Summer Rain (Lightning Strikes Book 3) Read Free

be on her way back to her life in DC.
    After the ceremony, as Michael and Alicia paused for photos on the steps of the church, Jake caught up with her in between pictures of the entire bridal party.
    "How are you, Dani?" he asked. "I haven't had a chance to talk to you since you got here."
    "It's been a whirlwind," she replied. "It looks like you and Katherine are doing well."
    He grinned. "Better than well. She's the love of my life."
    "I think I always knew that. Even in high school, you two had a special kind of something. I'm glad you found your way back to each other."
    "With a little help from some lightning," he said dryly.
    She sighed. "You're not going to start in on me, too, are you? It wasn't so long ago that you were on my side, and we both thought Alicia was crazy."
    "Good point. Now I'm as crazy as she is." He paused, his humor dimming. "I just want you to be careful, Dani. I don't think this is over. And I feel like you're going to be the one to finish it. That makes me worry."
    Nervous goose bumps ran down her bare arms. "I don't know what it is."
    "Neither do I. So watch your back."
    "Dani, Jake," Alicia called, waving them over. "We want one more family shot."
    "Coming," she said, following her brother up the steps.
    As they posed together, she was once again very aware of her father's absence.
    In the distance, she could hear the buzzing of a small airplane, another reminder of Wyatt Monroe, the man who had spent so much of his life up in the sky.
    The clouds parted for just a moment, a sliver of blue shining through. She hoped that was a good sign. But as quickly as it had come, it disappeared.
    Maybe Jake was right. Maybe the storm wasn't over yet.

Two
    "It looks good. They'll never forget her now," Patrick Kane told his father, Harris Kane, as they surveyed the newly-landscaped children's playground and park.
    The placard at the entrance of the park commemorated his mother, Jackie Kane. His mom had been a congresswoman and a tireless advocate for the poor in her years as a public servant. It had been her dream to turn what had once been a drug and violence-riddled park into a place where children could play safely, where mothers could watch their kids without being afraid of who was watching them. That dream was coming true today, and he couldn't quite believe it. Ever since his mother's death eight years ago, his father had worked on the idea of creating something lasting in her honor, and today it was done.
    As he glanced at his father, he saw the stress in his dad's blue eyes. Since becoming a widow, his father's hair had gone from salt-and-pepper to gray and finally to white as he passed his sixty-sixth year. Building this playground and park had kept his dad going through the grief and anger, giving him something positive to think about in the wake of the tragic accident that had taken Jackie's life along with four others. Patrick just hoped that the culmination of his father's vision to honor his mother would be fulfilling for him, and that he wouldn't suffer a huge let-down when it was over.
    "I hope the rain holds off," Harris continued, looking up at the sky. "I thought the storm would pass last night, but there is thunder and lightning in tonight's forecast, too. If we have to cancel this—"
    "We won't. The rain isn't expected for another hour or two. And you know it won't last long. It's summer in Texas. It will shower, and then it will be done."
    "I hope you're right. I want this to be perfect."
    He hoped he was right, too, but while it was a little before four in the afternoon, it was dark as night, huge black storm clouds blocking out the sun. It wasn't cold, though. The temperature was in the low eighties, and he was sweating through the dress shirt and tie he'd put on for the occasion.
    His father's gaze turned back to him. "I want to thank you, Patrick. This project has taken up a lot of my time over the years, and perhaps there were occasions when I didn't give you as much attention as