Mistletoe and Holly by Janet Dailey Read Free Book Online Page B

good bet.” A smile was tugging at the corners of his mouth.
    “Why?” Curious, Leslie tipped her head to the side, not following his meaning.
    “It’s rather obvious.” There was a wicked glint in his blue eyes, dancing and mischievous. “If a man took a notion to chase a girl with a broken leg around the desk, it’s a sure thing that she couldn’t run very far or very fast.”
    She had a sudden vision of that scene with Tagg as the pursuer. Her heart seemed to do a funny little somersault against her ribs. The breath she drew in became lodged in her throat, making it difficult to laugh off his little scenario.
    “Why would he want to chase her?” Holly frowned in bewilderment.
    “To catch her, of course.” He reached out and rumpled the top of his daughter’s head, then his gaze swung back to Leslie with veiled intensity. “That’s why every man chases a woman—and vice versa.”
    There was a message in his remark, a statement of his interest in her. It quivered through her nerve endings, but it was accompanied by little fingerlings of personal doubt. She didn’t want to rush into something, only to discover she was in over herhead. In her experience, it had proved wiser to test the water by stages and not jump in.
    “What happens when he catches her?” Holly’s curiosity was thoroughly aroused.
    “That, little lady, is something you’ll discover for yourself when you’re older,” Tagg dodged the question. “That’s part of the fun of growing up.”
    Holly turned to Leslie, a somewhat bored look on her face. “I’ll bet he kisses her. Bobby Jenkins is always trying to kiss me.”
    There was a second of stunned silence as their glances met above Holly’s dark head. Tagg couldn’t keep a short laugh from escaping his throat. “When I was her age, I was putting spiders down Lucy Vining’s dress. They grow up quick nowadays.”
    The conversation shifted to less provocative topics. A half an hour later, Leslie had finished her cocoa and made excuses to leave. Tagg accompanied her the short distance to her aunt’s house. A fine film of snow had collected on the steps, just enough to make the footing slippery, but it had stopped snowing.
    With a crutch propping the storm door open, Leslie rested her weight on her good leg and one crutch and turned to thank Tagg for seeing her safely home. He was standing on the next to the top step.
    “Thanks to you, I made it without one slip.” She smiled.
    “We’ll be putting the tree up Sunday afternoon. Why don’t you come over and help us?” he suggested.
    “No thanks,” Leslie refused with a quick shake of her head.
    “You don’t believe in Santa Claus and you don’t believe in decorating Christmas trees.” He shook his head at her in mock dismay.
    “I just don’t like anything associated with Christmas period,” she admitted without apology. “There’s nothing ‘merry’ about it.”
    “You’re too young to be such a cynic,” Tagg declared and stepped down a step. “I’m going to have to have a talk with Santa Claus.”
    “Sure,” she laughed without humor. “And his flying reindeer, too.” She pushed the inner door open and hopped inside before the storm door banged shut on her.
    “Leslie?! Is that you?” Her aunt called from the living room.
    “Yes, it’s me. I’m back!” She balanced on her crutches and began taking off the layers of outer garments she’d worn for warmth.
    Footsteps approached the kitchen in advance of her aunt’s arrival. “I thought I heard the car drive in some time ago. Are you just getting back?”
    “No. That was probably us you heard,” Lesliesaid and hopped over to a chair so she could take her snow boot off. “Tagg invited me in for cocoa.”
    An eyebrow was lifted at the ease with which she used his given name, but Patsy Evans made no comment on that. “Did you enjoy yourself?”
    She thought about it a minute, then nodded. “Yes, I enjoyed myself.” Oddly enough, it had been more fun