Harlequin Holiday Collection - Four Classic Seasonal Novellas

should do in favor of what she wanted—to be here, right now, with David and Kristie.
    Just for today.

Chapter Nine
    David eased the boat toward the dock, watching Allison’s relaxed expression harden. Her cares were a visible weight, making his Ally into the brittle, determined woman she’d become.
    “Thank you.” Her voice surprised him with its softness. “I guess you were right. We both needed this.”
    “A little relaxation never hurt anyone.” He had to keep it light, or he’d give in to the longing to try and take her cares away permanently, and that was beyond him.
    He nodded toward the dock. “You’d better get ready. Looks like they’ve sent out the big guns.”
    “What are you talking about?”
    “Gran’s waiting for us. My loving interfering family thinks you should stay for supper. Nobody ever refuses Gran.”
    “I can’t. I have to go home and get some work done.”
    He shrugged. “Don’t tell me. Tell Gran.”
    He busied himself tying the boat while Ally and his grandmother skirmished. The result was predictable.

    “Have another piece of key lime pie,” his mother urged.
    Allison shook her head. “I couldn’t possibly.”
    They’d had dessert and coffee in the living room, watching as his sister Miranda and her boy, Sammy, lured Kristie into making Christmas tree ornaments out of shells. Kristie, shy at first, had thawed under the flow of warmth from his family.
    Ally had, too, but she was fighting it. “I really have to go home and get some work done,” she said for the third time.
    “No need to hurry off.” His father stretched long legs out toward the fire. “If David’s not giving you enough help, you say the word and I’ll bring Daniel and Theo over to work.”
    Allison looked a little overwhelmed at the thought of all those Caldwell men in her small cottage. “Thanks, but we’re doing fine. I do need to get Kristie home before she falls asleep.”
    “I’m awake.” Kristie’s words were interrupted by a yawn.
    David grinned and got up. “I’ll drive you.”
    Daniel and Theo embarked on a mock battle over who got to carry Kristie to the car that had the child giggling. David’s mother shoved a plate of pie into Allison’s hands.
    “Come again tomorrow,” she urged. “Or if you can’t do that, at least promise you’ll spend Christmas Eve with us.”
    Ally evaded the invitation politely, and they finally escaped the clutch of family. David paused for a moment on the porch, waiting while Theo put Kristie in the backseat.
    “Do you remember telling me once you wanted a family like mine?” He looked at Allison, laughter in his voice.
    “I remember.” For an instant, unguarded longing shone in her eyes.
    David’s heart clenched. Was that what she’d tried to have with Richard?
    And after a failure like that, would she ever be willing to try again?

Chapter Ten
    What on earth had gotten into her? Allison stared at live oaks draped with Spanish moss as David drove them back to the cottage. She’d practically agreed to spend Christmas with the Caldwells.
    She was as drawn to their warmth now as she had been years ago, when she’d seen the contrast with her cold, barren home life. But now she had Kristie and her own independence to hold on to.
    The car pulled up to the cottage. She’d left lights on, and they showed yellow and welcoming through the new curtains.
    “It looks like home,” he said lightly.
    “Yes.” She shook off the tempting thought. “I’m afraid our apartment in Atlanta isn’t quite so cozy.”
    “How soon will you go?” He sounded as if it mattered.
    “I promised Kristie we’d stay until her surgery. Mid-January.” She glanced toward the backseat. “She’s asleep.”
    “I’ll get her.”
    He was lifting Kristie before Allison could get out. Having David around didn’t do her drive for independence a lot of good. She opened the front door and nodded toward the couch.
    “Just put her there. I’ll take her up in a bit.”
    David settled Kristie on the couch, tucking the afghan around her gently. He smoothed her tousled hair. “What a sweetheart she is.”
    There was a lump in her throat the size of a baseball. He saw the beauty in Kristie that her own father had never discerned.
    “Yes. I wish—” She wished so much for her child.
    “She’s going to be fine.”
    “Yes.” She had to believe that. She cleared her throat. “Thank you, David. For everything.” She held the door open.
    He started through, then