Read A Fortune's Children's Christmas for Free Online

fellow, he’s still helping you out?” her father asked.
    “I’m still at his house, but I think I can go home today or tomorrow. If not, you can reach me here,” Lesley added, rattling off the telephone number. They talked a few more minutes about the holidays and relatives and Angela’s future before hanging up, then Lesley called her sister and left a message on Janie’s answering machine.
    She’d hung up and was hobbling back to the bedroom when the phone jangled. Thinking her mother had decided to call back, she hiked her way back to the kitchen and snagged the receiver on the fourth ring just as Chase appeared on the back porch.
    “Hello?” she said, smiling, as she watched Chase shake the snow from his jacket and hat.
    “Oh…hello,” a woman said. She sounded young and a little put off, as if she hadn’t been expecting to hear Lesley’s voice. Foolishly, Lesley’s heart sank. “This is Kelly Sinclair. I’m trying to reach Chase Fortune.”
    “He’s right here,” Lesley replied, surprised at the knot of disappointment in her stomach. Chase shouldered open the door and gave the room a quick once-over. “The power’s on.”
    “Finally.” She held the telephone toward him and forced a smile she didn’t feel. “It’s Kelly.”
    His eyebrows elevated. “Who?”
    “Kelly Sinclair.”
    “Oh. Good.” His demeanor changed instantly. The hardworking, abrupt cowboy switched into an even-tempered man. He took the receiver and grinned. “Merry Christmas—well, it’s a little late, but we’ve been snowed under. Suppose you heard.”
    Angela started to cry, and rather than eavesdrop on Chase’s private conversation, Lesley started for the bedroom.
    “Hey, wait. I’ll help you,” he said, but Lesley’s spine stiffened. She wasn’t going to depend upon him.
    “I’m okay,” she said over her shoulder as the baby’s cries got louder.
    “You’re sure…what?” he said into the telephone again. “Oh, no. Just the neighbor. Yeah, we had a little trouble here over the holidays.”
    Just the neighbor. Lesley’s teeth clenched so hard her jaw ached. She gripped the cane even harder. Of course she was just his neighbor. What more did she expect? Sure they’d been trapped together for four days and in that time she’d seen through Chase’s hard facade to the gentler man behind his brooding eyes and harsh expression. Though he’d avoided holding Angela, he’d been concerned for her well-being. He’d made sure that Lesley was recovering and she’d noticed that he’d slipped his old dog scraps from the table and watched him absently rub his ears. His concern for his newly acquired herd seemed to run deeper than a simple worry about profit and loss. Deep inside, Chase Fortune probably had a heart of pure gold; he just did a darned good job of hiding it.
    Angela, red-faced, tiny fists clenched near her head, was screaming at the top of her lungs. “Shh. It’s all right. I’m here,” Lesley insisted, picking up her daughter, dropping onto the bed and immediately un-buttoning her nightgown. As the baby suckled hungrily, she closed her eyes and couldn’t help overhear part of Chase’s conversation.
    “…as well as can be expected…yeah, that was an obstacle I hadn’t counted on, but we’re okay.” Adeep, rumbling chuckle. “I know, I know. The situation is only temporary, trust me…. Yeah, I know. I’ve got more than my share of work cut out for me. I don’t have time for any distractions.” There was a familiar tone to his voice, an intimate teasing quality that twisted Lesley’s heart. Whoever Kelly Sinclair was, she was obviously very important in Chase’s life.
    “I think we’ve overstayed our welcome,” Lesley whispered softly to her daughter, and dismissed the foolish pang of pain that seared her heart. “We should think about going home.” It was time to give him his life back and get on with her own.
     
    “I’ll keep in touch,” Chase promised Kate, who had