The Christmas Proposition Read Online Free PDF Page B

said with a sureness that buoyed Mickie’s spirits. “When my mommy met my stepdad, it only took a few days for them to be in love.”
    “Really?” If it took Addie’s mother only a few days, surely Rachel could find someone in three weeks.
    Addie’s eyes took on a determined gleam. “We have to find a man who doesn’t already have a wife. And he has to think Rachel is pretty. It won’t work otherwise.”
    “Once we find this guy, how do we get them together?” Mickie felt silly asking a third-grader such grown-up stuff, but for being only eight, Addie knew an awful lot. Especially about moms and dads.
    “You’ve got to get them to kiss.” Addie picked up her Barbie and Ken dolls and pressed their faces together. “Like this.”
    “I saw Rachel kissing a guy in my mom’s bedroom tonight,” Connor said, not taking his eyes off the television screen.
    Mickie was about to tell him he shouldn’t be listening to a private conversation when the words registered. “Who was she kissing?”
    “Was it Travis?” Addie asked, eyes full of excitement.
    “Naw,” Connor said, still not looking their way. “The new guy.”
    “That has to be Mr. Rossi,” Mickie said. “He’s really nice. Rachel and I went out for pizza with him once.”
    Addie dropped Barbie and Ken to the sofa, her eyes wide. “They’ve already been on a date?”
    Mickie found Addie’s excitement contagious. “I guess they have. And if they’ve already kissed…”
    “I saw them,” Connor said loudly.
    “Connor sees everything,” Addie said and Mickie could hear the admiration in her tone. Oh, yeah, Addie knew a lot.
    “So what’s the next step?” Mickie asked.
    “They have to be together so they can do more kissing,” Addie said. “Being together is veeeery important.”
    “That might be a problem.” Mickie’s heart sank. “Until tonight Rachel hasn’t seen Mr. Rossi since last Saturday.”
    “You have to figure out a way,” Addie said. “Otherwise they’re not going to fall in love and you won’t be able to stay here.”
    Mickie had tried being good and not asking for much because she’d wanted Rachel to like and hopefully keep her. That hadn’t worked. Rachel liked her, but she was still sending her back.
    Addie was right. Finding a husband for her temporary foster mom was her only chance. Mickie had to make Mr. Rossi and Rachel fall in love and get married. And she had less than a month to make that happen.
    Although Addie’s mom and stepdad had fallen in love in days, Mickie wasn’t leaving anything to chance. She’d start right away. She had a lot riding on this and she couldn’t afford to waste a single minute.
     
    After the game ended at ten-thirty, Derek and the other guys left the big screen behind and wandered into the kitchen.
    During the commercial breaks, Derek had learned a little bit about each of the men. David Wahl, an emergency room physician and Travis’s longtime friend, was also Mary Karen’s brother. Like Travis, David worked with Rachel at the local hospital. Nick Delacorte, Lexi’s husband, was a partner at a law firm in Dallas. He and his family lived part of the year in Texas and the rest in Jackson Hole. And Travis, well, Derek had been shocked to learn that the young doctor had helped raise seven younger siblings. No wonder he was in no hurry to settle down.
    He’d enjoyed watching the game with them. The beer had been cold, the appetizers unending and the high-def television had surround sound so he could hear every hit. The only downside to the evening had been the incident with Rachel. Although he knew she’d deny it, he’d taken advantage of her. Just because she’d kissed him first didn’t mean he had to respond so enthusiastically.
    She’d barely spoken to him since. Even when she’d put the sloppy joe on his plate, she’d only said a few words to him.
    Despite her attempt at a freeze-out, when he entered the kitchen he looked for her. He found her at the counter, back