Read Online Making Spirits Bright by Fern Michaels, Rosalind Noonan, Nan Rossiter, Elizabeth Bass - Free Book Online Page B

between them, Melanie unlocked the door and got inside the Navigator. She cranked the engine over and was about to turn the heater on when she saw Bryce tapping on her window. She hit the POWER button to roll the window down halfway. “What? It’s cold out there!” she said, even though she didn’t care how cold it was. Bryce didn’t want to leave her any more than she wanted to leave him.
    He looked down at his ice-covered boots, then back at her. “This might sound ... well, never mind how it sounds. I’m asking anyway. I planned on taking a trip to Las Vegas next weekend. Believe it or not, I’ve never been there. Would you like to come along? I’ve got two tickets to see Cher.”
    That was the last thing she had expected to hear from him. Vegas, of all places. And why did he have two tickets? Had some other woman canceled at the last minute? Was she just a convenient stand-in?
    Before she could stop herself, the words flew out of her mouth. Sort of like the water incident.
    He threw back his head and let out a great peal of laughter. “Actually, Mom was going to go with me but had to cancel at the last minute.”
    His mother? This guy was good. Really good.
    “I planned to decorate my Christmas tree this weekend.” She did, but also, what if the adoption agency called and she was out of town.
    She’d given Miss Krause her cell number.
    “Okay,” he said. “I can see where decorating your Christmas tree would take precedence over a trip to Vegas.” He turned away from the window, heading toward his Jeep.
    Melanie rolled the driver’s side window down as far as it would go. “Bryce,” she called out to him, and he turned around. He appeared to be amused, not angry as she’d thought. “Do you want to come over and help me decorate my tree tomorrow? I need to do this before the weekend. I’m going to Vegas with a friend.”
    He stared at her, then burst out laughing. “I knew you would see things my way.”
    “Careful, a girl can change her mind in a split second. How’s noon sound? It’s about an hour’s walk from the condo. I have all the equipment.” She watched him and tried to suppress a giggle.
    “You cut down your own tree?” he asked, apparently amused by this.
    “Every year as far back as I can remember. You game or not?” She put her foot on the brake, shifted into reverse slowly, and eased the SUV out of her parking space. Bryce walked slowly along the side of her vehicle.
    “Rest assured, I am game. I’ll see you at noon.”
    Melanie smiled and punched the accelerator a bit too hard, fishtailed, and caught herself just in the nick of time, before pulling out of Giorgio’s parking lot. She looked in her rearview mirror. Bryce stood in the middle of the asphalt lot smiling from ear to ear.
    Merry Christmas to me, she thought as she drove home to her condo.

Chapter 11
     
    Melanie wanted to tell someone about her and Bryce’s evening but saw it was almost midnight. Too late to call Stephanie, too late to call her mother. If Mimi were still alive, she would’ve called her no matter how late. She’d had an extraordinary relationship with her grandmother and knew that Mimi was looking down on her from the heavens above. Melanie smiled at the image. Mimi would’ve told her to pack her best undies and bring her most expensive perfume.
    And that’s just what she did after taking Odie out for an extra midnight potty break. Inside, she was too wired to even think about going to sleep. The animals sensed there was something different about her. They hopped on top of her bed and watched her as she went from closet to chest of drawers to luggage, their heads moving in perfect unison.
    “Mom will take you two for the weekend. Dad might even grill you two a steak, but don’t tell him I know he does this, or I’m sure it’ll stop. Now, what’s left to pack?” She spoke to Odie and Clovis like they were people. She swore sometimes they could understand her.
    She checked the contents of