Almost Heaven. Charlotte Douglas

Читать онлайн книгу.

Almost Heaven - Charlotte  Douglas


Скачать книгу
he picked her up at ten the next morning. In shorts, T-shirt and sneakers, and with her blond hair pulled back in a ponytail, she looked for an instant like the child he remembered. But closer scrutiny revealed the womanly curves beneath her casual clothes, the maturity in the attractive angles of her heart-shaped face and the intelligence in her bright blue eyes.

      He opened the passenger door of the pickup for her to climb inside. His vantage point provided a clear view of her long, tanned legs, crossed demurely at the ankles, and caused heat to curl below his stomach.

      “Where are we going?” she asked.

      “It’s a surprise.” He closed the door and took a deep breath of morning air to cool his thoughts as he circled the truck and slid onto the driver’s seat.

      “I like surprises. That’s one reason I want to move. Nothing ever surprises me in Pleasant Valley.”

      “I’ve found something that will.” He started the engine, pulled away from the curb and headed downtown. He ignored her dubious expression.

      After a few short blocks he turned into a diagonal parking space on Piedmont Avenue, the main drag.

      “Not the hardware store,” she said with obvious disappointment. “Your dad’s owned this place my entire life. No surprises here.”

      “We’re not going to the hardware store.” He felt a rush of satisfaction, knowing that Merrilee would be not merely surprised, but amazed. He hadn’t learned this tidbit of information himself until yesterday.

      On the sidewalk he grasped her elbow and guided her toward the small storefront to the left of the hardware store. The windows were smudged with grime and a fading sign hung at an angle above the door.

      “Here we are,” he announced with a flourish.

      Merrilee’s jaw dropped. “Mr. Weatherstone’s old fix-it shop? It’s been empty for years.”

      “Hard to maintain a business repairing typewriters and small appliances in today’s market,” Grant agreed.

      He stepped to the glass front door, so grimy it obscured the shop’s interior, and gave three sharp knocks. “You should have brought your camera.”

      “Yeah, right.” She grimaced in distaste. “So I can shoot a fascinating montage of dust motes, dead spiders and cobwebs—”

      The door swung inward and an excited squeal interrupted her midsentence. “Merrilee! You’re back!”

      Jodie Nathan barreled through the doorway and enveloped Merrilee in a bear hug. Merrilee returned her embrace with a dazed expression.

      “Jodie, what are you doing here?” Merrilee asked.

      Jodie beamed at Grant and contentment flooded him. He hadn’t seen his sister this happy in a long time. Her hazel eyes sparkled beneath the light brown curls that had escaped from the blue bandanna tying back her hair. Even with a smudge of dirt across one cheek, she looked radiant.

      Конец ознакомительного фрагмента.

      Текст предоставлен ООО «ЛитРес».

      Прочитайте эту книгу целиком, купив полную легальную версию на ЛитРес.

      Безопасно оплатить книгу можно банковской картой Visa, MasterCard, Maestro, со счета мобильного телефона, с платежного терминала, в салоне МТС или Связной, через PayPal, WebMoney, Яндекс.Деньги, QIWI Кошелек, бонусными картами или другим удобным Вам способом.

/9j/4AAQSkZJRgABAgEAYABgAAD/4RHFRXhpZgAATU0AKgAAAAgABwESAAMAAAABAAEAAAEaAAUA AAABAAAAYgEbAAUAAAABAAAAagEoAAMAAAABAAIAAAExAAIAAAAUAAAAcgEyAAIAAAAUAAAAhodp AAQAAAABAAAAnAAAAMgAAABgAAAAAQAAAGAAAAABQWRvYmUgUGhvdG9zaG9wIDcuMAAyMDE0OjEx OjAzIDA4OjQ5OjU3AAAAAAOgAQADAAAAAQABAACgAgAEAAAAAQAAAfSgAwAEAAAAAQAAAtcAAAAA AAAABgEDAAMAAAABAAYAAAEaAAUAAAABAAABFgEbAAUAAAABAAABHgEoAAMAAAABAAIAAAIBAAQA AAABAAABJgICAAQAAAABAAAQlwAAAAAAAABIAAAAAQAAAEgAAAAB/9j/4AAQSkZJRgABAgEASABI AAD/7QAMQWRvYmVfQ00AAf/uAA5BZG9iZQBkgAAAAAH/2wCEAAwICAgJCAwJCQwRCwoLERUPDAwP FRgTExUTExgRDAwMDAwMEQwMDAwMDAwMDAwMDAwMDAwMDAwMDAwMDAwMDAwBDQsLDQ4NEA4OEBQO Dg4UFA4ODg4UEQwMDAwMEREMDAwMDAwRDAwMDAwMDAwMDAwMDAwMDAwMDAwMDAwMDAwMDP/AABEI AIAAWAMBIgACEQEDEQH/3QAEAAb/xAE/AAABBQEBAQEBAQAAAAAAAAADAAECBAUGBwgJCgsBAAEF AQEBAQEBAAAAAAAAAAEAAgMEBQYHCAkKCxAAAQQBAwIEAgUHBggFAwwzAQACEQMEIRIxBUFRYRMi cYEyBhSRobFCIyQVUsFiMzRygtFDByWSU/Dh8WNzNRaisoMmRJNUZEXCo3Q2F9JV4mXys4TD03Xj 80YnlKSFtJXE1OT0pbXF1eX1VmZ2hpamtsbW5vY3R1dnd4eXp7fH1+f3EQACAgECBAQDBAUGBwcG BTUBAAIRAyExEgRBUWFxIhMFMoGRFKGxQiPBUtHwMyRi4XKCkkNTFWNzNPElBhaisoMHJjXC0kST VKMXZEVVNnRl4vKzhMPTdePzRpSkhbSVxNTk9KW1xdXl9VZmdoaWprbG1ub2JzdHV2d3h5ent8f/ 2gAMAwEAAhEDEQA/AKLq3ua7aJ2tL3cCGt1c7X91Z2TH3Lc6WMq7qNeJh7PtGRLa3PLm7S0et6jL GbnMta1jvT9lrP8Agldt+pf1nxaAfXxKqaQSC57iAD7nf9pnu9zmtWvmzxhOUZmMdBKOutdeJx+R wkwhKAkSSYy06/o8Lxu4ePmkOYXZt+pH1y59TDIPuhznAz++duM13qIV31E+tZaK7LsNldjvbX6z mguM+1n6vu937n/pNR/eMX7w/H/vW/7c+xeS0TLqf/G1+s/72J/26/8A951RyfqnlYd7sfL6j0yi 9kb6rMh4cJG5sj7N+6ieZwjeYCY4MszUISke0RxH/muKlC1f+bx/8t+lf+xL/wD3mT/83j/5b9K/ 9iX/APvMh96wf5yP2r/ufM/5nJ/iScqVYx8HIyNpqDTugNBMakvYBx+9Wrv/ADeP/lv0r/2Jf/7z KFtT+mhlTXdP6iH7iX0F923+Ra8jG2/8Gl95wnQZI34lX3Pmf8zk/wASSC2qzEvfj3ACysgOAMjU B2jv6rkkBwsc5ztsFxJIHAnsP5KSd7+Kv52F/wB6P/fMf3LmOK/Yy/8AheT/AL1//9Ct0nNZ03q2 Nn3Ne+ugvLm1wXncx9Q2eoWs9rrN3uW1kfXfpltlL7K8wmrabSa6SbXVj9Xc/bkVVt9O79ZsY2r9 Jd/oa9/qYF7N2kQnx+kMyHYTd75zrHVtdXXvbXtsrx3G73t/0nqf9tf6ZaXM4MGSXHOR24dD+76n O5DPnxw4Yxrrt39LsD65dLDQ03dZcNA6XUy4fotzT+n9u/0Xe+v9J+nt2In/AD06W+7cf2tt3F3o /og2CWE1n9N6m30qvS+lv/nbf8Nd6nP1dEutrZdVYSTjUZjQGTIe/bkNp936X7DTtyn+z9Iz/RrW PR+q/aqqmZrtzcyuhlgqbtaXsyLPtTH1Pcx7q2sfUxrX/wA5b6Hq1W0qv905boZf43/oLfPN8z4f 4sWwfrd04scz1esy7l4Ne6dr6mn+e9vvtsu9n07vR/wWPXWqef1v6v5/VH9U/wAo03PDW7Wsx3tG 1no/4S7c7c1BDr/sX2izKvaxtVD/AEBSzcwPtdRjV2N3saxzbsGp/wD4W9H+om6r9uxqPUOS60fa L6HA0sbDqrG49lkjd/OucieR5c+k2bNVxf8AoCI/EOaieKJrThJ4YfJL+r/gsP2j9XmbGizqTTSQ WD0sUEEb/pTd/wAK/wDr/wCEUTn/AFbcHAv6iTZscYpxZ9mlRZF3s27P8H/wisZWJntbkufl+r9j vfQWfZ6/tDtlrel+vj0z+kxHsy3v9T/TV+n/ADn6dKzp3UbsiyizPD493rNqb6dji7LosZjPZt37 /wBn/oKmfzt1/pfo0z7jym9eev8AhfuM/wDpLnt+P/mY0FnUPq7cHiyzqZFkbyKsVs7QWj6Fw/ed /wBWqfUsrBuvFuGch5fPq/aW1sM6bPS+zPs9u36W9SZ0hxrxbXGymm55F77K4FFLa8XJfl2lr9rq /TzvZ/N+r6f793pps3pF+DW11pl4

Скачать книгу