Bright Eyes Read Free

neighbor, Gramps. It seems that Chad wreaked havoc over at his place, throwing tomatoes at his house, among other things. He estimates the damage at a thousand dollars or more.”
    “Ha!” the old man snorted. He nailed Zeke with an imperious stare. “You find any fingerprints on them there tomaters, mister?”
    The absurdity of the question gave Zeke pause. Then he glanced at the boy. “Dusting for prints wasn’t necessary. The kid is covered with tomato pulp.”
    Natalie’s grandfather leaned around, narrowed his eyes, and peered at his great-grandson. When the old man straightened, he said, “Tomaters is a purdy common crop. We got a bunch ripe for pickin’ ourselves.”
    “Gramps,” Natalie inserted. “ Please . You’re only making matters worse.”
    “Hmph. Worse how?” Gramps hooked his thumbs under his overall straps, rocked back on his worn-down heels, and glared at Zeke. “You know who yer messin’ with, boy? Westfields, that’s who.”
    The name didn’t ring any bells, but Zeke refrained from saying so.
    “Been Westfields in this area for nigh on to a hundred years,” the old man continued. “Don’t come on this property makin’ wild accusations without no proof. We don’t take kindly to smears on the family name.”
    Zeke didn’t take kindly to smears on his house, but again he held his tongue. The old man’s face was an angry red. Zeke didn’t want him to have a stroke.
    Natalie released her son to curl an arm around her grandfather’s frail shoulders. “Gramps, you’re missing your game show.”
    “To hell and tarnation with game shows!” Gramps said with a snort. “Like I got nothin’ better to do?” His withered mouth puckered like a drawstring pouch. “I’m politely invitin’ you to get off this property, mister. Our Chad’s a good boy. He wouldn’t do nothin’ like you say he done. You readin’ me loud and clear?”
    “Gramps, please, ” Natalie said again, only her voice was firmer this time. “That’s enough. Mr. Coulter hasn’t been unpleasant, and Chad has confessed to doing the damage.”
    “Say what?” Gramps blinked. Then he leaned around Natalie to peer at the child again. “That true, Chad?”
    Chad nodded sullenly. Just about then, the screen door whacked the exterior of the house again, and a dark-haired siren in a red miniskirt and cropped tank top appeared on the veranda. She looked a lot like Natalie, but her long, curly hair was stiff with styling gel and she was walking straight legged, balancing her weight on her heels. Zeke glanced at her bare feet and saw that she had cotton balls between her toes.
    “Hey,” she said, flashing him a sultry smile. “I’m Valerie, Nat’s younger sister.” Coming to a stop at the porch rail, she relaxed her stance, splayed a slender hand over one shapely hip, and winked. “Did I hear someone say ‘new neighbor’?”
    “I’m Zeke Coulter.” Zeke would have known the girl was Natalie’s younger sister without being told. The two women might have been poured from the same mold. He guessed the younger version to be in her early twenties, not exactly jailbait, but close. “I bought the place next door.”
    “Way cool,” Valerie said, smoothing her fingertips provocatively over her hipbone. “Finally, something interesting happens out here in the back of beyond.” She popped her chewing gum, a habit that drove Zeke crazy, and grinned, flashing a dimple similar to Natalie’s. “I’ve been home for only two weeks, and already I’m dying of boredom.”
    The insinuation was that Zeke might provide her with some much-needed diversion. The smell of her perfume drifted across the yard. Obsession . He recognized the scent because his sister Bethany often wore it. No question about it. Valerie was a hot little package, all curves and long legs, with big, dark, expressive eyes to suck a man under before he realized he was drowning. Zeke had long since learned not to wade in deep water. He just felt older