Free Undone (A Country Roads Novel) by Shannon Richard

heading behind the counter to get their lunches ready.
    *  *  *
    Thirty minutes later, all six women sat around the table laughing loudly. Paige was finishing her incredible sandwich while Tara told everyone about Verna and her rather loud objections to Paige. She’d just done a spot-on imitation of Verna’s outburst that morning.
    “You’ve got to be kidding me,” Pinky said, slapping the table.
    Panky and Grace were laughing so hard they couldn’t speak.
    “She’s nuts,” Lula Mae said, taking another bite of her chicken salad sandwich.
    “You’ve got her all in twist,” Tara said, leaning back in her chair. “I even saw her screaming at Brendan yesterday.”
    “Why was she screaming at Brendan?” Panky asked, taking a sip of her drink.
    “Because he got me the job,” Paige said, before she even realized she was speaking.
    Everyone stopped talking and turned to look at Paige.
    “Brendan?” Grace asked, breaking the silence. “Brendan King?”
    “Yeah,” Paige said, shifting in her chair. “He, uh, did me a favor.”
    “Well, that was nice of him,” Lula Mae said.
    “Where did you see her screaming at him?” Pinky asked Tara.
    “At the funeral home, when he came to pick up Paige,” Tara said, letting the corner of her mouth quirk up.
    Paige had the urge to kick Tara under the table.
    “Why was he picking you up from work?” Panky asked, her eyes going wide as she leaned over the table.
    “My Jeep’s been in the shop,” Paige said, trying to affect a nonchalant tone, which she was horribly unsuccessful at pulling off because her cheeks were flaming.
    “Right,” Grace said skeptically.
    “Who wants dessert?” Lula Mae asked, taking pity on Paige and changing the subject. “Grace made apple pie.”
    “Yes, please,” came the chorus from everyone around the table.
    “Sit down, Grams,” Grace said, standing up. “I’ll get it.”
    “I’ll help.” Paige stood up and followed Grace through a swinging door.
    The small kitchen was tame, with yellow and blue tiles on the floor and climbing up two-thirds of the wall where they stopped and a light blue paint continued and reached up to the ceiling. Pale yellow shelves were in one corner, organizing all of the dishes. Stainless-steel countertops and appliances took up the rest of the space.
    “Here,” Grace said, going to the freezer and pulling out a container. “You can put the ice cream on the pie.” Grace opened a drawer and handed Paige an ice cream scoop and then went to grab a stack of plates. “So,” Grace said, pulling out a knife from a wooden block, “how are you liking it down here?”
    “The last couple of days have been way more pleasant than the last couple of months,” Paige said honestly.
    “Even with Verna?” Grace asked, cutting the pie.
    “Even with Verna.”
    “So you haven’t made a lot of friends around here?” Grace asked and handed Paige a plate with pie on it.
    “Not exactly.”
    “Well, I can tell you that all of those women in that room are glad you’re here. And so am I. We meet up for lunch every Thursday. You should come with Tara from now on.”
    “Thank you,” Paige said, taken aback, a smile quickly growing on her face. So maybe she was still capable of making good first impressions. That was a relief.
    “What are you doing on Sunday?” Grace asked, handing Paige another plate.
    “No plans.”
    “I’m going to the beach with a couple of friends around eleven. And if you come over to my grandparents’ early, you can have some of Grams’ amazing breakfast.”
    “Really? What time?”
    “I’ll pick you up around nine thirty.”
    “Alright.” Paige nodded. “I’m in. It sounds like fun.”
    “Oh, I’m counting on it.”

Chapter Five
    Turning Up the Heat
    F riday went by uneventfully, except for the banging that traveled upstairs. The entire downstairs had been stripped of the carpet and they were now working on the rooms next to Paige. She’d shoved a pair of headphones