More Than Cookies (The Maple Leaf Series) by Christine DePetrillo Read Free Book Online

off.
    “Alzheimer’s, right?” Sage dragged the chair over to the bed and sat, those long legs calling to Orion’s fingertips like nothing had ever called before.
    Closing his eyes to block out her legs, he said, “Actually, no. Brain damage. He nearly died about ten years ago when he was still a fisherman. Hit his head, fell into the water, got pulled out, was technically dead for a several minutes, then came back.” Orion scrubbed a hand over his face. “Only he didn’t come back the same. The accident basically reduced him to a six-year-old version of himself. Myah displays more mature thought and behavior. It’s getting worse as he gets older with a side order of dementia now.” He let out a breath, the beginnings of a headache assembling behind his eyes.
    “Have you seen your daughter recently?” Sage asked.
    Normally all these questions, all this chit-chat would have bugged the shit out of Orion, but he didn’t mind talking to Sage. Something about her appeared to genuinely care about his answers.
    Be careful.
    He pushed that warning aside. “Her mother is using Myah to hurt me.”
    “Pretty effective technique, isn’t it?”
    “Extremely. Every day that goes by without seeing Myah is like a roundhouse kick to the heart.”
    “Ouch. Kickboxing analogies are painful.” Sage rubbed her chest as if she’d been hit there. “Fortunately, the two batches of cookies you will be receiving will help soothe the ache.”
    “Are they really that good?” God, he hoped they were. So far nothing had managed to lift the dark cloud hanging over him without Myah in his life every day.
    “They are. Baker’s guarantee.” She held up her hand as if taking an oath.
    “You don’t have to make them. I can keep my dad quiet with Nutter Butters. He’ll forget about you making cookies.”
    “I want to make them, and trust me, once your father eats my maple peanut butter cookies, he won’t be forgetting them.” She arched an eyebrow. “Neither will you.”
     
     

Chapter Five
        
    Sage was about to move on to another topic after shamelessly flirting with the neither will you line she’d delivered. It had been beautifully executed, but she wasn’t feeling one ounce of the usual confidence that normally came after turning on the charm. In fact, her stomach was about as knotted as it’d ever been.
    What the hell?
    She was used to men being putty in her hands. She knew she could walk into Black Wolf Tavern on any given Saturday night and have her pick of any available guy in there. Assuming there had been any available guys in there she hadn’t already tried on for size.
    But Orion? Something about the quiet way he’d answered her questions about his father and his daughter touched her. A thread of… something was stitching a connection between her and this man and she liked that. Liked it a great deal.
    He’s still a mountain man type, her mind warned. He’s like every other Vermont guy you’ve dated.
    He was, but there was more to Orion Finley. She could sense it.
    She opened her mouth to continue asking questions, because he seemed to be in the mood to answer them, but her phone rang from the depths of her purse.
    “Excuse me a minute.” She rummaged around until her hand closed around her phone. After checking the screen, she said, “It’s my sister, Hope. I’ll be right back.”
    “Okay.” Orion folded his hands on his stomach and Sage made a mental note to ask about the missing part of his pinkie finger. She should have been revolted by that—the guy was missing the whole tip for crying out loud—but somehow it made him look a little rougher, a little more mountain man-ish.
    What is wrong with me?
    She scurried into the hallway and walked about three doors down from Orion’s. “What do you want?” she said into her phone.
    “Hello to you too, Sage. Why are we whispering?” Hope asked.
    “Whispering?” Sage rubbed her forehead. “I don’t know.” Was it because she didn’t want