Wayward Hearts Read Free Page B

the tractor righted again.
    She swore silently at her father’s stupidity to drive such a dangerous machine after drinking. How could he be so reckless with his life and end up leaving Mama all alone when he knew how she depended on him?
    Waves of anger rippled through her. How she hated this farm—loathed it with every fiber of her being. She hated it as much as Charlie had loved it. Every bad thing that had ever happened in her life, she blamed directly on this farm.
    Including Drew’s death—
    “There you are. I’ve been looking everywhere for you.”
    Maxi jolted on the wooden stair and twisted around to see her best friend, Lily Draper—no, Lily Logan now—step out onto the porch. She stood with one hand on her very pregnant belly and pushed her long, dark hair off her face with the other.
    Maxi tried to smile. “Sorry. Just needed a few minutes alone.”
    Lily took a seat beside her, her stomach protruding in front. “I thought you might be hiding from Jason.” The teasing quality to her voice brought a snort to Maxi’s lips.
    “That, too.”
    Lily wrapped an arm around Maxi’s shoulders. “I’m so sorry about Charlie. How are you holding up?”
    A storm of tears lodged in Maxi’s throat. She’d managed fine all day and would not break down now. “I’m fine.” Liar.
    “I know you didn’t get along well with him. Still, this must be difficult for you.”
    Maxi shrugged. “It’s no real surprise he’s gone. I think we all knew his drinking would lead to this one day.” She bit her lip to keep her emotions contained. “It’s my mom I’m worried about. She can’t live here by herself. Her condition’s become much worse since I left.”
    A soft breeze blew the scent of Lily’s subtle perfume across Maxi’s nose.
    “Is there any way to slow the progress of MS?”
    “Not really. Sometimes she’s stable for a while. Then she gets worse again.”
    “So what are you going to do?”
    Maxi leaned her head against the railing for a moment and sighed. That one simple question summed up her whole dilemma. “I wish I knew.” Maxi pushed to her feet. “I’d better get back inside. Aidan will worry. And the dishes won’t wash themselves.”
    “If I can help in any way with your mom, you know I’m here for you.” The sympathy in Lily’s eyes was genuine.
    “Thanks, but I’m sure we’ll figure something out.” She opened the screen door and waited for Lily to enter the kitchen.
    “How long are you staying in town?” Lily walked to the long counter that lined the wall of the country kitchen.
    “I’m not sure. I need to get back to the city as soon possible. But first I have to figure out what to do about Mama.” Maxi took a block of cheese from the refrigerator and set it on the wooden cutting board. She would keep the finger foods going until the remaining handful of friends had left.
    Following Maxi’s example, Lily began to chop cucumbers to refill the vegetable tray. “I can ask Nick to look into some facilities for you, in case you decide to go that route. Being a minister has some advantages. He’ll know which places are good and which aren’t.”
    Gratitude for the compassion of her friends lifted Maxi’s spirits for the moment. As much as she hated to think of her mother in some sort of facility, she had to face the cold reality that there may not be another option. “That would be helpful. Thanks.”
    “I saw you talking to Jason earlier.”
    Bands of tension returned to Maxi’s shoulders. Without looking at Lily, she turned to the fridge to get another pitcher of iced tea. “Yeah, he was here.”
    “Was it difficult seeing him again?”
    The truth of Lily’s observation hit hard. Maxi took a deep breath and closed the fridge door. “Why would you ask that?”
    “Gee, maybe because you’ve had a crush on him for as long as I’ve known you.”
    A dozen different emotions sifted through Maxi, but the only one she let surface was anger. “That crush ended a long