Holiday Bound Read Free

assistant to the most seasoned attorney, swooned a bit when Mitchell was near. He reminded Angeline of some combination of Richard Gere and Sean Connery. He didn’t have a Scottish accent, of course, but Mitchell was every bit as smooth as Connery’s portrayal of 007.
    Angeline had grown up on a farm, the daughter of Greek immigrants. Truth be told, she felt proud to know that a man like Mitchell—a man who practically exuded class and sophistication—found her attractive.
    Or did he ? She’d wondered repeatedly about Mitchell’s apparent lack of interest in getting her into bed.
    No. She wouldn’t believe Alex. Mitchell’s son was clearly hostile. Because he had such an abysmal relationship with his father, he wanted her to doubt her new relationship with Mitchell, as well.
    What had she done in a past life to warrant spending Christmas with such a terse, nasty individual?
    There were no Christmas decorations, Angeline noticed as she glanced around the dim room. The only exception to the Spartan furnishings was several woodcarvings on the timber mantel. She couldn’t quite make out the figures in the deep light, but she guessed they were carvings of animals.
    Alex had picked up a flannel work shirt off a hook in the entry way and slung it on carelessly without buttoning it before he’d gone to work lighting the second kerosene lamp and adding wood to the dying fire. He hadn’t uttered a single word to her in the past several minutes, and his lack of manners was starting to grate on Angeline’s nerves.
    “You never answered me. About your father. Has he called?”
    He turned his head, the licking flames casting his hard profile in an orangish-red glow.
    “No. Did you expect him to?”
    She made a disbelieving sound. “Well… yeah . You did know your father and I were supposed to be staying at your ski resort for Christmas, right?”
    “He might have said something about it,” Alex mumbled, turning back to his task.
    “Well then?”
    He sighed and shoved the poker back into the holder. The metal clanged jarringly in the still, cold room. “How long have you been dating Mitchell?”
    “Two months,” she said slowly, a little taken aback that he called his father by his first name.
    “You’re an attorney at Littleton, Marks and Carradine, isn’t that right?”
    “That’s right.”
    “Don’t you think that’s a little unethical? For my father to be dating a young, impressionable female who’s under his employ?”
    “I’m not that green, Alex.”
    “Is that right?”
    She stiffened at the low, rough quality of his voice. She blinked, breaking his palpable stare.
    “I don’t work directly for Mitchell. I work in mergers and acquisitions, under Mr. Littleton.”
    She took a step back when he stood. In the few minutes while he’d been kneeling, she’d forgotten how intimidating he was. Not that she was afraid of his size. Not exactly. At five-foot-ten, she rarely felt cowed by a man’s size. Alex Carradine just made quite an impact, that’s all. Angeline couldn’t describe exactly what that impact was on her, but she sensed it nonetheless. It felt like some kind of internal pressure in her chest and lower belly.
    “If you’re so wise in the ways of the world, you must realize by now that while my father excels at making promises, his true expertise is in breaking them. When he said he’d meet you up here, surely you knew there was a good chance he’d call it off?”
    Heat rushed into her cheeks despite the increasing chill in the room. Alex’s sharp sarcasm hurt all the more because there was an element of truth to what he said. Mitchell did frequently cancel dates. Still…there was always a damn good reason for his last-minute cancellations.
    “Your father has a very demanding job. Becoming a name partner at his age at the largest, most prestigious firm in Chicago is no small feat. And as for tonight…” she nodded pointedly at the window where she could just make out the frantic