Not Quite Forever by Bybee Catherine

Author:Bybee, Catherine [Bybee, Catherine]
Language: eng
Format: mobi
ISBN: 9781477825891
Publisher: Montlake Romance
Published: 2014-11-04T08:00:00+00:00

Chapter Fifteen

Guest room appropriate artwork had long since replaced the teenage heartthrob posters. The closet no longer held her clothes, and the dresser was empty except for the bottom drawers where her mother stored extra towels.

The walls, however, were the same. The view from the back of the house and the lush landscape that only the South had to offer welcomed her home.

Dakota lingered in bed longer than she ever would have been allowed when she actually lived with her parents. She’d been a wreck when she walked into the house. Never in her life had tears been so close to the surface. Her mom had shuffled her into the house while telling Dennis, her dad, to gather her things.

Her mother handed her a tissue and put a kettle on for tea before offering to listen. Thankfully, her mother hadn’t probed when Dakota shook her head.

If there was one thing she knew without any doubt, Elaine Laurens wouldn’t last long without an explanation of Dakota’s unexpected appearance.

Dakota looked across the room to the flowery wall clock. It was already after eight, which meant that half the town would already know of her visit. In the absence of truth, the wagging tongues would make up their own minds why she was there. Half of them would be right.

After a long shower and an extra twenty minutes of time in front of the mirror to repair the damage of too many nights of missed sleep, Dakota descended the stairs. Voices carried from the back of the house where the kitchen and den made up the great room.

“She didn’t say a thing, Carol Ann.”

Dakota slowed her steps and listened to her sister’s response. “Well, that just isn’t like her. Something awful must have happened. I’ll bet it’s a man.”

“Of course it’s a man. Remember when you packed up a bag and came home not four months after you and Dale were married? I didn’t think you’d ever leave.”

At least Dakota knew she wasn’t alone in her need to flee home because of a guy.

She forced a smile and walked around the corner. Both her mother and sister promptly closed their lips and painted on fake smiles. Carol Ann jumped up from the kitchen stool and walked around the counter. “Oh, Dakota . . . you look positively awful.”

Dakota accepted her sister’s hug. “Thanks for the vote of confidence, sis.”

Carol Ann was a mini version of their mother. They both had blonde hair that was groomed by the same beautician. Not a hair was out of place with the use of a half a can of spray. Elaine’s hair was just above her shoulders. A cut she said had to happen on her fiftieth birthday “because long hair on old women isn’t right.” Carol Ann had her hair up in a controlled bun with enough of the edges surrounding her face so she didn’t appear uptight. Her sister inherited her mother’s blue eyes and thin lips. They all had the same nose and body shape.

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