Read 01_The Best Gift for Free Online

Blake’s kind of a loner, and he’s so used to relying only on himself that I just don’t think he’s willing to put his life in anyone else’s hands. Even God’s.”
    A.J. looked over at the tall, dark-haired man deep in conversation with a customer. He was angled slightly away from her, and she had a good view of his profile— strong chin, well-shaped nose, nicely formed lips. Self-reliance was a good thing in moderation. A.J. knew that from personal experience. But she couldn’t imagine taking it to such an extreme that she shut other people out of her life. Especially God. It would be a very empty existence.
    Suddenly Blake glanced at her, almost as if he knew she was watching him. Their gazes met, and whatever he saw in hers—curiosity, sympathy, or a combination of both—brought a frown to his face. She responded with a smile. And even though he didn’t physically move, she felt almost as if he’d taken a step back. And posted a sign saying Private. No Trespassing.
    A.J. didn’t really care if he kept his distance. Their relationship was destined to be short-lived, anyway. But she wasn’t used to having her gestures of friendship so openly rebuffed. She turned back to find Nancy watching the exchange.
    “Blake doesn’t let too many people get close,” Nancy noted. “Even I don’t know much about his background, and we’ve worked together for almost two years.”
    A.J. shrugged. “I respect people’s privacy. If he wants to shut people out, it doesn’t matter to me.”
    But as she headed to the back room to check the new inventory, she realized that her answer hadn’t been quite honest. Because in that brief, unguarded moment, before his barriers had slipped back into place, she’d glimpsed in Blake’s eyes a stark loneliness that had touched her deep inside.
    And even though they were practically strangers, even though he clearly resented her presence at Turning Leaves, even though he disapproved of almost everything she did, that loneliness troubled her. More than she cared to admit.
    And she had no idea why.
     
     
    “So…what do you think?”
    Blake had only been gone from the shop for four days. Just a quick trip to Cincinnati to compete in a triathlon over Thanksgiving weekend. But if he’d been gone three weeks, the shop couldn’t have changed more dramatically.
    He stood rooted just inside the door of the office, trying to absorb the changes that had been wrought in his absence. Gone was the table of featured books and the greeting card rack that had been just inside the display window on the left. Now the four chairs from the reading nook were arranged there, and a low, square table that he didn’t recognize was placed in front of them, with a small pot of copper-colored chrysanthemums in the center. Two chairs were on one side of the table, facing the window, with the others at right angles on the adjacent two sides. A couple of the chairs were occupied, and one of the patrons was helping himself to a cup of coffee from the coffee and tea maker that had also been moved to the front of the shop. Blake recognized him as a regular, though not someone who usually bought much.
    “Well?” A.J. prompted.
    Slowly, Blake turned to his partner. Her eyes were sparkling with excitement, but he could also sense some trepidation. She knew him well enough even after only a couple of weeks to realize that he didn’t like sudden, unplanned changes.
    “What happened to the display table? And the cards?”
    “The table’s in the back room. I moved the cards closer to the checkout counter.” She gestured over her shoulder.
    He planted his fists on his hips and studied the new arrangement. It was attractive enough. But it changed the dynamics of the shop entirely. And it definitely cut down on display space.
    “What did you do with the old reading nook?”
    “Come see.”
    She led him to the back corner, which had been transformed into a small enclosure complete with blocks, vinyl books and