Read Family Matters (DiCarlo Brides book 4) (The DiCarlo Brides) for Free Online Page B

here, if that’s what you want.” Please, no.
    “But that means I’ll spend school and summer and my birthday away from my friends.” Tears overflowed onto her cheeks.
    “You’ll make new friends and have a lot of chances to learn new things, like how to ski and stuff.” Rosemary felt lame even suggesting it. She hated skiing, but if Cleo wanted to go, she’d suck it up and deal with it. “And in the summer there are lots of mountain bike trails and hiking and um, other cool things.” She’d have to look into those things, since she hadn’t really paid any attention to them before.
    “But I want to stay here.” Cleo pulled away and ran to the door, yanking on the knob until she got it open.
    Rosemary was a step behind her as she entered the hall and snatched Cleo into her arms, though she was way too big to lift. “Sweetie. Hey, come here. I’m sorry. I know this isn’t what you want. This is a bad time for you. I was way older when I lost my dad, but it was really hard for me. It must be really tough even for a strong kid like you to deal with.”
    Cleo turned and wrapped her arms around Rosemary’s shoulders, holding on tight, her tears dripping onto Rosemary’s black dress. “I just don’t want anything else to change. Too much is changing. I just want to stay here. Where it’s the same.”
    Rosemary held her close, snuggled up against her and felt her throat tighten with emotions. “It’s never going to be the same again. I’m sorry, Cleo, but sometimes when things change, they change forever. And I don’t just mean losing your parents. Other things won’t ever feel the same, no matter how hard you try to make them be.”
    Her throat clogged up as she thought of how she’d felt when she learned she was pregnant, feeling her baby grow inside her, then having to give her up. She went back to school and did her best to act as if nothing had changed, but really, everything was different. “I bet you’ll like it in Colorado, though. It’s beautiful, and the hotel is really cool and my sister Sage is building a big house with a huge indoor pool.”
    Cleo sniffed, pulling back and wiping at her face. “Really? A pool in their home? Is she rich?”
    Rosemary smiled. “Something like that. Her husband really likes to swim. He used to be a Navy SEAL, so he’s this super-tough military dude. And my sister Lana is having a baby around the first of May. And Cami’s husband has lots of nieces and nephews and I bet they’d love to do stuff with you.”
    She had Cleo’s attention, so she pushed on, talking about everyone in Colorado. “Vince is Cami’s husband; he’s a landscaper, so he knows everything about growing plants, and Jonquil plays with flowers in her shop and makes bouquets and stuff all day long. And I just know everyone is going to love you.” She pressed the hair back from Cleo’s face, glad to see her calming down.
    “So I’ll have a whole bunch of aunts and uncles?” She looked doubtful.
    “Yeah. But I promise, they’re nothing like those guys.” She hitched her thumb toward the office. “They’re way nicer, even Delphi and she’s a bit of a poop head.”
    Cleo smiled a little at the comment. “I still don’t want to leave my friends.”
    “I know. But there’s always email, and Skype. I bet we could set up a time you could video conference with them to catch up.” Rosemary was stretching now, trying to find a way to make Cleo accept the inevitable. And Skype would be a reasonable option—much better than running her cell phone usage into the ten-thousands.
    Cleo looked intrigued. “Is it hard?”
    “Nope. Really easy. We do it all the time with the guys from the main office.”
    Cleo sniffed. “Well, maybe it would be okay. Until the end of the summer.”
    Step one, Rosemary thought with relief. “Good girl. Now, let’s go inside and see what else we need to know before we go back to your home, okay?” Cleo had been staying with neighbors, but that was only