Read Online Merry's Christmas: A Love Story by Susan Rohrer - Free Book Online Page A

bites—”
    “If he does, okay, you got your answer,”
Kiki continued. “You bow out. But if he hesitates--well, then Girl, you might
just have yourself one high-class nibble.”
    ♥    ♥    ♥
     
    Upstairs in the
privacy of her conspicuously emptied corner office, Catherine pulled Daniel
inside. Though she’d convinced herself that Merry was far from Daniel’s type,
something in her had still knotted up at the sight of Merry, visiting Daniel’s
desk once again. Catherine had never liked defending her territory. She was
more of the offensive ilk. So, she closed the door, drew Daniel close, and
planted a decidedly unbusiness-like kiss on him.
    Daniel broke the kiss with a curious gaze
around the vacant room. “Where’s all your stuff?”
    Catherine smiled coyly, wiping her
lipstick off his lips. “Not to rush the season, but... I’m just working on an
early Christmas present for you.”
    Daniel looked around, a stymied
expression on his face. “You’re leaving the company?”
    “Not as long as you’ve got those
‘intentions’ on me,” Catherine reminded.
    Daniel nodded matter-of-factly. “There
are those ‘intentions’ in the air.”
    “Wafting about.”
    “Yes,” Daniel echoed. “They’re all about
the wafting.”
    Coyly, Catherine straightened Daniel’s
lapel. “And let’s just say that Daddy got wind of those ‘intentions’ as they,
ever so randomly, drifted by his soon to be retired presidential post. Let’s
say he would approve if I were to move just a bit down the hall, opening the
possibility of redecorating here in a much more manly motif, say to accommodate
the advancement of a certain attractive, extraordinarily hard-working Senior
V.P.”
    “One with honorable intentions, no
doubt,” Daniel added, following her train of thought.
    Catherine smiled, obviously pleased with
her plan. “Then, wouldn’t that make for a very Merry Christmas?”
    ♥    ♥    ♥
     
    Merry spread
her ornament-making supplies out on the Bell’s kitchen table. Though she’d
never intended to work with fine china, she could see how pieces of the broken
heirloom dinnerware definitely added to the quality of the mix. As Merry sifted
through for nicely patterned pieces, Joan unpacked a box of every day plates,
loading them directly into the dishwasher.
    “Did you buy those to replace this?”
Merry asked. “I’ll pay for it.”
    Joan brushed it off pleasantly. “No.
Don’t give it another thought. This is just from my apartment. I don’t do
anything but sleep there. And I figure this way, as long as we have something
to eat on, Daniel won’t run out and buy new, and it’ll give me a surprise to
put under the tree.”
    “I’d be glad to shop for you, for your
grandkids. No charge,” Merry offered.
    “Thanks, but I’ve been looking forward to
doing it myself,” Joan replied. “Part of the fun of being a grandma, spoiling
your grandkids. And this will be the first Christmas in three years I get to do
that.”
    Merry thought about it. Joan was so easy
to be with, an integral part of the Bell family. It was no wonder that she had
remained such a welcomed and regular presence, long after Amanda’s passing. “I
can’t even imagine having a mom, let alone a grandmom.”
    Joan stopped what she was doing. She
wandered over to the kitchen table to gaze at Merry’s project. “No family at
all?”
    Merry shook her head. “Just my boy, Rudy.
My cat.”
    Joan picked up one of Merry’s completed
broken china ornaments. She complimented Merry on the way she had chosen
interesting pieces, filed the sharp edges away, then fashioned wire, beads, and
ribbon to set them off in such a creative way. Joan held the ornament up to the
light. “Not a bad use for that old platter. Looks much better this way, if you
ask me.”
    “You think?” Merry asked.
    “I always hated that bodacious dish,”
Joan snickered. “Not like we ever used it. Left me completely cold. Way too
la-di-dah for my taste.