An Affair To Remember: A Ludlow Hall Christmas by CC MacKenzie Read Free Book Online Page B

again.
     
    Eventually, Elena knew she had to get on with the day, eat breakfast, tidy the house, and then she'd decide what to do. She'd achieve nothing by sitting in her bedroom worried sick like a lemming.
    With the phone clutched in her hand, Elena wandered down stairs, noticed her coat hanging on the peg in the hall, remembered Marc had hung it there. As soon as she entered her sitting room, the evidence of the night before was all there, too. The tray with tea things. The wood burner was still glowing. It needed wood, so she fed it and then turned to open her sitting room curtains to a day as grey as her mood. And felt a lot better once the cold light of day entered the room.
    She picked up the tray, moved into the kitchen.
    Then she opened the shutters, let in a skinny wintry light and smiled when she spotted a couple of robins playing tag as they fed from the selection of nuts and seeds in her bird feeder. As if walking in a dream, she switched on the kettle, popped a couple of slices of wholemeal toast into the toaster, rummaged around the fridge for cheese to add to the toast and milk for coffee. She'd just poured herself a mug of strong java and was standing leaning back against the smooth wood of her counter top, staring into space, when there was a brisk knock at the door.
    And right away her heart took a mighty leap right into her mouth.
    The thought spun into her chaotic mind that maybe she should ignore the door, pretend she was out, or still asleep. Maybe it wasn't Marc. Then Elena bit her lip, she hadn't heard the sound of a car engine. No sane person would be out driving in this weather. But Marc only lived a short distance away so he'd probably walked. Again there was a knock at the door, and this time it sounded impatient.
    Taking a deep breath, Elena moved to place the mug on the counter top and realised her hands were shaking. But she straightened her spine and moved through her sitting room into the hall.
    As the old song said, it was time to face the music.
    Elena opened the door.
     
     
     
     

Chapter Eight
     
     
    Marc knew as soon as he saw her pale face and the way her shoulders hunched as if ready for a blow that Elena remembered the night before. She was bound to have regrets because she'd no idea that he wanted her just as badly as she (if what she'd said and how she'd behaved last night was true and he hoped it was) wanted him. However, that didn't mean he was going to let her off the hook. After all he couldn't be certain she wanted him right now after what had happened between them last night. And he couldn't help having the sneaking suspicion that after a couple of After Shocks what any man might have done for Elena.
    After all Odin was up for it with Elena, and from what he'd seen, so was Elena with Odin.
    So basically, what Marc needed to know this morning was where he stood with Elena.
    Her eyes couldn't meet his, he noticed, with a mixture of annoyance and anxiety pooling low in his gut. She didn't ask him in, but opened the door wide and stepped back. So he supposed that meant enter.
    His heavy hiking boots were thick with snow. He tugged the laces, toed them off, thumped them against the wall under her porch to remove hard packed snow from the soles and placed them on the mat to dry inside the door. Still not speaking, Elena closed the door and moved past him into the sitting room. He raised his brows, but said nothing as he stripped off his gloves and stuffed them in the pocket of his jacket, unwound his scarf, ski hat, hung them on a hook and moved to join her.
    The sitting room looked different in daylight, bigger, but still warm and cozy.
    There was a scent of cinnamon in the air, of Christmas and of yo-ho-ho.
    Marc hadn't had a lot of yo-ho-ho in his life lately.
    And he could only hope that Elena might provide some.
    He was tired after a filthy sleepless night filled with a burning frustration that had eventually led him to down a couple of brandies.
    They hadn't