Merry & Seduced Read Online Free PDF Page B

smiled at Amme. “We can take it now.”
    “It’s still at our hotel,” Camryn said. “We’ll drop it by later tonight.” She turned to Max. “I was hoping my cottage was empty. Ry and I wouldn’t mind crashing there, maybe with some of our friends.”
    “How many are there?” Marcus asked, wondering where Amme came from. She had a bit of an accent, one he couldn’t place, despite having traveled the world.
    “We have five other friends traveling with us,” Camryn said.
    “I have a guest cottage,” Marcus said. “If your friends don’t mind sharing bedrooms there will be plenty of room for all of them.”
    “That’s incredibly generous,” Camryn said. “Are you sure? We’re not leaving until the beginning of the new year.”
    Marcus smiled, his gaze on Amme. Still no sign of flirtation and he felt interest tugging him. Not this woman. She was a friend of Max’s sister and out of bounds. “It’s the least I can do since Amme has volunteered to help me with Autumn.”
    “They’re already in a hotel,” Ellen began.
    “Ellen,” Max said. “We should make a fresh pot of tea.” He grasped his wife’s arm and guided her from the room.
    Luke shot straight to Ry and grasped his hand. “We need to find kitty. Give him some milk to drink.”
    “No, sweetie,” Camryn said, devilment making an appearance. “The kitty is busy right now.”
    “Is Ellen all right?” Marcus asked. “She seems a bit off today.” There was a weird tension to the atmosphere, or maybe it was him, out of step because of Autumn’s arrival.
    His mind darted to his parents and his breath whistled through his teeth. His mother would shit a brick when she discovered her new grandmother status. Traditional in the seen-but-not-heard vein, she was a woman who hadn’t expected to have children. Both he and Olivia were mistakes and she hadn’t given nature an opportunity to upset her life a third time. A medical procedure had taken care of that, and carefully chosen employees had brought up her children. These days his parents traveled extensively and spent much of their time in Europe. The best solution for all concerned parties.
    “Our fault,” Camryn said, some of the brightness departing her demeanor. “I’m afraid we’ve sprung ourselves on her unexpectedly. We’ll drop off our friends and Amme’s bag in a few hours. Is that okay?”
    “That’s fine,” Marcus said. “They’ll need to stock the fridge. Everything else is in the cupboards—the bedding and towels.”
    “No prob. Ry and I will grab some groceries.”
    Amme frowned. “But—”
    “I’ll take you shopping tomorrow,” Camryn promised, obviously anticipating Amme’s objection. “I presume you’ll need to stock up on stuff for Autumn. Amme and I can get a few basics tomorrow.”
    Marcus gave a rueful shrug. Women and shopping. Maybe Amme wasn’t so different after all. “I hadn’t even thought that far ahead.”
    “We should go,” Amme said. “Autumn looks exhausted.”
    “Good call.” The kid was drooping and wavering on her feet. Marcus scooped up his daughter and glanced at Amme. “I can’t thank you enough for helping.”
    “I’ll walk out with you,” Camryn said.
    Max and Ellen returned with another pot of tea. Ellen bore evidence of weeping. Just as well they were leaving. Autumn’s tears were bad enough. He didn’t want to cope with a weeping pregnant woman too.
    “We’re off. The kid is almost asleep,” Marcus said.
    “Okay. Let me get the door,” Max said.
    Camryn dragged Amme away and they did a lot of whispering. More secrets. Marcus wondered if he should search for hidden cameras. Hell of a day.
    C amryn glanced at Marcus then started whispering instructions. “Contact me via your ear com if you run into any problems or need to ask a question. I’ll get Mogens to bring more translators, just in case. It will be easy enough to put one on Autumn, but you’re going to need to get creative with Marcus. It’s