Free Accidental Love by BL Miller Page B

way up the stairs to retrieve Rose's mail. She picked through it, planning on leaving the junk mail for Cecil to deal with when one small envelope caught her attention. She tucked it into the inside pocket of her bomber and returned to the warmth of her sport vehicle. Only then did she pull it out and examine the return address. D. Bickering, RR 3 Box 4120, Cobleskill. Cobleskill, known more for its agricultural college than anything else, was a small village over an hour away from Albany. It was thought of as being mostly farmland, although there were a fair number of residents in the area. The overwhelming majority was either farmers or people who were willing to travel forty minutes or more to get to work each day, so far from any real cities was the village. Ronnie shoved the letter back into her pocket and put the Jeep into gear, determined to get to the hospital and hand the letter to Rose before the urge to go home and steam the envelope open got the best of her. She desperately wanted to know how the mysterious Delores Bickering fit into Rose's life and why the young woman with no money was writing checks to this person.

    Ronnie arrived just as the nurse finished checking Rose's vitals. As expected, the young woman's face showed the pain that the drugs could not completely erase. "Hey you," she said softly, drawing Rose's attention from the nurse to her.

    "Hi," the blonde woman smiled. "Looks like the snow got you."

    "Just a little," Ronnie replied, brushing the melting flakes off her dark hair and the shoulders of her soft brown jacket. "Should I come back in a little while?"

    "I'm almost done," the nurse said without looking up from her task. She stood and made several notations on Rose's chart. "There. All finished for now." She peeled the latex gloves off into the red waste container. "Doctor Barnes will be in to see you in a little while," she said before leaving the two women alone.

    Curiosity won out the instant they were alone. Ronnie pulled the envelope out of her pocket and handed it to Rose. "Here's your mail."

    The smile that had been on the young woman's face melted at the sight of the writing on the envelope. She opened it and read the words written on spiral bound notebook paper while Ronnie set her attaché down on the floor and hung her coat over the back of the chair before taking her usual seat next to the bed. Rose was quiet as she finished reading the letter and put it back into the envelope. "Could you do me a favor and bring me my checkbook tomorrow?"

    "Is something wrong? Anything I can help with?"

    "No, it's just something I have to take care of." She could not bring herself to meet the piercing blue eyes looking at her. "I hate to ask, but could you spare an envelope and a stamp too?"

    "Of course, Rose," Ronnie replied, still dying with curiosity about the contents of the letter.
    "Look…if you have a debt that you need help paying…" She regretted the words instantly, thinking that her new friend would be offended.

    "No, it's not that. It's from someone I used to live with." Rose's head never lifted up and her whole mannerism changed, withdrawing into herself.

    "A boyfriend?"

    "A foster mother. I lived with her for about two years. She took care of me when no one else would." The blonde woman's shoulders slumped and she let out a defeated sigh. "She's had a hard time since the state took away all the kids she was caring for. You don't want to hear about this," she said, giving her new friend a way out if she wanted it.

    "Sure I do," Ronnie said, reaching over to clasp the smaller hand within her own. "That letter seemed to really bother you. Care to share?" She expected Rose to elaborate a little about Delores but was surprised to find the letter pushed into her hand.

    "I think that will pretty much explain everything."

    Ronnie looked at Rose before opening the envelope and reading the letter.

    Rose,

    I haven't heard from you for a while. Things are really hard here. I can