The Laws of Attraction Read Free

reevaluate.”
    “I agree,” Jo said, her jaw set stubbornly. “These two may only be around for a day or two to nudge you, but I’m here for the duration. And I promise I will pester you to death until you agree to take this vacation. In fact, if it were up to me, you’d take a six-month sabbatical.”
    When Jo, the youngest of them, made such a firm declaration, Ashley knew she was defeated. “Two weeks,” she bargained, refusing to even consider as long a leave of absence as Jo was suggesting. “That’s all the peace and quiet I can bear.”
    “Two months,” the others chorused.
    “Three weeks,” she pleaded. “That’s it. That’s my limit. I’ll go nuts if I have to rusticate even one second longer than that.”
    “Done. Three weeks it is.” Maggie and Melanie exchanged a grin.
    “What?” Ashley demanded, instantly suspicious of their gloating expressions.
    “We were sure you’d bargain us down to a week, max,” Maggie said. “You really must be losing your touch.”
    Ashley started to chuckle, but it came out more like a sob. Wasn’t that exactly the point? She had lost her touch. And right this minute she couldn’t imagine ever getting it back again.

Chapter One
    T his didn’t have to be the worst thing that had ever happened to her, Ashley decided stoically as she stashed groceries into the refrigerator at Rose Cottage.
    Two of her sisters and their husbands were close by, so it wouldn’t be like she was isolated among strangers. She could always order cable, so she could get Court TV and CNN. She’d brought a case of her favorite wine with her from Boston, along with a year’s worth of articles by some of the country’s foremost lawyers. She’d even tucked a few novels into her suitcases, books centered around trials, of course.
    The key was going to be planning out her days, organizing every minute so she wouldn’t have time to think about what had happened in that courtroom back in Boston. Heck, that ought to be a snap. She excelledat organization. That was one reason she’d been able to maintain such a high caseload.
    Dispersing those cases among the other partners for the duration of her absence had taken an entire week. She’d worked compulsively to make sure each attorney fully understood her clients’ needs. She’d briefed them so thoroughly, they’d seemed a little eager to see her gone.
    After that frenetic pace, after loading up the car with all the essentials she couldn’t possibly live without and after the long drive, she was just starting to feel a bit of a letdown, that was all. It was to be expected. By morning she’d probably be climbing the walls…or calling the office every five minutes to make sure all the cases she’d left behind were being handled properly. She knew it wouldn’t take more than a day for that to wear thin with the already exasperated lawyers she’d left in charge. She would simply have to resist the temptation.
    She put her laptop on the kitchen table and placed a stack of legal pads and pens right next to it. It had taken every ounce of willpower she possessed to leave behind her law books, but there was a lot of information to be found on the Internet. She’d make a few notes on her pending cases and pass them along when the time was right.
    The mere sight of those familiar tools made her feel better, as if her life hadn’t spun wildly out of control.
    No sooner was everything in place, though, than Maggie and Melanie swept in the back door, took one look at her stash of supplies and loaded the lot into a shopping bag. They ignored every one of Ashley’s heated objections.
    “What the hell do the two of you think you’redoing?” she demanded, trying to snatch things back as fast as they picked them up. “This is my house. Those are my things.”
    “Actually it’s grandmother’s house,” Maggie reminded her.
    “Don’t you dare start nitpicking with me,” Ashley commanded. “I will leave here.”
    “No, you won’t,”