Free Christmas Wishes and Mistletoe Kisses: A feel good Christmas romance novel by Jenny Hale

it with an air of satisfaction as if he thought it would impress her or something.
    “Horse racing?”
    “Yes. The odds are good, otherwise I wouldn’t bother.” When she didn’t respond, partly because she knew nothing about horse racing and partly because she’d always thought that there were better things to do with money than gamble it away, he added, “I’m also doing business. I’m meeting someone from New York about his corporation.”
    “So, instead of meeting at his office, you’re betting on horses?”
    “Yes.”
    Max needed new jeans. She’d bought some but she was saving them so that she could wrap them up and put them under the tree for Christmas because it would give him more to unwrap and she didn’t have enough money for both his clothes and Christmas presents. His current jeans barely grazed the tops of his ankles, and she was glad for the snow outside so he could wear his boots to school to cover him up. And here was Nick betting away his hard-earned money. “And if you lose?”
    “No big deal. It’s only a thousand.”
    “Dollars? A thousand dollars? For one bet?”
    He studied her for a moment while she tried unsuccessfully to hide what she was feeling and then—she could see it—realization sheeted over him. “It’s the price of business,” he said. “That’s just how things are done.”
    “And you don’t mind doing business that way?”
    “It doesn’t make a difference to me how I get it done as long as I get the signature on the dotted line.”
    “Don’t you think there are better uses for that thousand dollars?”
    “I consider it an investment toward a bigger bet. I’m trying to get someone to sell me his entire corporation. It will make me millions, and the thousand dollars is a blip on that scale.” He started toward the door but turned around. “Is there anything else you’ll require before I head out?”
    “Caroline said she’d love a visit.”
    He nodded and then walked past her through the door and into the hallway, leaving her standing there. In the silence that remained, she was still pondering the fact that he was going to bet all that money. In an attempt to refocus herself, she tried to recall the sound of the piano, and at that moment, she wished she could have Nick’s memory to remember it perfectly. But the betting on horses was still weighing on her.
    “Wait!” she called after him.
    He turned around.
    “What if you win? Then what?”
    He stood silent for a moment, pondering her question. “What would you like me to do with the winnings? You choose.”
    “If you win on the horse, I’d love you to donate your winnings to charity.”
    He smiled. “Okay. I promise. I’ll let you pick the charity.” With another smile and a wave, he headed down the hallway.
    Feeling pleased with her arrangement with Nick, she slipped her shoes off and set them on the bottom step before walking up the curving staircase to the second floor as she tried to get herself together. When she got to the top, she opened the door to the first bedroom, walked inside, and, still trying to recall the sound of the music, she opened her sketchpad and began drawing.
    She looked up, taking in the shadows of the room, the color of the walls, the way the fixtures reflected in the winter light. Then, with her hand moving as fast as Nick’s had on the piano keys, she sketched, long, gray lines, shading in at the edges. She drew a four-poster bed, stark linens, and romantic lighting. More sketching—tall dressers with rounded corners, and warm rugs to cover the cold hardwoods. Her pencil moved along the paper effortlessly as the ideas came to her. When she was finished, she looked at her creation, and was happy with what she’d drawn. Despite her initial frustration over the way Nick spent his money, his music had stayed with her and actually inspired her. She set her pad of paper down and walked the space, getting a good look at it from every angle.
    The next two bedrooms went