MacAllister's Baby Read Online Free PDF

which she set down in front of him. ‘Since you ordered it I thought you’d probably like it,’ she said, sitting again.
    Angus threw back his head and laughed. ‘Well done, Miss Read. I like it when a woman can put me in my place.’ He raised the frothy cappuccino in a toast to her. ‘Here’s to skim milk.’
    At that, she cracked a smile. Not much of one, but to Angus it was a prize, the first and smallest of victories.
    ‘You’re Canadian?’ he said, thinking it was about time he risked a personal question.
    ‘My parents are naturalised Canadians. I was brought up in Canada. I’m British now.’ It was said with a firmness that declared the subject closed. ‘And please don’t make the comment about a person from Canada teaching English.’
    ‘I wouldn’t dream of it.’ Elisabeth Read’s defences were well rehearsed. He wondered why she’d chosen to work with him.
    He took a sip of his cappuccino. It was as good as he’d said it was. As he licked off the foam that clung to his lip he saw her eyes dip to his mouth. Then her own lovely mouth compressed and she looked back at her own coffee. She was attracted to him, and she was determined not to be. He had a feeling she wanted the cappuccino, too. Intriguing.
    ‘So we’re going to be working together,’ he said. ‘Are you interested in cooking?’
    ‘No, I’m interested in children. Joanna Graham asked me to help with this competition because we want Jennifer and Danny to benefit from it just as much as you do.’
    He smiled and settled back in his chair. ‘I see. You don’t trust me with the children.’
    ‘I’m sure you’re a consummate professional, Mr MacAllister. But these children have particular needs that must be addressed, and I’m not sure that your publicity campaign will take those into account.’
    What about your needs, Elisabeth? ‘Please call me Angus.’
    ‘Angus, then. May I speak confidentially, with the understanding that this won’t be picked up by your publicist or the press?’
    ‘Of course.’
    She rested her elbows on the table and leaned forward towards him. Her arms were long and slender, and he could see the delicate knobs of her wrists. He loved that part of a woman, so fragile and flexible, near where the pulse beat, as erotic as the soft hollow underneath her ears, or the curve of her belly.
    He had the feeling Elisabeth had erotic places he’d never even imagined before.
    ‘Jennifer and Danny are both vulnerable children who are having trouble in school. We want them to participate in this contest to build their self-esteem and to give them some hope that they can succeed in something after they’ve finished their exams next year. But they’re both going to be difficult to help, for different reasons. Jennifer is withdrawn, and Danny reacts to authority with aggression. When they’re confronted with anything difficult, Jennifer is likely to give up trying right away and Danny usually resorts to destructive attention-seeking.’
    And just like that, talking about her students, Elisabeth Read had transformed from the controlled, cold woman she’d been a moment ago. Her movements were looser, earnest, her hands punctuating her points. She met his eye, and kept it.
    She really did care about these kids, passionately.
    ‘All the tests show that Jennifer is an intelligent girl,’ she continued, ‘but she’s so afraid of social contact that she finds it impossible to succeed at schoolwork. I’ve taught her for two years and have hardly heard more than two sentences out of her. She doesn’t appear to have any friends.
    ‘Danny, on the other hand, has a lot of friends, and all of them are troublemakers. He has some learning difficulties and this made him the target of bullies when he first came to the school. So he joined them. He’s failing all of his subjects.’ She took a sip of her coffee. ‘They’re both going to need careful handling if we’re going to succeed with them. But Joanna Graham and I