Eleanor's Hero (Christmas in the City - Book 2) by Jill Barnett

Author:Jill Barnett [Barnett, Jill]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Barnett Books
Published: 2011-07-30T18:00:00+00:00

Chapter 6

She found the hole in the floor the very next morning, when she was trying to find one of the cats. The hole was underneath her rag rug and was about the size of a dime—just big enough to see through. She pushed the cat out of the way and pressed her face to the wooden floor. There it was—his apartment. She shifted a little to try to get a better view.

Someone pounded on her front door, and she shot up so fast the cat shrieked. She stared at the door.

"Nellie?" He knocked on the door again.

She swiped a strand of loose hair from her face, brushed off her dress, and walked to the front door. When she opened it, he was standing there all covered in flakes of fresh white snow. He looked like a human mountain.

"Have you been outside yet?" he asked.

She smiled. "No, but I see you have."

He laughed that same deep wonderful laugh and shook his head and snow flew. "How could you tell?"

“Come inside.” She stepped back. "You want some coffee?"

“Coffee sounds good,” he said and stomped the snow from his shoes, then brushed off his shoulders, sending snow about like a retriever. Then he came inside, pulling off a pair of great shaggy gloves that made his hands look like paws.

She poured him a mug of steaming coffee and turned to hand it to him. He was looking at the Christmas tree.

"It looks as good in daylight as it did last night."

"It does." She watched him take a long drink that should have burned his mouth, but it didn't seem to bother him. "What were you doing outside?"

"Shoveling the walk."

"Is there that much snow?"

He nodded, took a drink, then stared at her for a moment. "The streets are starting to fill with sleighs."

She had moved to the window and was looking outside, where it looked as if the world outside had been dipped in sugar. She felt the heat of his body standing behind her. She could smell the wet leather of his heavy coat.

"Are you doing anything today?" he asked her.

"No."

"I thought you might like to see the city, from a sleigh. It’s there, just below the window."

She pressed her cheek to the old windowpane. Sure enough. There was a sleigh and a team tied to the front post. "I'd love to." She smiled up at him, and they both stood there for a second, neither saying anything. It was uncomfortably intense, so she looked away because deep inside she wanted something more to pass between them. "Give me five minutes."

"Sure.” He stepped back quickly. “I'll wait downstairs." Then he left.

Eleanor raced across the room, pulled out a metal vacuum bottle, and filled it with hot coffee. She sealed it and then stuck it in a sock the way her grandfather always had. She tucked it inside a basket with some apples and a wedge of cheese, then she grabbed her coat, hat, and gloves and was down the stairs in a couple of minutes.

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