A Mistletoe Affair by Farrah Rochon Read Free Book Online Page B

daggers she was shooting at him right now with her stare. “What?” he asked.
    “Are you deliberately trying to annoy me?” Vicki asked, making sure her displeasure came through her voice. “I
volunteered
to watch Mason out of friendship. Don’t you dare suggest paying me, Jordan.”
    “Sorry.” He held his hands up in mock surrender once again. “It looks as if I’ve made a world championship sport out of offending you today.”
    “Yeah, well, you don’t have to try so hard to sweep the medals,” she said, wrangling a laugh from him. With Mason in tow, she headed out of the room.
    “Vicki,” Jordan called just as she reached the door. She looked back at him. “Thank you,” he said.
    She smiled. “You’re welcome. Now sleep.”
     

Chapter 3
    J ordan’s eyes popped open.
    He sprung up in bed, but quickly relaxed when he remembered that Vicki was here, watching over Mason so he could rest.
    Vicki.
    Jordan shook his head, still confused as hell over what to make of her. He’d dreamed of her while he slept, his mind conjuring images that would probably make her blush. But he couldn’t help it. Vicki Ahlfors had burrowed her way into his brain, and he enjoyed having her there too much to let those delicious fantasies of her vanish anytime soon.
    Jordan dragged his palms down his face.
    He’d mulled over these feelings that had started swirling within him the night of Sandra’s wedding and had decided to ignore them, but fighting thoughts about Vicki was more than his taxed mind had the ability to deal with right now. It was easier to just go with it and let the fantasies play out.
    Jordan knew her dating status shouldn’t matter to him one way or another, but damn if something akin to relief hadn’t hit him when Vicki had confirmed that she wouldn’t be rescheduling her date with the doctor. She’d said she wasn’t into casual relationships anymore; he could respect that. He’d grown weary of carefree flings that were only fun for the moment, but left him unfulfilled. Now that he had Mason, his taste for meaningless relationships had soured even more.
    He wanted substance. He wanted stability. He wanted someone who could appreciate the simple pleasures of a quiet night at home, someone who would value the absolute joy he found in raising his son.
    But whether or not he was even ready to explore a relationship with a woman again was still up in the air. He’d been burned so badly by the last one that just the thought of exposing himself to that kind of hurt again scared the hell out of him. And that was nothing compared to how he felt when he considered bringing another woman into Mason’s life.
    Protecting his son was his number one priority. He would not allow his own needs to supersede those of Mason’s.
    Jordan glanced at the digital clock on the nightstand and did a double take. It was nearly 10:00 p.m.
    What the hell?
    He’d been asleep for
four hours?
    He hopped out of bed and rushed from the room. Finding the great room empty, he took off for the kitchen.
    He crossed the threshold and stuttered to a stop.
    The kitchen was spotless. Vicki had washed and put away the dishes, swept and mopped the floors. She’d piled Mason’s toys into one of the wicker laundry baskets from the laundry room and tucked it into a corner.
    She looked up from the table she was scrubbing and smiled. “You’re up,” she said.
    “Yeah,” he replied with a sheepish grin. He rubbed the back of his neck. “I...uh, I’m sorry I slept so long. You should have been gone a long time ago.”
    “I didn’t mind staying,” she said. “You obviously needed the rest.”
    “More than I thought I did,” he agreed. “Is Mason asleep?”
    She nodded. “He actually fell asleep less than an hour after you did.”
    “You should have woken me, Vicki, or at least brought him in bed with me and taken off.”
    “I wasn’t going to just leave without you knowing, Jordan. It’s okay. As you can see, I found a way to