Twelve Days of Christmas Read Online Free

other, then handed Cain his coffee.
    “I’ll pay for my own coffee,” Cain reiterated, and slapped the money down on the counter.
    “Okay, if you insist. I’m just really sorry for disturbing your peaceful evening with my cheerful Christmas music.” A lie if there ever was one.
    He walked past her and was out the door a moment later.
    Interested in what Phil could tell her, Julia leaned forward as soon as she reached the counter. “Does that guy come in here often?”
    “Most every morning. He always orders the same thing. Never says much.”
    “That’s what I thought.” Not exactly a surprise or the kind of info she was looking for. “Do you know anything else about him?”
    “Not really,” Phil said. “He never talks to me or anyone else that I’ve seen.”
    Julia assumed as much. She placed her order and then paid for Cain’s coffee for the following morning in the form of a gift card.
    “Tell him it’s from me,” she said, almost giddy with excitement.
    Phil willingly joined in with her scheme. “He seemed pretty adamant he didn’t want you buying his coffee.”
    “I know. He’s not exactly the friendly type.”
    “I noticed,” Phil said as he wrote her order out on her cup. “I’ll make sure I’m at the register in the morning. I’ll keep the gift card here and use it then.”
    “Perfect. Thanks, Phil.”
    “His reaction should be interesting.” The barista’s eyes widened.
    That’s exactly what Julia was hoping. “I just wish I could be here to see it.”
    Once she’d collected her drink, Julia had to hurry to the bus stop in order to catch the bus. As it was, she was the last one to board.
    —
    The woman was driving Cain nuts. And he wasn’t falling for that sweeter-than-honey smile of hers, either. No one was naturally that perky in the morning. She had to be doing this for the sole purpose of getting a reaction out of him.
    She might be cute—to be honest, more than cute—but he wasn’t willing to play whatever game she’d conjured up to torture him.
    His best option was to ignore her, which he fully intended to do. Walking briskly now, he headed down the street to the Harvard Insurance Company. He’d specifically chosen his apartment building because it was within easy walking distance of his job. This offered him the opportunity to return to the apartment for lunch and take Schroeder out. He felt bad that he had to leave the Irish setter cooped up for the majority of the day. Thankfully, the dog was getting on in years and slept most of the time, anyway.
    When his grandfather had gone into the assisted-living complex, he was only allowed to bring dogs weighing twenty pounds and under. Schroeder was a brute at sixty-five pounds. Bernie refused to leave Schroeder until Cain offered to give him a home himself.
    Cain’s thoughts drifted to his grandfather. He loved the old man who’d raised him. Now that Bernie was close to eighty, his health had started to decline. To his credit, though, Gramps had adjusted well to his small apartment. Unlike Cain, his grandfather made friends easily.
    Even as a boy, Cain had been reserved, quiet, and intense. His job as an actuary suited him. Numbers made sense to him, unlike people. He rarely allowed anyone to get close, and for good reason. It seemed every time he did, he regretted it. All he had to do was remember how Dani had betrayed him. But he wasn’t going there.
    “Morning, Mr. Maddox,” the front-desk receptionist greeted him, the same way she did every day. He noticed she’d put up a small Christmas tree on the counter.
    He tipped his head, said “Morning,” and continued past.
    He couldn’t remember her name if his life depended on it. That was just the way he liked it. His life was organized and structured, and there was no way he was going to let his vivacious, irritating neighbor disrupt that. He paused as he stepped into his office and closed the door. If he chose to ignore his neighbor, then why was he wasting time