Cross My Heart Read Online Free PDF

middle of July?”
    “Sure, why not? Everyone loves Christmas music. Christmas carols are some of my favorite songs in the world.”
    “How come?” Claire asked, sounding interested. Jenna gestured for her to take a seat at the piano and fished a book of carols out of the box of sheet music beside her.
    “A lot of reasons, really. Memories of my family singing together on Christmas Eve. And the songs themselves are so beautiful. A lot of Christmas carols are like lullabies, have you ever noticed that? Away in a Manger , Silent Night .”
    She found the page for Silent Night and opened the book on the piano. Claire leaned forward, looking at the music. Michael came closer, too.
    “Something about that has always fascinated me. Jesus is supposed to be the son of God, right? Divine, all-knowing, all-powerful. But at Christmas time, we’re remembering that he was born into our world as a baby. Small and fragile, completely vulnerable. I always loved the idea that at Christmas the whole world is singing him a lullaby, holding him close and helping him sleep.”
    She glanced at Michael, who was standing behind Claire, reading the words of the carol over her shoulder. “You’re right,” he said. “It is like a lullaby. I never really thought about it.”
    “Can you play it, Claire?”
    “Uh huh.”
    “Okay, then, let’s try it. Claire, you can sing too, or just play if you want.”
    Claire’s hands hovered over the keys for a moment. Then she started to play the simple melody, very softly. After the first few bars Jenna started to sing, her voice as soft as Claire’s playing. “Silent night, holy night…”
    She wasn’t sure if Michael would join in or not. But he did, after a moment, his warm baritone sending a tingle down her spine. It was a nice counterpoint to her contralto. And then Claire joined them, too, her unexpectedly sweet soprano rising above the voices of the two adults, causing them to glance at each other in surprise.
    They sang all three verses, the gentle magic of the song a tangible presence in the room. Jenna had moved closer to Michael without noticing it—or maybe he had moved closer to her. Either way she was conscious of his nearness, the solidity of him, the strength of the big body next to hers. And his voice was like the warm summer night outside.
    After they finished the final verse Claire let the last note linger, and when the sound had faded completely she twisted around on the piano bench to look up at them.
    “That was cool,” she said seriously.
    Her father put a hand on her shoulder. “Yeah, it was.” He sounded husky, and he cleared his throat. “I didn’t know you could play like that. And your voice…your voice is beautiful, Claire.”
    “Thanks,” she said a little gruffly.
    Jenna felt a sudden burning behind her eyes.
    “Let’s do another one,” she said quickly, and Claire turned the page of the music book to find another carol. It was Hark the Herald Angels Sing , which made their next musical effort a little more lively.
    They kept going for a while after that, singing several more songs, until Jenna glanced at the clock on the fireplace mantel. “If you guys are going to get any dessert I should dish it up now. I didn’t realize how late it was. Why don’t you have a seat on the couch and I’ll bring out the ice cream?”
    A few minutes later she came out of the kitchen with three bowls.
    “Thanks,” Michael said as he took his, and she knew he was talking about more than the ice cream.
    “My pleasure,” she said. And realized she meant it. She’d had fun tonight, but she’d also been…touched.
    She decided not to analyze the feeling too much. The fact was, she’d had a good time with Michael and his daughter, and she was glad that they’d had a good time, too.
    She was touched again when Claire asked her to come back to their house with them. She said it was to lend her a CD they’d talked about over dinner, but Jenna knew she wanted to prolong