Free Her Heart's Desire (Sunflower Series Book 1) by Linda Joyce Page A

had been bothered by Karl’s presence, or her friend’s
interest in the man, she never let on.
    Rather than startle his sister by calling
out, Craig walked to the opposite side of the room and stood next
to the table holding the sculptures. He waved. Amelia blinked
several times. She paused with a paintbrush in midair as though
returning from a faraway world.
    “Have you been there long?” Amelia asked.
    Craig shook his head. “I know you don’t like
to be bothered when you’re painting, but I need to talk. Since I’m
only home for the weekend, and I’d rather not have this
conversation over the phone, will you take a break soon?”
    “No.” Her mouth formed a thin line. Her
nostrils flared.
    “You have to go to bed at some point. After
all, you twisted my arm about going to church tomorrow
morning.”
    “Yes.”
    Craig reached over and paused the CD
player.
    “No. Yes. Are we having a conversation? Or
answering questions for a gameshow somewhere in your head?”
    “No, I don’t want to talk to you. Yes, I’m
going to bed soon.”
    “Amelia, what did I do this time?”
    His sister rose from the stool and kicked it
aside. “I think I’m done for the night after all.” The stool bumped
the couch, changed trajectory, and came to rest beside Craig’s
legs. If she were shooting pool, it would’ve been a good trick
shot.
    “Here, Jack,” she called. From his bed, the
dog lifted his head, looked at each of them, before resting his
head, ignoring them both.
    “No. Yes,” Craig said.
    “What?” Amelia snapped.
    “No, you’re not going to ignore me. Yes,
we’re going to talk.”
    “Fine! Let’s talk.” Amelia stormed out of the
room. “I won’t let you invade my space and leave a negative imprint
there.”
    He found her in the dining room pulling the
top off a bottle of Basil Hayden. Their father’s favorite George
Jones song, The King Is Gone and So Are You , popped into his
head. It was a song they shared as an inside joke, but given her
anger, he didn’t dare laugh. Before their parents died, just
mentioning the song would have had Amelia in stitches. She loved to
sing along with George Jones to entertain their father.
    Amelia poured whiskey into a crystal glass,
about three-fingers full. She handed it to him. Pulling another
glass from the china cabinet, she splashed a small amount of liquid
into that glass. When she tipped the bottom up, that surprised
him.
    “Whoa.”
    “Ahhh,” she said, pouring another
three-fingers width of liquid into the glass. “Let’s talk.” Before
he could get a word out, she stomped across the living room and out
to the back deck. He followed her, but just before he reached the
open door, Jack scampered past him, clipping him at the knees. He
grabbed for the door to keep from falling. Whiskey sloshed onto the
deck. “No, Jack. That’s not for you,” he told the dog when Jack
came to inspect the spilled liquid.
    “Here,” he shoved his glass at Amelia, who
sat in a chaise lounge. Walking to the far end of the deck, he
grabbed the bucket with dirty soapy water and poured it over the
whiskey spot.
    “And don’t drink that either,” he told the
dog. In response, Jack jumped on the chaise and stretched out
beside Amelia, resting his head in her lap.
    “Please don’t yell at Jack. It isn’t his
fault you’re clumsy.”
    Craig pulled up a chair, straddled it, and
faced his sister. Darkness mostly shrouded her face. He raked his
fingers through his hair and let go of an exasperated sigh. “I’ll
take my drink, now,” he said. She handed it over.
    Leaning over with his elbows resting on his
thighs, he cradled the glass. “Amelia—”
    “How. Dare. You.” Her voice came out low and
deadly calm.
    “There are several things I want to talk
about, but you’re going to have to clue me in. None of what I want
to discuss could produce that level of intensity.”
    “I swear if you don’t admit the truth, I’m
going to start picking corn and chucking it