Package Deal Read Free Page A

behind them and releasing a musty odor into the room. Florida’s humidity spawned every mold and mildew known to science. Even the introduction of air-conditioning hadn’t eliminated the alien green stuff from growing in the corners of shower stalls across the state.
    Outside, a full moon lit the sky, connecting heaven and water and frosting the waves moving inland to pound the shore. She tingled all over with excitement. She couldn’t believe she was really here. She cranked open the old-fashioned jalousie windows, inviting the ocean breeze into the room. She was so close to the ocean she could hear the waves crashing against the sand before retreating back out to sea.
    She breathed a contented sigh. Florida offered her and Lacy a chance for a new beginning. San Francisco just held too many unhappy memories for her.
    The back door led to a small porch facing the ocean. She gave the doorknob a tug, but the wood had long ago swollen against the frame from humidity. After a second pull, the door gave a stubborn groan and scraped across the floor.
    Outside, she followed a narrow path through the thick brush out onto the dunes and stood in silence, overlooking the tidewaters. A gentle breeze blew inland rustling the thick grasses carpeting the dunes.   Florida’s humid air caressed her skin.
    Kicking off her heels, she burrowed her toes into the cool, powder-soft sand. She glanced around, and spotting no one, stripped off her panty hose. She fought the urge to throw them into the sea, knowing she wouldn’t be wearing them any time soon. Not in Florida. She planned on getting a tan.
    She closed her eyes, breathing-in the heavy salt air. Oh, she wanted to stay here forever. No shadows, no memories to haunt her at every turn. Lacy would love it, too. She could swim, build sand castles, and dig for sand crabs. Together they could walk the beach and fish—yes, fish! She hadn’t fished since her childhood. It was one of the last things she and her father had done together, before she’d been left in the wake of his new family. But that was the past. She wrapped her arms around herself, rocking with the sound of the waves. She could almost feel the gooey worm wiggling between her fingers and the elation of the catch.
    Now she and Lacy would be a lot closer to her mom, who lived with Kelly’s aunt in North Carolina. Unlike the sky-high airfare between San Francisco and Raleigh, Daytona to Raleigh was a quick, inexpensive flight. If Lacy didn’t have a father, Kelly would see to it that her daughter had a grandmother.
    Overwhelmed by fatigue, she picked up her shoes and stockings and stepped back inside, trading the warm, humid air outside for the cool, musty air of the room. She closed the window and drew the drapes, knowing morning would come soon enough. She would have plenty of time to enjoy the ocean later.
    Forever, she hoped.
    Too tired to unpack, she scouted out an iron and ironing board to press out the wrinkles in her suit in the morning. Digging through her carry-on bag, she found her toothbrush and toothpaste, brushed her teeth, stripped off her clothes, and climbed into bed wearing only her underpants and camisole. She nestled deep beneath the cool sheets and light blanket, hoping to fall asleep quickly. It was already two thirty, and her meeting with the Editor in Chief of the News Journal required that she be rested and alert first thing in the morning.
    Her resume impressive, she’d landed the job with ease, but she was well aware that first impressions counted. Fatigue and slow thinking would not be acceptable tomorrow—the first day of the rest of her life.

Chapter Three

     

     
    T he phone rang at eight a.m. Kelly rolled over and snatched up the receiver. Bubbling with excitement, she thanked the landlady at The Glades and bounced out of bed. She hoisted her bag up onto the end of the bed, unzipped it, and threw back the top. She gasped in horror when her gaze fell upon a neat row of ties and a stack of