Read Pieces of the Heart for Free Online

tug-of-war with it. The other woman stood and Drew put his hand on the door as he watched Margaret pull the device into her hand and raise it high over her head. From the younger woman’s stance, Drew had no doubt that she wouldn’t stop at shoving Margaret into the lake to get back whatever it was. Margaret seemed to have the same thought as she drew back her arm and threw it pretty far out into the lake.
    Sliding open the door, he rushed outside, forcing a smile as he approached the two women. He saw the recognition in the younger woman’s eyes at the same time he registered where he’d seen her before.
    “Oh, God. Not you. Please.”
    He smiled in her direction, feeling oddly smug at her embarrassment, hoping she was remembering the toilet paper on her face. Rainy had told him who she was the night before but hadn’t had a chance to tell him more before she’d received a telephone call. “It’s nice to see you again, too. Is there anything I can help with? Carry a chair, dive into the lake to retrieve something?”
    “You could go sniff the bottom of the lake.”
    Margaret moved between them. “Hello, Drew. Please don’t mind Caroline. She’s . . . delicate.”
    “I am not delicate, and I wish you’d stop telling that to people. What I am is pissed off. You just threw my BlackBerry into the lake. Now what in the hell am I supposed to do? How do you expect me to keep tabs on what’s going on at the office?”
    Mother and daughter faced each other, and Drew almost smiled at how alike they were.
    Margaret put her hands on her hips. “You’re not supposed to be keeping tabs on the office because you’ve taken a leave of absence. They’ll survive—but you won’t if you don’t start taking care of yourself.”
    Margaret turned to Drew with an apologetic smile. “Please forgive us. I don’t mean to argue in public, but sometimes Caroline forgets herself and will pick a fight anywhere.”
    Outraged, Caroline put her hands on her hips, accentuating her strong resemblance to her mother. Drew pulled on his self-preservation instincts and did not point this out. Caroline’s voice practically quavered. “ I’m not the one tossing expensive equipment into the lake—equipment that doesn’t even belong to you.”
    Ignoring her, Margaret continued to address herself to Drew. “Her doctor has ordered her to get completely away from stress— mostly caused by her job. Dr. Northcutt said that she’s so stressed that not only is it bad for her heart but she’s also started to have digestive problems that he normally doesn’t see in patients under sixty.”
    “Mother!” Caroline dropped back into the lawn chair and put her hand over her eyes.
    Margaret nodded in her daughter’s direction. “I’m just trying to explain to our new neighbor, Mr. Reed, how delicate your heart is and how everyone, including our neighbors, needs to work together to keep stress out of your life.”
    Caroline shook her head, her hands now pressing against either side of her face like a vise. “Living with you and next door to him will probably kill me within days without intervention. A job as an air-traffic controller would be less stressful.” She jerked to a stand and faced Margaret, her face a mottled red. “Mom, I know that you’re going to say that you’re doing this because you love me, and deep, deep down inside me somewhere I might even believe that’s true. But if you open your mouth to say one word to me right now, I can’t be responsible for what I might do. So I’m going inside to lie down and practice breathing and maybe tie my hands behind my back so I won’t hurt myself or anyone else. Do not follow me. Please.”
    She turned her back on them without another word and stalked toward the house. For the second time in as many days, Drew had the pleasure of watching her retreating backside and had the thought that somebody’s boot could do a lot of good planted on her rear end.
    When Margaret looked up at him