Mist on the Meadow Read Online Free PDF Page B

town.”
    “You know it,” Angela chimed in. She put an
arm around Marissa’s waist.
    Wolf smiled. “I’ll let you get back to
running your business.”
    Marissa took a step toward Wolf. I’m a
little deficient when it comes to family, he’d said. “Do you
have plans for the holidays? I’m sure it will be strange without
your grandmother this year.” What was she doing?
    “Yeah.”
    Too late to back out now. She’d already
opened her mouth. “Maybe you’d like to join my family? You’ve
obviously already received the Uncle Balt seal of approval and
there’s always room for one more at the table.” Warmth rushed to
her cheeks and her heart pounded in her chest.
    “Thanks, but my aunt and uncle usually—” he
hesitated.
    Angela walked down the counter toward the
register. “I’m going, too. The Maitlands always make room for
strays.”
    Wolf turned toward Angela. “I’m not sure I
qualify as a stray. I do have family nearby.”
    “Well, I have family, too,” Angela replied.
“Just not nearby.” She sidled down to stand beside Marissa again.
“You should come.”
    An uncomfortable twinge poked Marissa. She
recognized the hair flip, the way Angela batted her eyes. “This is
their first holiday without his grandmother,” Marissa said. “He’d
probably rather be with his family.”
    “Actually,” suddenly Wolf was within inches
of Marissa, his eyes trained on his cupcake, “your invitation
sounds very nice. If you’re sure there’s room?” He bumped the edge
of the display case and the cupcake tumbled from his hand, frosting
side down.
    Marissa stooped to pick it up. “Let me get
you another one. Noah, can you grab a paper towel and clean this
up?”
    Wolf laughed. “ Dumkoff .”
    As she tossed the cupcake into the trash, she
mustered a smile. “You speak German?”
    “Something my grandmother used to say.” Wolf
shrugged.
    “I met her once, your grandmother, when I was
little.” Marissa brushed her hands against her apron. “She told my
mother we came from ‘good stock’ and that I’d be something special
one day. She seemed like a nice lady.”
    He smiled and his Adam’s apple bobbed. “She
was. Your great-uncle is a lot like her.”
    “Let me get you that cupcake, and I’ll write
down my parents’ address—if you want to come. Dinner is on
Christmas Eve, at five o’clock.”
    “I don’t need the cupcake. I should watch my
girlish figure.” He winked and gave her a smile.
    From what little she’d seen of him, Marissa
doubted there was much extra fat to be found on Wolf’s body. Angela
was right about one thing, he was easy on the eyes, and they shared
a common heritage. She could almost forgive him for the scratch on
her new car.
    Even as she scrawled her parents’ address,
Marissa reminded herself that Wolf was not a stray. Attractive,
yes. Charming? Definitely. She didn’t need to adopt him, the way
she had Hex. No, men were entirely different animals, capable of
much more deception than the innocent kitten she’d adopted.
    * * *
    He would have eaten the cupcake, in all its
sugary glory. It had smelled like Christmas and memories of before .
    Marissa’s invitation gave him a good excuse
to avoid Uncle Pete for the holidays. Wolf’s long-suffering aunt
didn’t deserve another holiday ruined by arguments. She had enough
heartache with Uncle Pete and Wolf’s waste-of-space cousin. Things
might be different if they’d found a way to contribute to the
success of Harper Electronics instead of running the company into
the ground.
    That conversation would have to wait until
after Christmas. Uncle Pete had to know about the shortages. Why
didn’t he do something about it?
    No. Today he would let a pretty woman rescue
him from the stress of his own family gathering. Marissa Maitland
was curvier than most of the women he dated, round in the right
places, but not fat. Then again, the prep school types who chased
after him weren’t as comfortable to be around. Hex