Read The Girls on Rose Hill for Free Online

Jimmy wasn't around to tell me what I was doing wrong, I enjoyed it. Almost up until the end, my father loved going out with me and Kyle, so I was glad that I had taken it up."
    "Kyle?"
    "My son. He's fourteen."
    "I didn't know you were married." Billy, with his ripped muscles and wild hair, didn't give off a married vibe.
    "Divorced. Melanie lives with her new husband in Cold Spring Harbor. He's a dentist. Kyle splits his time between there and my house in Northport."
    "A dentist?" I could not imagine leaving a hunk like Billy to marry some nerdy dentist.
    As if reading my thoughts, Billy said, "I know, but the truth is I wasn't the best husband. I worked construction sporadically. Spent a lot of my time on my bike and with my friends. Probably too much time at Gunther's bar. Melanie liked to pretend she was a bad girl, but once we had Kyle that changed. She lost patience with me, I guess. But now we're friends. Melanie leaving me was probably the best thing that could've happened. After that, I settled down, borrowed some money from my dad, and started my company."
    "Well, it sounds like everything worked out."
    "It has, I guess. What about you. You still married?"
    "Yes. My husband's a partner at a law firm in D.C. He talks about retirement, but I'll believe it when I see it. They'll have to pry the blackberry from his cold dead hands."
    "Oh, that's right. My mom told me that you married an old dude."
    I laughed. "If Brendan could hear you calling him an old dude, he would die. He thinks he's sixty going on twenty-six."
    "He's sixty? But wait, you're only a year or two older than me, right?"
    "That's right. I'm forty-three. But believe me, his age is the least of our problems."
    "I'm sorry to hear that."
    God, I didn't mean to say that. I sputtered, "I mean with my mother and all."
    "Of course. How is she, really?" Billy placed his strong warm hand on mine. I shivered slightly; it had been an eternity since a man had touched me.
    "We're getting near the end now."
    We were both silent then, his hand remained on mine while we looked out onto the water. I felt the band of tension lodged across my shoulder loosen.
    Billy took his hand off mine. "Listen, Ellen, I have all this fish and no one to share it with me. Why don't you let me cook you dinner?"
    "I would love that, Billy." I looked at my watch. "But, I should've been at St. Francis an hour ago. I promised to relieve my uncle Danny by five, and its almost six now. Can I take a rain check?"
    "Of course, any time."
    I awkwardly stood up and Billy grabbed the tray and took it into the boathouse. Before I could stop him, he had rinsed out the glasses and put the tray away. I couldn't remember the last time Brendan put his coffee cup in the dishwasher.
    We walked out of the boathouse in silence, and I locked the door and lifted the planter to return the key. I then turned to him. "Thanks for sitting with me. It really helped me take my mind off things."
    Without warning, Billy took me into his arms and gave me a hug. He smelled of saltwater. My pulse quickened as his strong arms surrounded me. "Ellen, I know this is a terrible time," he said into my ear. He then released me. "It's easy to get caught up caring for the sick person. You have to remember to take care of yourself as well."
    I willed my cheeks not to blush, to no avail. Jesus, I thought, I'm a grown woman, not a horny teenager. I forced myself to adopt a friendly, but detached tone. "I will. Thanks again. I'll see you around."
    Billy gave me a little wave as he headed back to the boat.

 
     
     
    Chapter 5

     
    Rose
    I sat up, looked around the unfamiliar room and missed, for not the first time, the heavy rhythmic breathing of my cousin Molly. I wriggled out of the tight sheets and swung my feet over the side of the high narrow bed. The floor was cold and I shivered in my thin nightdress. I crept to the door and opened it, slowly, and prayed it wouldn't creak. The hallway was dark except for a faint line of light