Holiday Affair by Annie Seaton Read Free Book Online Page A

her new neighbor? The coincidences were staggering at best.
    She groaned and fought to pull herself together. How typical. It proved to her once again that she could not trust physical attraction under the moonlight. Not only was he a liar, he was going to be her new boss! And on top of that, he was the one with the final say in her promotion.
    You can kiss that good-bye, Dr. McIntyre.

    Gas heaters lined the wall to ward off the New England chill and Lissy moved to the dark end of the table, away from the heat. Sitting down, she watched Nick hugging his mother at the other end of the table.
    I know how good those arms feel. Closing her eyes, she remembered the feel of Nick’s arms holding her close.
    Had that really happened only a couple nights ago?
    Lissy was hot, despite the chill in the air, and her heart was pumping hard and fast. She still felt light-headed.
    Reaching for the carafe of water, she poured herself a glass, the ice cubes tinkling as her hands shook. She was so angry at his lack of acknowledgement that they’d met in the islands, she felt as though sparks should be jumping from her. Typical male, she thought.
    “Are you all right, Melissa? I hope my family hasn’t overwhelmed you?” Tom looked concerned as he sat next to her. She saw Nick watching from the other end of the table and she deliberately reached up and put her hand up to Tom’s face tenderly. She spoke softly. “It’s absolutely wonderful. Being an only child, I’ve never been part of such a wonderful family celebration before.” He looked surprised and happy at her touch on his face. He put his hand over hers. “I hope this is the first of many visits.”
    When Lissy looked down the table and saw the aloof look on Nick’s face, she felt guilty for leading Tom on. He was too good and honest a person, and he didn’t deserve that sort of treatment. She was going to have to cut ties with this family to save her sanity. Her feelings in chaos, she longed for the evening to be over so she could escape.
    “What do you specialize in at the university, Melissa?” Nick had moved down the table and had taken a chair in between two of his sisters, across from Lissy and Tom.
    “Pacific history,” she said. She put her head down and fiddled with her hair clip.
    “Interesting. You don’t look like a girl who would know anything about history. Glorious hair, by the way.
    I hope my brother has told you how ravishing you look this evening. What a fabulous suntan.” His eyes blatantly ran over her with a smoldering male approval completely different from the gentle way he had looked at her only a couple of nights before. Lissy froze, frightened she would lose control and make a rude comment, but Tessa rescued her.
    “Dom, stop teasing. You and Alex are incorrigible.
    No wonder poor Tom rarely brings anyone home. Behave while I retrieve your father from the study. He’s so immersed in his new book, that he hasn’t even heard Dom arrive.”
    Nick reached back and gave his mother another kiss on the cheek as she walked past.
    “It’s okay, Mama. Melissa and I will get to know each other at the university. I’m sure she’ll get used to me.” Lissy looked across at him and saw his eyes glittering with a promise of things to come.

    It seemed to Lissy that the night went on forever. She met Professor Richards senior, who had been firmly ensconced in his study through all the excitement of Nick arriving, and had sat bemused as a procession of aunts, uncles, cousins and neighbors dropped in to greet Nick. Word had spread that the Pacific adventurer was home. Lissy met so many people, her head spun and the effort of keeping calm and friendly was making her ill. All night she was conscious of Nick’s simmering mood. She had learned to read him so well in such a short time. She sat quietly, and only spoke when someone included her in a conversation.
    Not only had he left her that final morning on Hamilton Island without so much as a good-bye or