A Fairytale Christmas by Susan Meier Page A

inches of snow had accumulated since her arrival and the storm was just getting started. She’d be driving down a mountain road in a foot of snow tonight.
    The protective bubble in his chest tightened. He had to at least offer her the opportunity to stay nights. If he intended to work her fourteen hours a day he had to for once forget about his own fears and think about hers.
     
    Because Claire had taken an overly long nap that afternoon, Gwen brought her to the supper table that night. As she sat, Drew peered over at her precious baby. He let his gaze linger on the little girl, as if taking in every detail about her, maybe growing accustomed to her. Then he turned his attention to Brody, talking about the stand they’d helped Max rebuild.
    Gwen happily let the conversation steer itself totally away from her. After the sled ride, then the look he’d given her overthe Christmas tree conversation, she knew they’d be better off ignoring each other.
    When dinner was eaten, she got up from the table and started the dishes. Brody excused himself for his room, and as he left for the office Drew reminded her that they again had to work that night.
    After the dishes were done, she lifted Claire’s carrier and headed off to join him. As she stepped inside the office Drew was deep in concentration, reading a document. She settled Claire in the swing.
    “Will she be okay?”
    His question startled her, but didn’t surprise her. She’d caught him staring at Claire at dinner and knew he wasn’t complaining as much as acknowledging that he was okay with her being here.
    “As long as she can see me she’s fine.”
    Drew set the contract he was reading back on his desk, scrubbed his hand across his face as if wrestling with himself about something, then said, “That’s going to be hard when you get a real job.”
    She frowned. That was a weird comment. Especially since he’d barely ever asked her anything about herself. Their last discussion about something personal about her had been when she’d told him about Gill.
    Still, she couldn’t ignore him. “I’m not getting a real job for a while. Once this assignment is over I’m taking the money I earn here and using it to support us while I finish my degree.”
    He sat forward on his chair. “You’re that close?”
    She nodded and smiled. It felt good to have a real plan, not just a dream or a hope or a wish. “I got pregnant the next-to-last semester of college. I finished that semester, but not thelast. So I have to take some classes, but mostly I’ll be student teaching.”
    His eyes lit. “You’re going to be a teacher?”
    “Yep. So for the next four months, when I’m not teaching or taking a class, I’ll be with Claire. But I’ll also be away from her enough that I’m hoping she’ll adjust to daycare before she has to be there for eight-hour days.”
    He smiled. “You have it all thought out.”
    “I have to. I can’t leave anything to chance.”
    “I guess.” He fiddled with the pencil he was holding, then caught her gaze again. “Speaking of chance…is there any chance you’d consider sleeping here at nights?” His face reddened endearingly. “I said that wrong. Everything has changed since I decided to open the Christmas tree farm. You’re working eight hours in the house during the day and four hours with me at night.” He rubbed his hand along the back of his neck. “I worry about you driving down the mountain.”
    The warm, fuzzy feeling in the pit of her stomach returned. He worried about her—
    She stopped her thoughts. To her dreamy schoolgirl side that might seem wonderful, but it wasn’t smart for two attracted people who were beginning to care about each other to sleep in the same house. He had to know that as much as she did.
    She peered over at him.
    He held her gaze. “Okay, since the episode on the sled outed both of us, I think it’s time for us to be honest.” He paused, sucked in a breath. “We’re very attracted to