The Windfall Read Free Page A

owner who had a fondness for historical antiquities. They had moved to California a few years ago, but she kept in touch with phone calls. “Anyway, I wanted to tell you that Bill and I just purchased the most gorgeous house in Malibu. We have the best view of the water. You wouldn’t believe it until you see it, and I dearly hope you will come see it soon.”
    “Of course,” Mom replied, her voice perky, though her face divulged what she was really thinking. Unless Aunt Sophie was willing to fund us coming out to visit, there would be no extra funds to do something so extravagant right now or any time soon. And even if she did fund it, we couldn’t afford to take time off work. My stomach rolled as I immediately thought about the money I had blown. The precious extra dollars that could have been used to fund Mom’s medication or something else we needed, not a worthless piece of paper shoved in my jeans pocket. “We would love to see your house, Sophie. I am sure you are very proud of it.”
    I elbowed Mom, looking over at the calendar where a birthday was written in for today. “You ready, Mom?” I asked, loud enough for my aunt to hear her. She nodded and I started, Mom joining in quickly. “Happy Birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday, dear Sophie! Happy birthday to you.”
    “Aren’t ya’ll so sweet!” Aunt Sophie laughed, the sound of her happiness warming my heart. We couldn’t do much else, but we could still give happy birthday songs over the phone.

Chapter Two
    Emma
    “Ugh! I am going to be so late!” I gathered my things from the cabinet in the storage room and headed for the back door. “I’ll see you guys next week!” I shouted as I rushed through the employee entrance. I glanced over my shoulder as I made my way across the parking lot. Keefer’s Bar and Grille was situated adjacent to one of my favorite surfing spots and often times after work I’d grab my suit and board and catch a few waves before heading home. There was really no point in checking out the waves since I was already behind schedule, but it was a habit.
    I hurried toward my car as fast as I could, dropping my apron in the backseat as I slid into the driver’s side and cranked it up. My shift at Keefer’s had ran over. Again. I actually couldn’t think of a time in my career at Keefer’s that I had gotten off of work on time. When it came to waiting tables, the odds of that happening were usually pretty slim.
    Pulling out onto the highway, I slid my sunglasses on to shield my eyes from the bright sunshine. It was another perfect California day, so much so that I’d have much preferred slipping into my suit and going surfing instead of rushing to catch a flight traveling across country. But I knew my father was looking forward to going to Atlanta so he could visit his half-sister, Beth, courtesy of Beth’s daughter, Julia, who lived and worked for one of the major airlines in Los Angeles. Because of Julia, I was able to get two plane tickets for nearly nothing. Otherwise, there would have been no way we could have afforded the trip.
    Thanks to Aunt Beth’s generosity, we weren’t going to have to pay for a place to stay either. She told us her home wasn’t in the greatest of neighborhoods, but there was plenty of room for us to stay and each have our own bed. While I hadn’t been around my Aunt Beth all that often growing up, Dad always said she was a good person even though they’d had a little bit of a falling out a few years prior. He didn’t talk about it much, so I was never really certain what caused it.
    Personally, I felt a little odd staying with her, since I didn’t know her that well and she and Dad were still a little on the uncertain side in their relationship, but I couldn’t afford to turn down a free place to stay for the few days we were going to be there. Besides, my dad hadn’t been feeling so great in recent weeks, and I was hoping this trip was going to lift his spirits.