Free Turning the Page by Georgia Beers Page A

been kind of a fleeting figure ever since."
    "That's a rough age to deal with a divorce."
    "Tell me about it. My mom had never worked, not full-time anyway, and suddenly she finds
    herself with no husband, no house, and a kid to support."
    "Ouch." Taylor winced.
    "Yeah. It wasn't easy for her. We moved to a suburb of Phil y so she could be close to her
    sister Darlene... that's Sam's mom. Aunt Dar helped her find a job at a local bank. I saw my
    dad on the occasional weekend or holiday here and there, but Sam's dad, my Uncle Phil, was
    much more of a father figure to me. We got a little apartment, just me and my mom. She did a
    damn good job with what was thrown at her."
    Taylor smiled at the glimmer in the ocean blue eyes. "You're proud of her."
    "You bet I am. She didn't let him destroy her life. It happens, believe me. I've seen it. But,
    she cal ed up a strength she didn't think she had. I didn't think she had it, either, frankly."
    "I think my mom and your mom would've liked each other."
    "Me, too."
    "No siblings?"
    "Nope. Just me. Sam and I went to the same school, though. She was like a big sister."
    "Except I bet you took care of her more often than she took care of you."
    Melanie laughed at Taylor's nearly accurate assumption. "To a certain extent, yes. Let's just
    say that the majority of her school projects weren't hers."
    "And term papers?"
    Melanie poked herself in the chest.
    "Figures."
    "How 'bout you? Brothers or sisters besides Frankie?"
    "Just him and me."
    "Frankie. Nice Italian name," Melanie teased. "How'd you manage to get Taylor instead of Maria or Angela?"
    "My mom named Frankie, so Dad got to name me. His mother's maiden name was Taylor."
    "Nice compromise."
    "Completely. Frankie's middle name is Jefferson and mine's Anna Maria."
    Melanie raised her hand. "Lynn."
    Taylor rolled her eyes. "White bread."
    Melanie laughed, enjoying the feel of holding onto Taylor. She shivered involuntarily as a
    breeze blew in off the water. She inched closer to her companion.
    "Cold? Here." Taylor untied the sweatshirt from around her waist.
    Melanie held up her hands in protest. "No, no. I don't want to take your shirt. You need to be
    warm, too."
    "I'm very warm-blooded, Melanie. I actually brought this for you. I thought you might get
    chilly. I'm fine."
    Melanie gingerly took the offered shirt, softly thanking the tal er woman, flattered that the
    shirt had been intended for her from the beginning. She pulled it over her head, inhaling
    deeply as she did so, the smell of laundry soap and Taylor invading her senses. It was very
    roomy, and she pulled on the sleeves until her hands popped out.
    Taylor barely resisted the urge to brush Melanie's hair out of her eyes. "Navy looks good on
    you," she commented.
    "Why, thank you," Melanie replied.
    "Ready for ice cream?"
    "Am I ever not ready for ice cream?"
    They turned and headed back toward the beach.
    "So, tell me about Maggie." Melanie shocked herself with her boldness, but she wanted to
    know as much as she could about this person with whom she walked arm in arm.
    "Hmm. What do you want to know?"
    "How'd you meet her?"
    "College. She was a little bit older than me..." She turned her eyes toward her companion. "You sure you want to hear this? It's not very exciting, and I don't want to bore you to death."
    "It's really none of my business, I know," Melanie said, lowering her eyes. "I just...I don't know." She shrugged. "I like talking to you. You are far from boring, Taylor."
    Taylor smiled at her. "Al right, but if you fall asleep and I have to carry you to the car, I'm going to be annoyed."
    Melanie felt a tingle run through her body at the thought of being cradled in the arms of this
    woman, but shook it off. "No sleeping. I promise."
    "All right. You asked for it." She thought for a moment, searching for a good starting point.
    "Like I said, Maggie was a little older than me. When I was a second-semester freshman, we
    lived in the same dorm, but she was a floor