Free Unbreakable by Rachel Hanna Page A

enough for a down payment on a ranch of his own.”
    “I see.” Sophie considered this new knowledge thoughtfully. “I think I understand what you’re getting at, Uncle Philip. You want me to show Miller how to loosen up and have a bit of fun before he goes off to the army. So he can look back and not regret having missed out on his crazy teen bit, so to speak. Though in his case crazy is probably pretty tame, all things considered.”
    “You’re a smart girl, Sophie.”
    “Of course, no doubt you’re hoping some of his maturity will rub off on me in the process, isn’t that right?” She stared at him pointedly and he laughed.
    “Like I said, Sophie, you’re a smart girl.”
    “Well don’t get your hopes up about the latter part of your plan. However…” she paused while considering, “I don’t see why I couldn’t help Miller to have a bit more fun.”
    “I’m pleased to hear that. Shall we head indoors now? I’m sure Kay has something positively mouthwatering waiting for us inside.”
    Sophie grinned. “You read my mind.”
     
     

Chapter Six
     
    She should have felt exhausted. After all, she’d risen an hour and a half earlier than she normally did but she wanted things to go well and to be honest she was too excited to sleep. She studied the image of the cookies in one of Kay’s cookbooks, sizing it up as if it were a worthy adversary – which, in a sense, it was. You’re going to come out perfectly first time , she vowed to the image, not letting any sense of self-doubt dissuade her as she began to carefully measure ingredients. Making sure she was following the recipe instructions exactly, she cut the cookie dough into various festive shapes before placing them in the oven and checking the time.
    While they baked, she got started with her breakfast preparations, pausing when the cookies were ready to be removed from the oven. Holding her breath, she slid the baking tray out and placed it on the stove top, surveying her creations and then glancing back to the image in the cookbook. They looked like the ones in the book but she didn’t want to get her hopes up too much. Placing them on a wire cooling rack, she returned to her breakfast preparation. She’d decided to make pancakes with a range of topping options as well as bacon, eggs, mushrooms and toast, all things that she knew her aunt and uncle liked.
    Once everything was chopped, mixed and placed in pans ready to be cooked, she turned back to the cookies which were cool by now. Lifting one, she took a tentative bite, chewing slowly and thoughtfully before swallowing as a grin spread across her face. They actually tasted good, and that was even without the decoration! Pleased and relieved, she got to work decorating the cookies with icing and chocolate buttons before placing them in the fridge. Returning to breakfast, she got things cooking and then prepared her cookie packets. She’d managed to find some old parcel ribbons in the decoration box which she was going to tie around the plastic packets she would place the cookies in. Sitting at the kitchen table, she wrote out a little nametag and Christmas message for each packet, frequently checking on breakfast to make sure nothing was burning.
    Setting out juice, coffee and tea on the table, she served up the breakfast food and then put the plates in the oven to keep warm while she filled the packets with cookies. Placing the packets in a cupboard out of sight, she took a seat and sipped a mug of tea while she waited for noises from upstairs. Glancing at her watch, she knew she didn’t have long to wait and sure enough, a few minutes later noises could be heard as her uncle and aunt rose at the same time they had done every day for many years and got themselves ready before heading downstairs. Retrieving the plates from the oven, Sophie checked everything was as it should be on the table before standing next to the counter to wait for them.
    Her aunt was the first one into the kitchen