Read Within My Heart for Free Online

that’s fine. Catch your breath, the both of you.” Mitchell had taken to calling Ben and Lyda “uncle and aunt” some time back, and Kurt had quickly mimicked him, which delighted Ben and Lyda. “Come on inside. Quickly.” She waved them through the open door, not missing the perturbed looks from patrons banned to the boardwalk. Pretending not to notice, she closed the door and reached for the lock, then gave an exasperated sigh. It locked by key. A key she didn’t have time to look for.
    Out on the boardwalk, a kind-looking older gentleman stepped forward. With a quiet nod, he turned his back to the door as though understanding that she needed someone to stand guard. She didn’t know him from Adam so wasn’t comfortable leaving the store in his hands, but what else could she do?
    “Boys, I need to go check on Uncle Ben in the back room. He took sick this afternoon. I want you to keep watch and make sure no one comes inside. Tell them the store is closed for a little while. Is that clear? But if Angelo comes, let him in immediately.”
    Mitch nodded.
    Kurt didn’t. “Miss Stafford doesn’t like me, Mama. She’s always eyein’ me funny and tellin’ me that I’m a—”
    “Kurt, I don’t have time for this right now.”
    “Yeah . . . but she won’t let me—”
    Rachel held up a finger, an accustomed throb beginning in her left temple. “We’ll talk about this tonight. Tonight! ” she reiterated when Kurt opened his mouth again.
    Mitchell pulled something from his coat pocket and Kurt’s scowl deepened. “Miss Stafford gave this to me after school, Mama. She said it was her second note this week. She told me to make double sure you got this one.”
    This one? Miss Stafford hadn’t sent her a note this week.
    But the frown on Kurt’s impish face said differently. Defiance hardened the blue of his eyes, and Rachel felt as though someone had knocked the wind from her. Defeat washed through her, scathing her confidence. Somewhere during the past two and a half years, she’d lost her hand with her younger son. She had no idea why he behaved the way he did now and was at her wits’ end to know what to try next.
    Mitchell leaned close. “Miss Stafford didn’t look happy,” he whispered, his expression mirroring maturity beyond his ten years. His brow raised in a way reminiscent of his father. “I told her you were busy with the ranch and with calving, and would come as soon as you could.”
    Moments slipping past, Rachel nodded, feeling an all-too-familiar burning in her eyes. Mitchell, ever the older brother and peacekeeper, was the “man of the house” now. At least that’s what he’d told her not too long ago. Too much to bear for one so young.
    “Thank you, son.” She took the note and slipped it into her pocket unread. “We’ll deal with this tonight, Kurt.” And she would. But right now, his misbehavior paled in comparison to what was happening in the back—which was where she needed to be right now!
    “Would it be all right if we got something to eat, Mama?” Mitch asked.
    Kurt nodded. “You didn’t give us enough lunch and we’ve been starvin’ ever since.”
    They’d eaten the last of the bread at breakfast, so there hadn’t been any to include in the boys’ lunches, but she’d given them extra ham and cheese. Plenty for lunch. This was simply Kurt’s way of punishing her. For what, she didn’t know. “You may get a cookie from the jar on the counter. But only one,” she said, aiming the warning at Kurt, who let out a whoop and took off for the other side of the store.
    Mitch stared up, watching her closely, as he always did. “Is Uncle Ben bad sick, Mama?”
    She worked to mask her fear. It was so hard to hide things from Mitchell. Just like his father. “Dr. Brookston is with him right now, and I’m sure that—” The words everything will be fine wouldn’t come. Not when staring into Mitchell’s stark blue eyes and knowing that he knew—already, at so young