Chapter 18
Chapter Eighteen
His heart ached for her.
Colin sat in the booth as Holly walked away with her shoulders straight and her head held high. She was the strongest woman he’d even known—he would ever know.
And everything within him wanted to protect her, but she hadn’t needed him to come to her rescue. She was quite capable of taking care of herself. But that didn’t mean he couldn’t speak his mind.
He looked at the two miserable people sitting across from him. He couldn’t tell if they looked disappointed because Holly hadn’t just handed over the entire estate or angry because they knew she’d called their bluff.
“You two made the biggest mistake of your lives,” Colin said.
“You not only missed out on knowing your daughter, but you missed out on knowing the most amazing woman with the biggest heart. Instead of being proud of how she turned out, in spite of you missing out on her entire life, you come here and scheme and threaten. But if you think you’re going to steal what her grandmother left to her, you’re mistaken.
You would have to fight not only Holly but this entire town.
If you haven’t noticed, everyone loves her. ”
He grabbed Holly’s coat and stood. Their server was standing nearby. He approached her and reached into his wallet. He pulled out enough money to cover the bill for the entire table, because he doubted her parents would pay their portion of their bill, and he made sure to include a generous tip.
As he walked outside into the snowy afternoon, he realized something that he’d been denying for far too long. He loved Holly.
He knew it as certain as he knew the sun would come up in the morning.
It was as though it were meant to be. She had been the girl-next-door—the girl who used to follow him around and help him with the strays.
Now she’d grown into a beautiful, caring woman who lived across town—the woman who still cared about strays.
He looked up and down the street. He didn’t see her. He headed for his pickup, but before he reached it, he heard someone calling his name. He paused and turned around. His brother Justin was headed toward him.
“Hey,” Justin said. “Is everything all right? I saw the end of what happened in the café.”
Colin paused and rubbed the back of his neck. “You saw that, huh?”
Justin nodded. “So did everyone in the café. But don’t worry. You know that they’re all on your side.”
“I just don’t understand how anyone can treat their own flesh and blood like that. They come to town and try to scam their daughter’s friends out of their money. And then when Holly won’t hand over her inheritance, they threaten to take her to court. Who does that?”
“I…I don’t know.” Justin stuffed his hands into his pockets. “Is there anything I can do? You know to help.”
Colin shook his head. “No. I don’t know what to do at this point.”
“Are you sure? Because I’m in good with the sheriff, and we could run them out of town.” Justin sent him a hesitant smile.
Colin sent him a half-hearted smile. “I’ll keep it in mind, but right now, I need to go check on Holly. She stood up to them, but I could tell that it cost her—it cost her a lot.”
Justin nodded. “Go. And if either of you need anything, let me know.”
“I will. Thanks.” Colin turned and continued toward his pickup.
A few minutes later, when he arrived at Holly’s place, he was about to ring the bell, but then he decided to try the door knob. It turned in his hand, and he smiled. She’d left it unlocked for him.
He took the stairs two at a time. “Holly! Hey, Holly, are you here?”
When he reached the top of the stairs, he didn’t hear anything. He started to worry. Was it possible that she wasn’t home? But then why was the door unlocked?
Then he heard a tinkling sound. He followed it to the living room, where he found Holly. She was standing next to the Christmas tree with glass ball ornaments dangling from her fingertips. Her back was to him as she placed one of the ornaments on the end of a tree limb.
He didn’t want to startle her, so he kept his vow low. “Holly?”
She turned to him. “Oh, hey, sorry I left you behind.”
He stepped farther into the room. “It’s okay. I understand. I brought your coat.” He placed it over the arm of the chair before he stepped closer to her. “How are you doing?”
“I just want to get this tree decorated. I, uh…strung the lights the other night.” When she reached out to put another ornament on the tree, he noticed the slight tremor in her hand. “If I could just get this tree finished, I could put away the boxes of decorations.”
He moved to the coffee table. “Mind if I help?”
She still wouldn’t look at him, but she nodded. “Go ahead.”
After he took off his coat, he picked up a few ornaments. He moved to the tree and reached up high to place one. As he hung the ornaments on the tree, he glanced over at Holly, but she kept her face downcast.
In the background, he heard her phone ring. She rushed over to look at the screen, and then without answering it, she put it back down. He hoped it wasn’t her parents calling to harass her.
He was worried about her. He couldn’t imagine what she must be feeling. At least she had Tater Tot. It was at that moment that Colin realized he didn’t see the pup.
“Where’s Tater Tot?”
“Oh. I put him in the bedroom when I was getting out the ornaments. He kept jumping and trying to grab things with his mouth. I didn’t want him to get hurt or for the ornaments to get broken.”
“What if we move the ornaments on top of the stacked boxes where he can’t reach them?”
She shrugged. “That’s fine.”
He went to the entryway and grabbed a couple of boxes. He noticed there were considerably less boxes than when he’d first come over. He smiled. She was starting to feel at home. And no one was going to take this home from her.
After he set everything up so it would keep the puppy out the ornaments, Holly let Tater Tot out of the bedroom. The pup ran over to Colin to say a quick hello, then he ran back to Holly. Colin noticed how the pup stuck close to Holly’s side, as though he sensed something was wrong.
“Are you still up for caroling?” He hoped she said yes. She needed something to lift her spirits.
Holly shook her head. “I think I’ll just stay home this evening. I’m waiting for my grandmother’s attorney to call.”
“Oh good. You got ahold of him.”
She shook her head. “I called Mr. Price’s office but voicemail picked up. The message said he was away from the office for the holidays. I’m hoping he checks his messages and gets back to me this evening.”
He wondered if the man would check his messages. A lot of people would just let it go until the New Year. Colin made a mental note to ask around and see if anyone knew how to reach the attorney.
When they finished decorating the tree, he took a step back. “I don’t know about you, but I think we did a mighty fine job.”
She looked at the tree and nodded. “Not bad.”
It wasn’t a ringing endorsement, but at least she didn’t hate it, because if she did, he’d have taken off all of the ornaments and started over again.
“Are you sure you don’t want to go caroling?” he asked.
“I don’t, but you should go. I don’t want you to miss it because of me.” When he hesitated, she said, “Seriously. Go ahead.”
He shook his head. “I don’t want to go without you.”
“Thanks. But I am not up to it.” She turned to look at the tree. “I have some administrative work I should do before the shop opens tomorrow.”
He wondered if the work she had to do was that urgent or if she was just anxious to get him out the door. He didn’t want to leave her alone, but he was out of excuses to stay.
He stepped up behind her. “Are you sure you don’t want me to hang around?”
When she turned, they were mere inches apart. “I just need some time alone.”
He nodded. “I understand.”
And then he found himself reaching out to her and giving her a hug. At first, her body was stiff, but then she leaned into him. Her head came to rest on his chest. Could she hear the way she made his heart pound?
Her arms wrapped around his waist. He didn’t know how long they stood there in each other’s arms. As far as he was concerned, time could just stop. There was nowhere else he wanted to be.
It was on the tip of his tongue to tell her he loved her. He had loved her for a long time. He just hadn’t been willing to admit it—even to himself.
The time had never been right for them—until now. He felt a fierce protectiveness toward her, even though he knew she was perfectly capable of taking care of herself. It didn’t lessen his desire to be there for her.
What would she say if he told her he loved her? Would she smile? Would she kiss him? The words teetered at the tip of his tongue.
Or would she back away? Would she say that she didn’t feel the same way? He choked down the words.
It wouldn’t be fair to either of them to make such an important proclamation right now. She was already reeling from the fact that her biological parents were trying to steal the only home she had left. They wanted to rip away the business that her loving grandmother had left to her.
It wasn’t right. None of it. And that was why he had to be patient. He had to wait until her feet were once more on solid ground before he tilted that very ground with his words of love.
Holly was the first one to pull away. With a resigned sigh, he lowered his arms. He knew he should leave, but he hesitated.
“Is there anything I can do before I go?” When she shook her head, he asked, “Do you want me to pick you up a pizza to have whenever you get hungry?” When she once more shook her head, he said, “I wish you’d let me do something.”
“I’ll be fine.”
He wanted to say something to comfort her—to let her know that everything was going to be all right—but no words would come to him. With a resigned sigh, he turned to walk away.
He paused next to her. “Call me if you need anything. If you want to talk, I’m your guy.
Any time. Day or night. Or if you need a food delivery, I’m your guy.
Remember, I used to do that in college. I’m experienced.
” He sent her a smile. She didn’t smile back.
He took on a serious tone. “I just want you to know that I care. I’m here for you. ”
“I know.” Her voice was so soft but not so soft that he missed the pain laced in her tone. “Thank you.”
Without giving a thought to his action, he leaned toward her. Though he longed to kiss her rosy lips, he aimed for her cheek. The kiss was light and quick.
Then he turned and headed for the stairs. In no time, he headed out into the wintery day. Would she call him? He honestly didn’t know.
With every step he took, there was something inside of him that said he shouldn’t leave her. And yet that’s what she’d asked of him.
There had to be some way to help her. And then he had a thought. He pulled his phone from his pocket and called his mother. She was well-connected in this town. If anyone knew how to reach Mr. Robert Price, Esq., it would be her, or she would know who had the number to reach him.
As he briefly explained the situation to his mother, he climbed into his pickup and started the engine. His mother didn’t have Mr. Price’s cell number. And so, he sat there as she asked his father if he knew. Together, they came up with two people in town who might have the phone number.
He got the phone number from the first person.
And then he placed the call. Mr. Price was surprised when he took the call.
Colin didn’t waste any time. He explained the situation and didn’t know what to think about Mr. Price’s quietness.
Was he angry that his holiday break had been interrupted? Would he do anything to help Holly?
In the end, Mr. Price told him he was on vacation, but he would look into it.
He didn’t say how soon or even if he would get back to him.
There was a simple, thank you for calling and then the phone went dead.
And Colin didn’t know if he’d done anything to help Holly or not.
He wouldn’t say anything to get her hopes up.