Santa (Maybe): A Rom Com Novella Read Online Free Page B

talk about it.”
    “Nothing happened.”
    Something most certainly had happened. She’d acted like a pathetic , desperately lonely idiot. She should get up. Maybe he’d take the hint and leave. Mark reached across and touched her cheek.
    “You look like hell!”
    This unexpected insult made Madeleine laugh. She jumped out of bed and fled to the bathroom.
    Mark was right, she did look like hell. She camped out in the bathroom as long as possible, hoping to hear the front door open and shut behind him. Instead, she heard rattling downstairs in the kitchen.
    Then , the unthinkable happened. The doorbell rang. The doorbell ringing at 10 o’clock on a Saturday morning could mean only one thing. It would be Chad on the doorstep, claiming that Emily had forgotten something so essential that he had to invade the only scrap of alone-time she ever got.
    Madeleine suspected that these little excursions to retrieve forgotten items rarely originated with Emily . Chad might value his freedom to sleep with whoever he wanted, whenever he wanted, but he wasn’t too keen on Madeleine doing the same.
    Mark was downstairs in the kitchen. Chad would put two and two together and make seven. And Mark was still wearing that ridiculous Santa beard. He looked like a weirdo. A hot weirdo, but a weirdo never-the-less.
    Please don’t answer the door, she silently begged as she raced toward the stairs. Please, please, please don’t answer the door.
    She was too late. Mark was opening the door. Sure enough , it was Chad. At least he was alone. Emily must be waiting in the car with Carmen, Chad’s latest girl-friend.
    “Hi,” Mark was saying.
    Chad appeared speechless. Madeleine had never seen a speechless Chad.
    “How can I help you?” Mark tried again.
    “Uh—I ah—I mean I just—“
    Madeleine interrupted this gratifying display of confusion.
    “Hello, Chad.”
    “Hello, Maddy.”
    Chad always called her Maddy. Madeleine hated the nickname. How had she never gotten around to telling him so?
    “I expect you’re here to get something for Emily.”
    “Uh—“
    “Well, come in.”
    Madeleine was finding this a lot more fun than she’d expected.
    “I’d better check on my eggs,” said Mark.
    Eggs. Mark was making breakfast. In all their years together, Chad had never once cooked breakfast for her.
    Chad came inside and stood there .
    “What did Emily forget?”
    “Oh, her plaid coat ,” Chad said, but made no move to take the little pink and green plaid coat in question off the hall coat-tree. “Maddy, who is that?”
    “Oh, that’s Mark ,” Madeleine answered.
    “No, I don’t care what his name is. I mean : Who is he?”
    “Some bum I picked up down by the tracks. He’s amazing. He’s so good in bed that I almost forgot about his highly contagious and potentially disfiguring STD. He tells me he’s wanted by the FBI, but I expect that it’s all just a little misunderstanding.”
    “OK, OK!” Chad was holding up his hands as if to defend himself from a frontal attack. Chad had never appreciated Madeleine’s sense of humor.
    “Well, ask a stupid question—“
    “It’s not a stupid question. My daughter lives here. In case you’ve forgotten.”
    Madeleine lost it.
    “ You are unbelievable! How many overnight guests have you had in the last six months?  Mark is the first man who’s spent the night, well—since you moved out! And Emily is not even here, in case you hadn’t noticed. I can’t believe you’re standing here lecturing me on—“
    “Women have to be more careful. There are a lot of creeps out there.”
    Madeleine wanted to pick up the umbrella stand and break it over his head.
    “You’re right. There are a lot of creeps out there . And you know what? The biggest creep I know is standing right in front of me.”
    Chad laughed. He’d always said it turned him on to see her angry. Knowing this made Madeleine even angrier.
    “Get out! Take the jacket and leave!”
    Chad was still laughing. He