Gift Wrapped for Christmas: A Contemporary Romance (8 page)

She nodded as if this was an
ongoing conversation. “Okay then. I was hoping that my business is successful.
I know it’s only for a couple of months, but I’ve never done anything
completely on my own before.” She tilted her head and smiled to herself. “It’s
a matter of pride, I suppose.”

He leaned into her for a moment.
“You’ll do fine.”

She pulled back, giving him a
little attitude. “And you know this because...”

He wasn’t deterred. “Because
you’re good people, Maddie LaRocque.” He turned back to the ice, and the moment
he spotted Annie, his eyes softened. “How about I give you your first piece of
business? I’d like you to get something for Annie for Christmas.”

She followed his line of sight.
The girls were catching snowflakes on their tongues. “I told Chase what she
wants, but I got the impression that there’d been some negative feedback from
someone within the household.”

“Cynthia!” He almost spit the
word out. “She’s not part of the household.” He seemed to be struggling to maintain
his composure.

Maddie wasn’t sure how to
respond, but he was easy to talk to, and she wanted to stand up for Annie. “She
really does want a sewing machine, you know. My friend Lily knows about these
things, and she says that Annie could easily master using one. She says that
girls even younger than Annie have no problems if they’re shown the basics.”
She was starting to babble, and forced herself to slow down a bit. “Annie’s
going to visit Lily’s studio one of these days. She’s fascinated by anything to
do with fashion.”

He scrubbed a hand over his face.
“Sewing machines, fashion, people named Lily. See what happens? I go away, and
it’s as if I’ve lost my place.”

“It’s not as if you were off
shooting craps in Las Vegas.” She feigned horror. “Were you?”

He laughed, and his shoulders
relaxed. “No, you’re right. Things are bound to happen when I’m not here.”

It was her turn to bump shoulders
with him. “Annie’s lucky that you care so much.”

He nodded absently. “So who’s
Lily?”

“My roommate. Lily Hsu. She has a
silkscreening studio out by the airport.” She lifted her shoulders. “I don’t
know how it happened, but Lily and I sort of adopted Annie.”

“Does Chase know about this?” He
raised an eyebrow.

“Oh, yeah. He’s met Lily and
everything.” She smiled to herself, recalling the sparks between the two A-type
personalities.

Brent looked at her oddly. “Why
did you say it like that? About Chase meeting your roommate.”

“No reason.” Maddie shrugged
again. “You should ask him.”

“Uncle Brent. Put your arm around
Maddie so I can take your picture.” They’d been so engrossed in their
conversation, they hadn’t noticed Annie. She stood before them, her camera raised.

He put an arm around Maddie.
“How’s this?” he said, posing for his niece.

“Perfect,” she said, flashing a
surprisingly adult smile at Maddie. “Just perfect.”

More parents had arrived, and
most of the girls were taking off their skates. “Five more minutes, okay,
Munchkin?” Brent called to her retreating back.

She waved and skated off.

“And then there’s the puppy.”
Brent shot her a cautious look out of the corner of his eye.

“What puppy?” Maddie frowned.

“For Annie. For Christmas.” Why
was he looking guilty?

“Has she asked for a dog? And how
long has she been asking, or is this a spur-of-the-moment thing?”

“Well...” Brent looked
uncomfortable. “She didn’t exactly ask for one. But she’s plenty old, don’t you
think?”

Maddie gave him a punch on the
arm. “It’s for you, you phony! You’re the one who wants a dog.”

He grabbed his arm. “Ow! That
hurt.”

“Did not, you big baby.”

“Okay, I confess. I’d like to
have a dog in the house, but I really do think Annie would benefit from having
a dog of her own.”

“Are you asking me to get one?
I’ll need to know what kind.”

His gaze rested on Annie. “A
family dog. One that’s gentle.”

“I’ll do it, but only if I can
get a dog from a shelter.”

“That’s a great idea. And the
company can make a generous donation, as well.”

“How much?” She looked at him
with a challenge in her eyes.

“Five hundred dollars?”

“I thought you said generous.”

“Okay then, a thousand.” They
laughed together, and when they stopped, their heads were close. This time she
didn’t imagine the desire in his eyes. For a moment she thought he was going to
kiss her, and then he shook himself, dislodging the snow that had gathered on
his jacket.

“Brent?” she said softly, raising
a hand to his cheek. His beard wasn’t at all prickly, it was soft and inviting.
“Is there something wrong?”

“Yes.” The desire in his eyes had
turned to something close to desperation. “I have to go away again.” His gaze
darted around the rink, as though he was looking for a way out. “My timing
sucks.”

He stayed silent for a few
moments.

“I want to see you again when I
get back.” He looked into her eyes. “Would that be okay with you?”

Her smile was her answer, but to
be sure, she nodded. “I’d like that,” she said. “I’d like that a lot.”

He leaned forward, his intention
clear. Heart pounding, she lifted her lips to meet him. He cupped her head with
one large hand, his fingers splayed in her braid. Then his lips covered hers,
and she met him eagerly, reveling in the touch and taste of him. Large flakes
began to fall, but lost in the sweetness of their first kiss, they barely
noticed.

He pulled back with a shy smile.
“Sorry,” he said. “That was a bit awkward.”

“Was it?” She smiled up at him.
“I didn’t notice.”

He ran his thumb over her bottom
lip, and every nerve ending in her body caught fire. “To be continued,” he said
softly, just as Annie skated up.

* * *

“That was fun.” Annie climbed
into the front seat of Brent’s SUV and reached for her seatbelt. “Was Maddie
surprised to see you?”

Brent made sure she was settled,
then pulled out of the garage. “I’m not sure,” he said, his thoughts returning
to Maddie, recalling how the snowflakes had dusted her hair, and the taste of
her lips. What he
was
sure of was that nothing could have kept him away
from the rink this afternoon. From the moment Maddie LaRocque had fallen into
his arms, he’d been a goner. Nothing in his scientific training had prepared
him for the surge of emotion he’d felt the first time he looked into her eyes.
There had been something...an instant connection...that had him wondering just
what he’d been doing with his life up until that moment.

He looked across to see Annie
fiddling with her camera. “Did you get some good pictures?”

“Uh-huh. I’ll show you when we
get home.” She scrolled through the shots and paused when she came to the one
of Brent and Maddie. “The one of you and Maddie is good. I think I’ll print it
out and put it in a frame in my bedroom.” She was silent for a moment.

“What is it, Munchkin? You look
sad.” He reached across and squeezed her hand.

She continued to stare at the
photograph. “Do you think it will be wrong for me to have some happy pictures
in my bedroom? You know, besides my pictures of Mom and Dad?”

A lump rose in Brent’s throat,
but he managed to get past it. “Not at all.” He paused. “Are you saying that
the pictures of your mom and dad make you sad?”

“Yeah.” She rubbed a finger across
the display screen. “Maddie said it’s okay to be sad. She told me I’ll never
forget them, but after a while it will stop hurting.” She gave him a sideways
look. “Do you think that’s true?”

“Yes, I do.” A stab of jealousy
caught him by surprise. He wanted Annie to confide in him, and in Chase, and
yet she’d been discussing her innermost secrets with a woman she’d only known
for a short while. And yet somehow he wasn’t surprised. If Annie was going to
talk to anyone, he’d prefer it to be Maddie.

“Maddie says that happy memories
will start to crowd out the sad ones.” She clutched the camera as if it were a
lifeline. “So I’ve decided. I’m definitely going to put your picture up in my
bedroom. The one of you and Maddie together. You both look so happy.”

Brent relaxed his grip on the
steering wheel. The child was right. All it had taken was sitting beside Maddie
and happiness had washed over him. How had he gotten his personal life into
such a mess?

* * *

Brent turned off the highway and
rolled down his window as he drove along the road leading to the sprawling
family home. He did this every time he came home; there was something about the
air out here on the edge of the prairie that had a calming effect on him. His
grandfather had built the home on a section of rough land that wasn’t suited
for farming, but had been an amazing place to grow up. ATVs in the summer, Ski-Doos
in the winter, fishing in the trout stream that meandered through their
property...the memories crowded happily together.

A small sports car sat off to the
side of the six-car garage. “Cynthia is here,” said Annie, her tone flat.

Brent raised his eyebrows and
pressed the garage door opener.

Chase’s vehicle was parked in its
usual spot. “Oh, look. Uncle Chase is home already.” Annie jumped out as soon
as Brent parked and grabbed her backpack from the rear seat.

They entered the mudroom and were
met with the enticing aroma of chicken. Annie wiggled her nose. “Smells like Hannah
made chicken again.” She dropped her backpack and ran into the kitchen to greet
the housekeeper. Hannah and Declan O’Farrell had worked on the estate as long
as Brent could remember. They lived comfortably in a suite over the garage,
content to take care of ‘the boys.’

Brent hung up his jacket,
followed Annie into the kitchen and sniffed appreciatively. “Hannah my love,
are you sure you won’t marry me?” He gave her an affectionate kiss on the
cheek. “You’re too good for that scoundrel you’re married to.”

“One of these days I’m going to
say yes, then where will you be?” The housekeeper’s eyes flashed in amusement.

Brent put a hand over his heart.
“Then I’ll be in heaven.”

“Go on now.” She darted a look
toward the sunken living room. “Miss Cynthia is here. She’s having a drink with
your brother.”

Brent stifled a groan. “I’d
forgotten until I saw her car. We’re supposed to meet some people later.” He
snatched at a piece of chicken, and Hannah swatted at his hand. “I wonder if I
can get out of it.”

He took a deep breath, pasted a
smile on his face and sauntered into the living room. Cynthia was curled up in
a chair by the fireplace, her straight blonde hair gleaming in the light of the
fire.

“Hello, darling.” She glanced at
her watch, and a slight frown furrowed her brow. “I hope you haven’t forgotten
that we’re meeting the gang at the club tonight.”

“Actually, I had forgotten.”

Her pale green eyes darkened
angrily.

“But I couldn’t have gone anyway.
I have to head out first thing in the morning. Sorry.” He didn’t sound sorry,
and he knew it, but he was tired of pretending. He had no idea why he’d ever
allowed himself to become involved with Cynthia Fairbairn. He raked his fingers
through his hair and sat down as far away from her as he could. Standing beside
Chase’s chair, Annie watched the exchange with interest, and he gave her a
broad wink.

Actually, he did know why he’d
become involved with Cynthia. It had made sense at the time, but looking back
now, his reasoning had been completely irrational. At the rate Chase was going,
he was never going to get married, and it had seemed to Brent that someone
needed to give Annie a stable home life. Why he had thought Cynthia would be
the one to do that, he didn’t know. He couldn’t have made a worse choice if
he’d tried. Thank goodness they hadn’t actually announced an engagement.
Cynthia had been pressing for some time for a ring, but he supposed that deep
down he’d known it was a mistake. A mistake that he needed to rectify, and
soon. He was leaving tomorrow, but he’d sort things out with her as soon as he
got back.

“...and this is one of Uncle
Brent and Maddie.” Annie had dragged her backpack into the room and was showing
Chase the pictures. “Don’t they look happy?”

Cynthia unfolded her long,
elegant legs and walked over to stand behind Chase’s chair. “And who is
Maddie?” she asked, casting a quick glance at the display on the back of the
camera. Her words were like ice crystals. “You look very chummy.”

Chase glanced up quickly, then
returned his attention to the picture. “She’s rented the shop in the lobby of
the building.” He gave Annie a quick hug. “She and Annie have become good friends.”

Annie nodded and ran over to
Brent. “Have a look. You didn’t get to see it properly on the way home.”

Brent examined the picture. It
had felt so right sitting there beside Maddie, watching the children. He’d
never felt a hint of the same contentment with Cynthia...not that she would
ever bundle up and sit outside on a cold step. He looked up as she moved to
return to her chair and caught her foot in the strap of Annie’s backpack.

“For heaven’s sake, child. Put
your things away!”

Annie pulled back, and Brent
surged out of his chair, hands clenched at his sides. Harsh words were on the
tip of his tongue; words he’d wanted to say for some time. Fortunately, Hannah
chose that moment to announce that dinner was on the table, and he reined
himself in.

“You can put your things away
after dinner,” he said to Annie, a gentle hand on her shoulder. “Come on, let’s
get some of that chicken.”

Brent pushed back from the table
and patted his stomach. “That was good.” He looked over at his brother. “Sorry
Cynthia made such a fuss when she left.”

Chase shrugged. “Just as well.
She can put a damper on things when she gets like that.” He looked toward the
stairs where his niece had disappeared a few moments ago. “I didn’t want to say
anything in front of Annie, but what’s going on with you two?”