Read Online Undeniable Demands by Andrea Laurence - Free Book Online

much
more than a peanut butter sandwich and a can of soup in there.”
    Tori smiled. “How did you know what I was having?”
    “Oh, Lordy,” Molly wailed, dramatically getting up from her
chair. “You’re coming over for dinner, and that’s final.”
    Tori trailed behind her, tossing her cup and napkin into the
trash. She had to admit the idea of some real, home-cooked holiday food was
tempting. But she would pay for it later. Wade would see to that. She could see
that he got his stubbornness from his mother. The determined glint in Molly’s
light green eyes left no room for negotiation. Surely Wade would understand his
mother was a force of nature.
    “Can I bring anything?” Tori had no clue what she could
possibly contribute, but her mother had raised her to at least be polite enough
to offer.
    Molly tried to hide her smile behind her hand and then shook
her head. “Not at all. I’ll have everything we need. Just bring your darling
self, and we’ll be waiting for you.”
    Tori nodded and walked to the cash register to pay for her
wreath. She had no doubt Wade would be waiting for her Monday night. Armed and
ready for battle.

Four
    T ori couldn’t make herself go inside the Edens’ house. She felt stupid. It was the most unintimidating place she’d ever seen. The old white two-story home was lit with clear icicle lights, and each shutter-framed window had a wreath and candle gracing it. The two short columns that flanked the three stairs leading up to the front door were wrapped with garland and more lights. She could hear Christmas music and laughter from inside. Golden light shone through the downstairs windows and onto the snow.
    It was beautiful. Welcoming. The kind of house you wanted to go caroling to because you knew the owners would give you hot cocoa and cookies.
    But there was no walking up the steps. Instead, she stood there freezing, clutching the potted poinsettia she’d brought as a hostess gift.
    This was a mistake. She just knew it. Tori had spent the past few hours pacing in her Airstream, trying to think of a way to get out of coming tonight. And when she wasn’t pacing, she was looking around at her empty trailer, considering whether she really preferred to watch sentimental old black-and-white Christmas movies and feast alone on peanut butter and chicken soup.
    It was Christmas Eve, a day of family and celebration and community. Unfortunately, she wasn’t quick to make friends, and small towns were notoriously hard to crack. The only people she knew in Cornwall were her real-estate lawyer, who was apparently best buddies with her enemy; Rose, the waitress at Daisy’s diner; and Wade and Molly. That made for a fairly unmerry Christmas this year if she turned down this invitation.
    She just couldn’t have two miserable Christmases in a row. Last year she’d hoped to spend it with her boyfriend, Ryan. They both traveled so much with their work, but it had seemed that meeting for the holidays in Colorado would be possible. Instead, he’d canceled at the last second, leaving her with a whopping bill for a winter bungalow for one.
    Later she discovered he’d never had any intention of coming. He was married with three kids. Ryan was going to be home with his family no matter what he told her. Dating Tori had been perfect for him because she was always moving around and never pressuring him for more. Their relationship was sustained by phone calls, emails and long weekends together. When she’d mentioned moving permanently to Connecticut, only a few hours from his home near Boston, he panicked and broke it off. Finding out about his whole other life had been just the icing on that miserable cake.
    He hadn’t been the first womanizer to steal her heart and probably wouldn’t be the last. She just had a soft spot for smooth, seductive liars. She confused their calculated moves for cultivated charm, but whatever the label, the relationships didn’t end well. Slick and likable, they