Free Just a Wish Away by Barbara Freethy

the woman he'd married. What had driven him to marry so young? Was he simply following in his father's footsteps again? His father had asked his mother to marry him after their high school graduation. They'd waited a year to tie the knot, but they still hadn't been out of their teens when they'd said I do . As a child, she'd thought his parents had the most romantic love story. But sadly their story had ended in tragedy.
    Cynically, she wondered if anyone ever lived happily ever after. She certainly hadn't had much experience with long married couples.
    Her aunt had supposedly been happy in her marriage, but her husband had also died young. He'd been a fisherman, and he hadn't made it back from a deadly storm. Her aunt had been single ever since, saying she'd already had the love of her life.
    As her thoughts turned to her aunt, she said a silent prayer for a quick recovery. Phoebe was a strong woman, and she was going to need that strength now to recover fully from her injuries and the trauma she must have suffered when she realized her store was being robbed.
    "Are you thinking about your aunt?" Braden asked.
    She gave him a quick look. "You read my mind."
    "I've had some practice," he said lightly.
    She nodded. There had been a time when they could both read each other's minds, but Braden's thoughts were locked behind a guard wall. Hers apparently were not so difficult to see. "I just want her to be okay," she said.
    "It sounds like she will be."
    "I'll feel better when I see her."
    She turned into the hospital lot and parked the car. Upon arrival, they discovered that Phoebe had been moved out of Intensive Care and into a private room on the third floor. As they exited the elevator, they saw a crowd of people spilling out of the nearby waiting room.
    "Looks like half the town is here," Braden observed.
    Their arrival drew more than a few surprised looks and subsequent murmurs. Alexa wondered if they were shocked she was in town or that she was with Braden. He seemed to be generating some interest, too.
    "Keep walking," he said on a hushed note, hustling her past the waiting room and down the hall.
    "You're not being very friendly," she said.
    "Trust me, if we start talking to those people, we'll never get out." When they reached her aunt's room, he said, "I'll wait out here for you."
    She glanced down the hall, seeing a couple of women looking in their direction. "You'll be a target."
    "I can take it," he said shortly, although he didn't look at all happy about the idea.
    "Why don't you come in with me? I'm sure Aunt Phoebe would love to see you, too."
    "All right. If you don't mind, I think I will."
    She knocked on the partially open door and then pushed it open. She was immediately reassured to see her aunt's eyes open. A nurse was standing by the head of the bed.
    "Shall I come back?" she asked.
    "No, please come in, Alexa," her aunt said, lifting a weak hand to wave her forward.
    "Don't stay too long," the nurse said, as she moved across the room. "She needs to rest."
    Her aunt offered her a tired smile. "Alexa, it's so good to see you."
    "It's even better to see you awake." Her aunt's skin was pale, and her thinning blonde hair seemed more gray than platinum. There was dark bruising around her eyes and nose and a bandage around her head. She looked very small in the bed and not at all like the bustling, energetic woman she was.
    Phoebe's eyes widened as her gaze moved past Alexa. "Braden? Is that you? You're here with Alexa? I can hardly believe it."
    "I'm glad you're feeling better," he said, joining Alexa at the bed.
    "My goodness, it's been a long time since I saw the two of you together. You were just kids then."
    "We were," Braden said.
    "How are you feeling, Aunt Phoebe?" Alexa interrupted, knowing that neither she nor Braden wanted to talk about why they were together.
    "I have a bad headache," Phoebe said with a wince. "But I'll survive. I'm a tough old broad."
    Alexa smiled. Her aunt had always had a strong