Christmas Alpha by Carole Mortimer Read Free Book Online Page B

fluke, the delivery of that bloody parcel, that had resulted in Eva being caught out by the weather.
      Or luck?
      Eva was entertaining. On so many levels. She had a mouth on her, and he didn’t mean those made-for-sex lips. A spirit that refused to give up. And yes, she was also sexy as hell.  
      That ‘sexy as hell’ part had almost caused Finn to completely lose control earlier. Before good sense prevailed and he pushed her away by being deliberately dismissive.
      If Eva really had seen someone outside just now—and she seemed convinced that she had—then surely they in turn would have been able to see the lights shining in the house, if not Eva silhouetted in the window. If that was the case, why hadn’t they headed towards the house rather than away from it?  
      Finn thought of the parcel he had opened a short time ago, and its disturbing contents, wondering once again if Moira could already be here...

    “Find anything?” Eva prompted lightly twenty or so minutes later when Finn, having already removed his coat and boots, now stomped into the kitchen and headed straight over to stand by the hot stove to warm himself. She had kept her tone deliberately light so that Finn wouldn’t see how glad she was to see him safely back in the house.
      Eva had felt guilty the moment she heard Finn go outside into the blizzard, and had immediately started to worry that he might get lost in the snow, become disorientated, and somehow wander off in the wrong direction.
      She had no idea what she would have done if he hadn’t come back.
      Gone out into the snow looking for him, probably, and no doubt become lost herself!
      “It’s as I thought, there’s no one out there,” Finn dismissed, head bent as he continued to warm his hands on the stove, his cheeks ruddy from the cold outside.
      “Oh.” Eva instantly felt foolish for having made such a fuss earlier. “Here,” she handed him a mug of the tea she had poured for them both the moment she had heard the front door slam closed as he returned.
      “Thanks.” He cradled the warmth in his hands as he took a grateful sip. “What did you decide to make for dinner?”
      “You have a freezer full of food.” She smiled approvingly. “I chose pizzas as something I couldn’t ruin. They’re in the oven now.”
      He raised dark eyebrows as he looked at her over the rim of his mug. “Have you ever cooked in one of these stoves before?”
      She gave him a puzzled glance. “No.”
      “Oh.”
      “What are you doing?” she demanded as Finn put down his mug of tea and picked up the oven cloth before going down on his haunches to open the oven door, the kitchen instantly filled with the smell of burning. “I only put them in ten minutes ago!” Eva wailed as he brought out two pizzas that were more than a little black around the edges.
      And she had thought that even she couldn’t spoil pizza!
      Finn placed the hot baking tray on the trivet. “These stoves cook in half the time a normal oven does. I found that out myself the hard way too!” He grinned.
      Eva found herself fascinated by the grooves that had appeared in both Finn’s cheeks as he smiled. Not quite dimples. His face was far too hard and chiseled to have anything as tame as dimples. But those twin grooves were definitely interesting. So much so that Eva’s fingers itched to touch them.
      She moistened her lips with the tip of her tongue. “I’m sorry I sent you outside for nothing.” Had it suddenly gotten hot in here again, or was it her imagination?
      “It wasn’t a completely wasted trip,” Finn assured briskly. “I brought some more wood over to the house and stored it in the garage.”
      “And then came in to burnt pizza for dinner!” Yes, it was most definitely hotter in here! Had become so the moment Finn came into the kitchen...
      He shrugged those broad shoulders. “Win some, lose some. We needed more wood anyway.”
      Eva moved away