Christmas Wishes by Patricia Kiyono Read Free Book Online

wouldn’t be a problem. At least not anytime soon. Josh sat quietly in his spot, staring straight ahead. Apparently he wanted to avoid his brother’s fate.
    She wondered what it would take to get Martha Longton to attend all the rehearsals.
     
    ~ ~~~
     
    Mitch leaned over his computer keyboard and checked the copy on his advertisement for the local paper. Satisfied with his wording, he clicked to submit it. After having coffee with Sophie the previous week, he’d done some research on mini-sessions and had decided to give it a try. His first ad had appeared in Monday’s paper, and he’d already fielded at least half dozen calls about it. Four had resulted in bookings, enough to make it worth running a second ad. He could devote two evenings a week to doing mini-sessions from now through November and make a healthy profit. But he needed to stay away from Wednesday evenings. There was no way he’d chance showing up late to pick up Angie again. He double-checked his phone to make sure his reminder alarm was set. If his mother-in-law wanted to accuse him of being an unfit parent, he had no intention of giving her any ammunition.
    It had taken almost three months, but he was finally starting to feel comfortable in Zutphen. When he took Angie to the church, the people there had greeted him with welcoming smiles, especially those who’d had contact with his daughter. And it seemed each time he went into Zylstra’s, someone would recognize and greet him. Coming to rural west Michigan, his thought had been to escape the pain of his previous life. But now it seemed he’d found a home. A safe haven for him and his daughter.
    The thought made him smile. He ’d never been one for homespun sentiments, but maybe it was time for him to embrace them.
     

Chapter Seven
     
    Mitch tightened the knot on his tie. The action seemed symbolic of tightening a noose around his own throat. He had never thought he’d be going to another church service. Sending his daughter to Sunday School with the VandenBerg family was one thing, but attending a service with her was quite another. But for his little girl, he’d do almost anything, and she wanted to go to the Big Church with him on Sunday, so he’d agreed to go.
    Angie sat on his bed, dressed in a new outfit his mother had helped her pick out. Her hair was neatly combed, though he noticed the curls were somewhat uneven. She opened and closed her little purse to make sure she had everything she needed. He wasn ’t sure what a six-year-old would need for a church service, but he knew her two grandmas would have instructed her.
    “ Are you almost ready, Daddy?” she asked. “Jennie says it starts at nine o’clock.”
    “ I’m almost ready, sweetheart, and we’re not going to be late. The church is only ten minutes away.”
    “ Sunday School is after church. There’s four other girls from my class at school. And there’s no boys, so it’s more fun.”
    Mitch held in his laughter. Her views on boys would change soon enough. For now, her distaste for boys was good.
    “Miss Sophie is going to work on our Christmas Pageant songs with us during the first part of Sunday School. She’s so pretty. I think she’s the prettiest lady in the whole world.”
    “ Mmm.” He wasn’t inclined to disagree.
    “ Daddy?”
    “ What, sweetheart?”
    “ Your tie looks funny.”
    He looked in the mirror. He ’d triple-knotted, and the resulting knot was twice as large as it needed to be. He sighed and unwound the fabric so he could start over.
     
    ~~~~
     
    The little church looked like it belonged on a postcard. Set on the western edge of Zutphen, it held bragging rights as the highest point in town, thanks to its gleaming white steeple. The building was actually much bigger than it looked at first sight, due to modern additions off to the side and the back of the church, but they didn’t detract from the storybook impression it made to passersby.
    As Mitch pulled into the parking lot , his