The Christmas Curse by Erika Marks

Author:Erika Marks
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Tule Publishing
Published: 2015-11-03T05:00:00+00:00

Chapter 8

Emily watched him as he secured the trunk in the stand and twisted the screws to hold it in place. Between dragging it inside and fixing it upright, much of its icy finish had either been knocked off or melted.

At the top of the first box was a coil of Christmas lights. She was halfway through unwinding them before he gave her a wary look. “Not sure there’s much point to stringing those this Christmas.”

“Oh!” She sighed. “God, I forgot.” She returned them to the box and moved it aside. “These might be more our speed,” she said, pulling out a handful of foil balls in reds and greens. “It seems strange to be decorating a tree without Christmas music, or a Christmas movie. We always used to watch White Christmas when we decorated our tree when I was a kid. How about you?”

Griff shook his head and dangled a plastic Santa from a high branch. “My dad wasn’t much for those kind of traditions. I usually went over to friends’ houses to trim trees with their families.”

“Really?” A tremor of sympathy flooded her. Christmas had always been such an important time in her house growing up, one of the few times her father and mother had seemed to get along. She couldn’t imagine having to experience it through someone else’s family. “What about your mom?” she asked carefully.

“My mom took off when I was four. My dad raised me.”

“Oh, God. I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be,” he said matter-of-factly. “It is what it is. Hand me another box, will you?”

She did absently, barely feeling the box leave her hands, her mind fixed on his admission.

“Where’s your dad now?” she asked.

“California.”

“Do you see him much?”

“It’s been a long time.”

She nodded somberly, eagerly to steer them back to warmer waters. “So do you?” she asked.

“Do I what?”

“Have a favorite Christmas movie?”

“Not really.”

“Mine’s a tie between White Christmas and It’s a Wonderful Life.”

He stood quickly. “Are you hungry? I’m starved.”

His swift rise startled her. If she didn’t know better, she’d think he was trying to change the subject—but why?

Fine—so he didn’t like movies. She’d talk about something else, then.

“I keep thinking about that name in my room,” she said. “I’ll bet that little girl wrote her name other places around this house too. I’ll ask Lindy—if she ever gets back here.”

“Why do you care so much?”

She blinked at him, the harshness of his reply unexpected. It had just been an innocent idea.

She shrugged. “I just like mysteries, that’s all.”

“Well, I don’t see what’s so mysterious about it. Obviously a girl lived in that room and marked up the window.” He nodded to the kitchen. “You want anything?”

“I’m okay right now,” she said, watching him walk off, his reply still simmering. There was more to the story—but what? Had someone named Meg broken his heart? Was that it?

I have all the love I can take from my patients

Emily recalled his comment on the trail, the reason why he wasn’t married, or even involved—how was that

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