Read Online Gift Wrapped for Christmas: A Contemporary Romance by Mona Ingram - Free Book Online

remember.
    He came back through the door,
whistling as though this were a great adventure.
    “Once more into the breach, dear
friends.” He set the ladder in place.
    “Henry the Fifth,” said Maddie
and handed him the sign. “Are you a fan of Shakespeare?”
    “Not really,” he mumbled around
the nails in his mouth. He hammered them in place. “It just suited the moment.”
He made a deep bow. “And now, my lady, is there anything else I can do for you?”
For a moment, she thought she saw a flash of desire in those blue eyes, but then
it was gone, much to her disappointment.
    “Well, I would like to know your
name so I can thank you properly.” She held out her hand. “I’m Maddie
LaRocque.”
    “Delighted to meet you, Maddie
LaRocque.” He took her hand and brought it to his lips. Heat shot through
Maddie’s veins. “My name is–"
    “Uncle Brent!” Caught in the
moment, they hadn’t noticed Annie enter the lobby. “You’re back.” She dropped
her backpack and leaped into his arms. He twirled her around several times
while she peppered his face with kisses. “I missed you.”
    “I missed you too, Munchkin.” He
set her down. “And now I’d like you to meet –
    “Maddie.” Annie grinned. “I
already know Maddie. We had lunch a couple of days ago.”
    It took a moment for Maddie to wrap
her brain around what had just happened. “You’re not the maintenance man? But I
saw you up in the Drummond offices the other day after someone called for
maintenance.”
    “Sorry to disappoint you. I’m
Brent Drummond. I do work here, though.” He jerked his thumb skyward. “At DE.
I’m a geologist.”
    “Lucky you.” Maddie smiled. “No
suit.”
    “Don’t I know it.” He picked up
Annie’s backpack and gave an exaggerated groan. “What have you got in here? It
weighs a ton.” He hefted it easily. “Maybe two tons.”
    Annie looked at Maddie and rolled
her eyes. It was obvious that she adored her Uncle Brent just as much as she
adored Chase. “It’s my skates. The rink is open, and Uncle Chase said I could
skate for a while.” She checked her watch. “I’d better hurry. Brittany’s mom
says she can only stay until four thirty, then I have to come back here.”
    “What if I came over around four
thirty? I could stay with you until five.” Maddie had no idea where those words
had come from, but she couldn’t take them back now. “That will give you a bit longer
to skate.”
    “That would be great.” She
checked her watch again. “Uncle Brent, would you tell Uncle Chase that I
checked in and I’ve gone to the rink? I forgot my cell phone this morning.”
    “Sure.” Brent looked out toward
the street. Daylight was fading, and the streetlights were coming on. “You be
careful, okay? It’s getting dark.”
    She nodded and ran off, then came
back a few steps. “Your store looks very nice, Maddie. I like the lights.” Then
she was off again and disappeared through the heavy revolving doors.
    Maddie watched her go and then
returned her gaze to Brent. “I can’t believe how polite that child is.”
    Brent nodded. “Sometimes Chase
and I worry that she’s too perfect. It’s almost as though she’s afraid if she
does something wrong we won’t want her. She has her days, but by and large,
she’s an amazing kid.”
    “Well I admire both of you. It
can’t be easy raising a girl that age...” She let her words trail off, not
wanting to delve into any uncomfortable subject matter.
    He seemed to read her mind. “Yes,
well, there’s Cynthia.” He frowned. “Although I’m not sure how well she and
Annie are getting along.”
    Maddie forced herself to stay
silent. No way was she going to get involved in a discussion about Chase’s
girlfriend.
    There was an uncomfortable moment
of silence. Maddie was taken back to the time many years ago when she’d had a
crush on Jimmy Freeman. He would stand beside her in the schoolyard,
tongue-tied, digging the toe of his running shoe into