Belle Calhoune - An Alaskan Christmas

Her son stood up and put his jacket on. Maggie reached down and zipped up his down coat. December in Alaska was frigid. Although Boston got cold, it couldn’t compare to this type of biting weather. She reached into her purse and pulled out her son’s hat. Before she could place it on Oliver, he’d moved away from her.

Maggie watched as he raced over to Finn. “What kind of car do you have?” Oliver asked, his face lit up with excitement. Her son seemed to have a sudden burst of energy. No doubt it was due to Finn.

Finn chuckled. “I drive an old truck. It’s pretty cool though since it belonged to my grandfather. I fixed it up and got it back in running condition. Guess what color it is?”

Oliver scrunched up his face. “Um...baby blue like a robin’s egg?”

“Nope. Not even close. It’s as red as Santa Claus’s suit.”

“Whoa,” Oliver exclaimed. “That must be awesome.”

Something told Maggie that Oliver was developing a pretty strong case of hero worship. He seemed to think everything about Finn was cool. Finn had sealed the deal by offering to take Oliver up in one of his planes. She felt a twinge of envy. Maggie couldn’t think of the last time Oliver thought she was the bee’s knees.

“I’m going to go outside and warm up the car so it’s not freezing inside. I’ll meet you guys out front in a few minutes,” Finn said. He held up his palm and Oliver high-fived him.

Maggie knew she should feel grateful for Finn’s offer to drive them to their new house rather than worrying about Oliver’s reaction to him. After all, Finn had already done his job by flying them to Love from Anchorage. She shivered as she watched her son’s gaze trailing after Finn. A fatherless boy would look for father figures anywhere and everywhere. She didn’t want Oliver to get any ideas about her childhood pal being his new daddy.

Finn. He’d sure grown up into an extremely good-looking man. She imagined he drew lots of interest from the females in town. Not that she was looking! Maggie had no interest in romance, which was ironic considering she was smack in the center of Operation Love territory. She was well aware of the program since she’d read the newspaper articles and seen the television shows highlighting Mayor Jasper Prescott’s matchmaking campaign.

Love, Alaska, was Maggie’s shot at redemption. God had blessed her by making her a mother. She owed Oliver a stable, loving home. It was her responsibility. Although her childhood buddy seemed like a nice guy, Maggie had no intention of getting fooled again by good looks and a smile. Romance wasn’t on her agenda.

Love had certainly made a fool of her in the past. It had cost Maggie so very much. Her peace of mind. Dignity. Her reputation. Sam had betrayed her and Oliver. Now, she was solely focused on her son and creating a safe, emotionally healthy world for him. His needs came first. Oliver might want a father, but Maggie definitely didn’t want a husband. She was determined to raise her son by herself and be both mother and father to him.

Maggie needed to keep her eyes on the prize. She had to focus on getting the shop ready for the grand opening and find a sitter for Oliver for the hours he wasn’t in school. A whole new world was opening up for them. Maggie wasn’t going to squander these opportunities.

Текст предоставлен ООО «ЛитРес».

Прочитайте эту книгу целиком, купив полную легальную версию на ЛитРес.

Безопасно оплатить книгу можно банковской картой Visa, MasterCard, Maestro, со счета мобильного телефона, с платежного терминала, в салоне МТС или Связной, через PayPal, WebMoney, Яндекс.Деньги, QIWI Кошелек, бонусными картами или другим удобным Вам способом.