,” came a woman’s voice.

Righting herself, Emily glanced up. When she saw who it was, her heart stuttered inside her chest. “Oh . . .” Had the woman slipped inside the house when Emily had been digging out her luggage from the car? “You scared me.”

“Didn’t mean to.” The woman smiled. “I’m Natalie, by the way.”

“I know who you are.” Realizing she sounded a bit abrasive, Emily pulled back a little. “I remember you from school and from the bakery.”

“And maybe from Blue?” she said hopefully.

Bags in hand, Emily stood in the doorway, unsure of how to proceed. What exactly to say. What she knew about Natalie Palmer was sketchy at best. But she’d definitely heard about the woman’s father and what he’d allegedly done and how he’d passed away before he’d even gone to trial. She knew a little about Blue’s online relationship with her. And she knew that Blue had found Cass Cavanaugh’s diary at Natalie’s place and believed her to be involved in the girl’s disappearance. She hadn’t known until that very moment, however, how hung up on Blue Perez Cavanaugh Natalie Palmer was.

“Has he talked about me?” Natalie pressed.

Emily glanced past her to the street. This was incredibly strange and awkward. And yet, she felt compelled to answer. “A little, I guess,” she said warily.

Like a little girl hearing she’s pretty for the first time, Natalie beamed at the news.

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