Bumpy Roads - A Mary O'Reilly Paranormal Mystery (Book 11) (The Mary O'Reilly Paranormal Mystery Series) Read Free

were.”
    “What thing?” Stanley asked. “What are you talking about?”
    Rosie grabbed Stanley’s shoulder and pulled him out of his
chair. “I’ll remind you on the way over to the store,” she said pointedly. “While Bradley and Mary have a little time to get settled.”
    “Settled,” Stanley argued. “Mary’s lived here for more than
two years. What the hell does she need time to get settled fer ?”
    “She wasn’t a newlywed,” Rosie said slowly.
    Eyes slowly widening, Stanley blushed. “Oh, well, then, why
didn’t you say so?” he said. “ Iffen these two want to
make hay while the sun shines they should of scooted us out of this house a
long time ago.”
    “Stanley, scoot,” Bradley laughed, while Mary hid her face
against his shoulder. “And don’t let the door hit you on your way out.”
    When the door finally closed, Mike turned to the newlyweds
and smiled. “Remember, this is Tuesday, so you’ve got about an hour before
Clarissa gets home,” he said. “I’ll see what I can do to delay the bus a
little.”
    Once he faded out in front of them, Bradley turned to Mary. “Hopefully
that’s the last of our surprises for the day,” he said with a sigh.
    Mary stood up and walked toward the staircase.   Halfway there, she turned and smiled at him
over her shoulder. “Oh, I don’t know,” she said with a seductive tone. “There
might be another one or two waiting for you upstairs.”

Chapter Two

 
    Clarissa looked out the window of the bus, her stomach
clenched with anticipation as they pulled away from the school. Her best friend
Maggie, seated next to her, was unaware of her friend’s tension. “It’s so
exciting,” she gushed. “Mary and Bradley are probably already home.”
    Clarissa’s stomach tensed again. “Yes, I know.”
    “This is so great,” Maggie continued. “Now we both have a
family and we live almost next door to each other.”
    Clarissa turned in her seat. “Maggie, my mom and dad used to
tell me that they loved me more because they chose me,” she said. “I wasn’t
just born to them; they found me so I would always be special.”
    Nodding, Maggie smiled. “That’s kind of what my parents tell
me,” she said.
    “But Mary and Bradley didn’t choose me,” Maggie said. “I
heard people talking at the wedding about how surprised Bradley was to learn I
was alive.”
    “But it was a good surprise, right?” Maggie asked.
    Shrugging, Clarissa looked back out the window. “I don’t
know,” she said quietly. “I don’t know if it was a good surprise or…”
    “Or what?”
    “The lady at the wedding said I was an obligation,” Clarissa
replied. “And it wasn’t fair that Mary had to raise someone else’s child.”
    “What’s an obligation?” Maggie asked.
    “I looked it up in the dictionary,” Clarissa said. “It’s
like a debt, something you have to take care of, even if you don’t want to.”
    Thinking back to her babysitter in Chicago, Clarissa could
almost hear Mrs. Gunderson’s voice screaming, It’s your fault your mother is sick. If you weren’t around, she could
rest and get better. You’re just sucking the life right out of her.
    “But…but…your Bradley’s daughter and he loves you,” Maggie said, interrupting Clarissa’s thoughts.
    “My mom said she loved me too,” Clarissa said. “But I sucked
the life right out of her.”
    “What?” Maggie asked. “Your mom was sick, that’s why she
died.”
    “I miss my mom,” Clarissa said, her lower lip trembling. “I
miss my mom and my dad. I wish they were still here.”
    “But you never talk about them,” Maggie said, surprised at
her friend’s words. “You never acted like you missed them.”
    Wiping away a few stray tears, Clarissa took a deep breath.
“That’s because I’m not supposed to talk about them. I’m supposed to pretend I
was always Mary and Bradley’s little girl and didn’t have another mom and dad. I
didn’t want to make them mad and tell