The Christmas Melody by Shanna Hatfield

Author:Shanna Hatfield [Hatfield, Shanna]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2018-12-28T06:00:00+00:00

Chapter Twelve

Claire bit back a giggle as she looked down at Gray as he sprawled in a chair with his hair falling over his face. His mouth hung slightly open and he made a slight snoring sound. She had no doubt he’d have a horrible crick in his neck from sleeping like he had with his chin on his chest and his feet propped up on the rocking chair.

When she’d stepped out of his room into the main room of the cabin, she’d expected to find him awake, or at least curled up on blankets by the fireplace. But here he was asleep in a chair, arms dangling over the sides, looking uncomfortable, yet entirely appealing. In sleep, he’d lost the worried, haunted look he so often carried and appeared truly relaxed. He’d mentioned his age to Fred, but he seemed so much older than his twenty-eight years.

However, in slumber, she could see glimpses of a playful, energetic boy that was probably quite similar to Maddie.

Lest she wake Gray, she quietly tiptoed across the floor and checked on the little girl. Maddie was still sleeping soundly, so Claire left her to her dreams and stoked the fire, making as little noise as possible. She tried to peer outside, but since it was still dark out, there wasn’t much to see.

She filled a cup with water from the kettle on the back of the stove, made a cup of tea, and settled into a chair at the table with the sketchpad and pencil she’d brought with her.

The firelight cast enough amber light she could work. With purposeful strokes, she began drawing a scene from yesterday. Of Maddie performing what Claire thought of as her song of the woodlands. She’d heard the wind, the birds, the sleigh bells and horses. She’d felt the snowflakes whispering against her face, and tasted spice in the air. Through the notes so masterfully played by the child, she could see the deer at the stream, and smell the gingerbread baking in the oven.

Astounded and awed by Maddie’s talent, she had to sit on the floor before her overwhelmed senses toppled her. Both Maddie and Gray had closed their eyes, but Claire kept hers wide open. She wanted the scene of Maddie playing out her little heart with Gray listening in the background branded into her memory so she could capture it in a painting.

It still left her bewildered that a child so small could create such wondrous music, but she’d witnessed it three times now and had no doubt that Maddie could play like no one else she’d ever heard.

She still couldn’t stop thinking about what had driven Gray into hiding. It happened after his wife died, but while Maddie was a newborn, she’d at least pieced that much together. Had his wife died in childbirth? What could have possibly sent him running from his past?

And what, or whom, did he fear finding him and Maddie. One question just led to a dozen more, so she gave up trying to puzzle them out and focused on creating a rough sketch.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.