A Billionaire for Christmas Read Online Free PDF

decorated with painted candy canes, plus three cafe cups. Anthony jumped up and took the tray from Shelly. His hands brushed against her wrist.
    A thrill heated his blood. Their eyes met. Damn. Not what he wanted. He had neither the time nor patience to have any feelings for Shelly. She would never again be the woman for him. She was damaged beyond repair.
    “Thank you,” Shelly said softly. She retreated as if burned. A timidity flashed over her face, and she sank into the chair farthest from the couch where Mrs. Bello slowly seated herself. Mrs. Bello reached up and pulled at Anthony’s arm.
    “Sit. Sit. So lovely to have both of you home.”
    Shelly leaned forward and placed a cannoli on each plate. Mrs. Bello handed him a tiny cafe cup. “She got home around four today, the flight was on time. No problems. Right, Shelly?”
    Shelly nodded. Her untouched cannoli lay on her plate. Her gaze flitted about the room. Distraction traipsed over her face as though she’d just remembered something, such as a stove left on or a curling iron left plugged in.
    “Excuse me.” She slipped from her chair and was up the stairs and out of sight in an instant.
    Anthony hadn’t realized he’d been holding his breath, but with a long sigh the tension in his shoulders and chest drained away. The heat he had felt slowly faded. His gaze, however, remained fixed to the staircase where Shelly had disappeared. Was she still using? Perhaps she wasn’t nearly as healthy as Mrs. Bello hoped. She couldn’t stay here if she was still an addict, he wouldn’t allow it. Mrs. Bello did not need her granddaughter stealing and doping and breaking her heart.
    “She’s been a little weepy since she got in,” Mrs. Bello said. “I mean she hasn’t been home since the funeral and, well, my sister says it’s to be expected. A big trip for our Shelly, isn’t it Anthony?”
    Our Shelly .
    Anthony reined in the words on the tip of his tongue, and instead simply nodded and sipped his cafe. She was no longer our Shelly, he wanted to say. She was merely Mrs. Bello’s granddaughter. The promise Anthony had given to Vincent before he’d left for Iraq hadn’t extended to Shelly. And even if it had, he’d done everything he could in Texas to save Shelly. She hadn’t wanted his help. She hadn’t wanted anything to do with him.
    “How long is she home for?”
    “I wish forever,” Mrs. Bello said, dabbing her lips with her napkin. “But her return flight is the day after Christmas.”
    “That’s not very long.”
    “She’s got a job, and Pat says a nice little apartment not far from the convent. I’m guessing she can’t be away for long.”
    Hmm. He wondered what kind of job a former addict could find. When he’d seen Shelly in Texas she’d yet to be busted for anything, because though she might be a horrible addict, she was also smart. Was her criminal record still clear? He doubted it. A person didn’t go through the years of addiction Shelly had weathered without getting pinched at least once.
    “You’ll all come to dinner here and mass on Christmas Eve. Won’t it be lovely?”
    Anthony coughed. For the last five years, the Travati brothers had spent both Christmas Eve and Christmas Day with Mrs. Bello. They didn’t have any family remaining, nor did Mrs. Bello, aside from her sister Pat, and also Shelly, who’d been MIA. The Travati brothers and Mrs. Bello had cobbled together their own traditions and pieced together a family.
    “Aubrey called me today,” Mrs. Bello said. “She invited both Shelly and me to the Teddy Bear Luncheon.”
    “Of course she did.” Justin’s wife was nothing if not sly.
    “Her sister and father are coming in from Kansas.”
    “Excellent.” The muscle in his jaw flinched. Anthony pulled at his cuffs. He had little tolerance for his sister-in-law’s family.
    “You don’t like Aubrey,” Mrs. Bello said.
    “That isn’t true. I was just surprised…caught off guard by what happened last