Her Mistletoe Man by Carolyn Greene

Author:Carolyn Greene
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2013-10-14T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Six

It was the morning before Christmas Eve. Ruth sat cross-legged on the parlor floor with Nicky and Angie, helping them make Christmas ornaments from pictures cut out of magazines.

Her aunts, uncles and cousins were busy shopping, wrapping last-minute gifts or otherwise keeping a low profile. Aunt Ada had stayed locked in her room all morning with a stash of colored yarns and canvas. She’d been very hush-hush about a special project she was working on, and Ruth had decided to follow her lead and get the kids involved in a craft of their own.

The Johnsons would be returning today to pick up Nicky and Angie. And Ruth would once again face a house without children in it. The emptiness would be difficult to bear, but she would manage.

On her own.

The separation this time would be harder than the two times Ruth had cared for foster children. The first had been for a month during her summer break while a child’s parent served a misdemeanor jail sentence. The other had been an overnight emergency stay while Social Services found room for two girls and their mother at a women’s shelter. On both occasions, Ruth had carefully guarded her heart as she sought to make her guests comfortable during their difficult time.

But with Nicky and Angie it was different. This time she’d had Tucker to help her watch the children and share the fun times.

But Tucker had made it clear he had no desire to continue those special moments. He didn’t have to slam a door in her face for her to take the hint. Tucker had made it quite clear that his agenda—whatever that might be—did not include children.

She hadn’t seen him all morning, which led her to assume that, like Aunt Ada, he had sought privacy in his room. In a few minutes, she would take a break from making paper ornaments and make sure he wasn’t snooping in the attic again. At least, that was the reason she gave herself for wanting to go in search of him.

Nicky set down the last in a stack of magazines and shared a look of annoyance.

“What are you looking for, Nicky?”

“I wanted a picture of a dog, but the only one I found had a stupid bow on top of his head.”

Ruth held back a smile. Nicky much preferred roughhousing and outdoor sports to cutting, pasting and tying ribbons. But, since she had encouraged the children to wait to play outside until the midday sun nudged the thermostat upward, she’d best do what she could to keep him entertained until then.

“Mama said we can get a dog someday,” Angie declared, “when we get a house with a yard.”

Ruth impulsively hugged the child. Their parents were struggling so hard to give them what they needed. A luxury such as a puppy would have to wait until other, more pressing matters were taken care of.

“I hope that ‘someday’ comes very soon.” Rising to her feet, she turned and laid a hand on Nicky’s shoulder.

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