Mist on the Meadow Read Online Free PDF

desk. There might be something in
there.”
    “Thanks. I’ll take a look later on.” And yet
he couldn’t forget his uncle’s reaction. If the Kundigerin was a harmless garden club or cat breeder’s association, why would
Uncle Pete rush out the way he had? The fire glow performed a
hypnotic dance and the scotch warmed his belly. He was in no hurry
to go anywhere. Wolf closed his eyes for only a moment and let the
drowsiness overtake him.
    He recalled the accident from this morning,
watched Marissa Maitland shake her hands in her car right after
he’d rear-ended her, sapphire blue eyes alight with anger. In his
dream version, when she stepped out of the car, he took her in his
arms and kissed her, deeply, hungrily.
    A log shifted in the fireplace and Wolf
jerked upright. He looked over his shoulder and was relieved to see
Ralph had disappeared.
    The long day had taken more of a toll on him
than he’d realized.
     

Chapter 5
    Marissa hummed the German folk song again
while she rolled out the caramel sticky buns.
    “I’m opening,” Angela called out.
    “I’m ready,” Marissa called back. She looked
around the kitchen for inspiration for the special of the day.
Empty muffin pans stood on their sides in the drying rack. “Pumpkin
spice cupcakes,” she said. “Lots of them. Perfect for
Christmas.”
    Angela ducked into the kitchen with the
whiteboard, and Marissa passed along her decision. “And eggnog
instead of cream in the coffee,” Angela suggested.
    “Great idea,” Marissa said.
    “Always did make a great team.” Angela pulled
out the chart of daily specials and copied over the lunch offerings
along with the “daily treat” and coffee decisions.
    Marissa continued to hum as she set to her
task. Angela returned to the kitchen and tacked the special orders
to a bar over the work table.
    “I don’t think I wished you a happy birthday
yet,” Angela said while she attacked the first of the orders.
    “Thanks.” Marissa looked up and smiled. She
pulled a pan of cupcakes from the oven and took the next order
sheet to start while the cupcakes cooled.
    “We could stop for a drink after work.”
    Marissa sighed. “That’s the problem with
having a birthday this close to Christmas. Too much to do here, and
with Uncle Balt in town . . .” She put a loaf of bread in the oven
and picked up the bag of icing she’d prepared to frost the
cupcakes. She squeezed the icing around the first two cupcakes and
then looked at Angela. “We could stop for a drink. It is my
birthday, after all.”
    Becky appeared in the kitchen doorway. “You
feeling better today?” Marissa asked.
    “Yeah. Monster migraine. I took my
prescription and ended up sleeping most of the day. Hey, there’s
someone out front to see you.”
    Marissa raised an eyebrow and wiped her hands
on her apron. “Me?”
    Angela nodded.
    Probably Uncle Balt again. Marissa grabbed
one of the finished cupcakes and headed for the counter. She slowed
when she saw Wolf Harper.
    “Mr. Harper,” she said.
    “How’s Hex?” he asked.
    Marissa’s heart pounded. He hadn’t come to
reclaim Hex, had he? How had that little ball of fur wedged itself
so deeply into her heart after only 24 hours? “He’s fine. Did you
change your mind? Do you want me to pay you for him?”
    Wolf shook his head. “No. I just wanted to
make sure you were okay. No ill effects from the bump you got
yesterday? No whiplash?”
    Relief flooded over her. “I’m fine. A little
stiff, but nothing to be concerned about. I still feel like I
should pay you for Hex, knowing he’s not your average alley cat.”
If she paid for him, there could be no give-backs.
    He held up his hands. “We’ve been over
that.”
    She caught a whiff of cinnamon before she
remembered the cupcake in her hand. “Would you like a cupcake? On
the house. Treat of the day.”
    “I try to avoid sweets,” he said, but he
accepted the offering, “although I hear your shop is one of the
best in