Dream Keeper by Gail McFarland Read Free Book Online

but it grew wider and more inviting when his eyes fell on his wife. Shifting his hips and broad shoulders, he shoved a hand into his pocket and waited.
    Marlea pressed two fingers to her lip and AJ’s smile grew casual and sexy. “Kids.”
    “You didn’t hear them?” Jeannette grunted when Connie’s elbow nudged her.
    “It’s Christmas, you’re supposed to hear kids,” Dench said, his eyes collecting a suddenly blushing Rissa. “I guess they’re excited.”
    “And they’re not the only ones,” Marlea muttered. Connie and Jeannette watched Dench watch his wife and hid smiles behind their hands. “Yeah,” Marlea finished. “Kids.”
    Dench nodded as if the one word answered all his questions. “You want to help me grab the tree, AJ?” Opening the French doors leading to the terrace, Dench led the way into the cold night and, between them, Dench and AJ hauled the twelve-foot spruce into the house while Rissa signaled the other three women to follow her down the hall.
    “Guess you’re glad to have Dench home, huh?”
    “Always. This big house is lonely when he’s away.” Rissa’s hand seemed to tremble slightly when she reached for the wall panel.
    “How about that big bed?” Jeannette danced away from Connie’s swatting hand.
    “You need to stay out of grown folks’ business.” A quick and delicate flush blossomed along the column of Rissa’s throat and climbed to her cheeks.
    “Guess she told you.” Connie folded her arms and looked totally self-righteous.
    Turning, Rissa opened a closet door and hauled out a series of marked boxes. “Okay, now these are the special decorations, the ones my mother gave me from when AJ and I were growing up, so we have to be careful.”
    “Yeah, ’cause they’re old,” Marlea whispered a little too loudly. The nurses snickered.
    Rissa didn’t miss a beat. “No, those were the ones she gave to you and AJ—from his childhood. These are newer—from my childhood.” She cheerfully placed a box in Marlea’s hands and ignored her when she stuck out her tongue. Connie and Jeannette looked at each other, snickered again and stepped back as Rissa led the way back down the hall.
    Humming “Jingle Bells,” Jeannette set her box down and looked toward the kitchen, sniffing. “Those cookies sure smell good.”
    “Forget about ’em, you’ve tortured those children enough for one night.” Connie opened a box labeled LIGHTS . “What you need to do is sit your Santa-slandering, cookie-lovin’ self down and help me untangle these lights.”
    Chastened, Jeannette dropped her chubby body to the floor beside her friend.
    “So that leaves you to help me grab the other stuff from the library.” Rissa gave Marlea a nudge with her hip when the door to the garage opened and closed again. Dench and AJ emerged with ladders over their shoulders.
    Turning quickly, Marlea managed to hook her arm through Rissa’s, towing her down the hall. “So, what did he say when you told him?”
    “I haven’t told him yet, so you haven’t won.”
    “Uh-huh, I saw how he looked at you, how he keeps looking at you. What happened? He got through the door, you got him in bed, and then you told him, didn’t you? I mean, you have every right…but we had a bet.”
    “I didn’t tell him, okay?” Refusing to face her, Rissa grabbed bags and loaded Marlea’s arms. “Take them and go,” she ordered, relieved when Marlea went. Following, trying to hum along with the music filling her house, Rissa prayed for an interruption, something to get Marlea off her trail.
    “Raydeer claw!” Nia charged into the living room with Mrs. Baldwin in pursuit. “Raydeer claw!”
    High on ladders, Dench and AJ looked down. “What is she saying?”
    “Dude, that’s your daughter.”
    AJ sent a dark look at Dench, then watched his happy daughter wade through a swath of tinsel toward her mother. “Raydeer claw, Mama!” Holding a frosted cookie in each hand, she graciously offered one to her