The Christmas Catch Read Online Free PDF Page A

wouldn’t mind.”
    “But Mommy would. She’s… I’m… not ready.”
    “Well, I think John’s nice. Even if he’s not an angel.”
    “I bet you like Mason too,” she
said, kissing him on the head.
    Tyler grinned. “I like Mason best!”

 

 
 
    Chapter Six

 
    Christine, Tyler, and John sat in the small café housed in a
country cottage. A real wood fire blazed in the fireplace nearby, its mantel crowned
with Christmas decorations. A sign on the opposite wall read Kiddy Korner. Below it children played
with old style blocks, puzzles, and a handcrafted circus train, stocked with
various animals. Tyler set down his hot chocolate and pointed across the room.
    “Can I go over there?”
    Christine dabbed his upper lip with a napkin. “Sure baby, go
right ahead.” She turned to John. “This place is great.”
    He grinned at her, blue eyes crinkling. “I thought you and
Tyler might like it.” At his feet, Mason lazily lifted his head. John patted
him lightly and he went back to sleep.
    “You’re pretty good with kids,” Christine told him. “Got any
of your own?”
    “Me? Oh no. I mean, not yet. Never married. I’ve got two nieces
and a nephew, though.”
    “Are they close by?”
    “I wish, but no. They’re with their mom in Baltimore. That’s
where I grew up.”
    He shifted awkwardly. “And you and Tyler? Are you all on your
own in Chicago? Any family there?”
    “It’s just the two of us,” she said. “My husband, Dan,
Tyler’s dad, passed away a few years ago.”
    “I’m sorry, Christine. I had no—”
    “It’s all right. It’s good for me to talk about it.”
    “Was it an illness?” he asked tentatively.
    “Afghanistan.”
    John was quiet a moment. When he spoke his voice was tinged
with compassion. “Things must be hard, getting by on your own with a young
son.”
    “Ty and I manage,” she said, sounding braver than she felt.
The truth was that she hadn’t been managing well at all lately.
    “You seem to do a great job…” His lips creased in a subtle
smile. “… except for when you’re driving in
snowstorms.”
    “Hey!” she cried in mock offense, but secretly she appreciated
his effort to lighten the moment. Mason awakened, startled by her shout of surprise.
John slipped him biscotti under the table to quell his interest. The dog took
it and gnawed contentedly.
    “So tell me,” John said, changing the subject. “What do you
do in Chicago?”
    “I’m a copywriter for a major greeting card company.”
    “That sounds interesting.”
    “Not as interesting as I’d like.”
    “What do you mean?”
    “I basically write the words, but it’s always been my dream
to illustrate too. You know, develop my own line—soup to nuts.”
    “Why not go for it?”
    “It’s not as easy as all that,” she said with a frown.
“Company politics.”
    “So? Start your own company.”
    “What?”
    “What’s stopping you?” John leaned forward with his
challenge.
    Christine sat back. “Oh, about a million things. First, I’d
have to raise the capital, find investors. I couldn’t front even a small
operation like that on my own. Then, I’d need to locate a printer, contract
distributors…”
    “None of that sounds impossible.”
    “Impossible, no. It’s just nothing I’ve ever considered.”
    “With the Internet these days, there are bound to be new
opportunities.”
    “Sure.”
    John took a slow sip of coffee, surveying her over the rim
of his cup. After a beat, he surprised her by raising his cup to hers. “The
future is long,” he said with an enigmatic smile.
    “Yes. Yes, it is,” she answered thoughtfully. “Very long
indeed.”
    She returned his toast, mulling over his proposition. I mean , it would be
a really big dream. Totally cool, she thought. Just no way could it happen
now. Maybe someday, when things were more settled…
    Their eyes locked for a moment and Christine’s cheeks flamed.
All John had to do was look at her and old embers leapt into