Page 58 of Heartbreak Hill

Gemma wiped angrily at her tears. “I’m mad at Grandma and Grandpa.”

Me too.

“How come?” Nadia asked. “They bought you some really nice clothes.”

“It’s not that. It’s the way Grandma treats you. She’s mean.”

“It’s okay, Gemma.”

“No, it’s not! You lost Daddy and need her to love you the same way, and she’s mean. You didn’t even open your present from her.”

Nope, because I don’t want to know what’s in there.

“She didn’t buy you much things,” Lynnea said. At the stoplight, Nadia turned and saw tears in Lynnea’s eyes.

“My loves.” Nadia could barely hold back her sob.

“Last year Grandma gave you a million presents.”

She didn’t, but that’s a nice thought.

“It’s not about how many presents you get, Gemma. It’s the thought that counts.”

“Well, her thoughts are mean,” Gemma said as she looked out her window.

When they arrived home, Nadia unloaded the car, emptied the boxes, and threw the wrapping paper away. She made multiple trips up and down the stairs when she could’ve easily asked the girls to come get their stuff. She kept her emotions in check until she went into her bedroom. A waft of Rafe’s cologne washed over her. She swore he was in their bedroom, hugging her. Did he know how his mother had acted?

No, he didn’t.

“Rafe.” She said his name softly. “I need you.”

Thirty minutes later, Kiran knocked on the front door. He stood there with a pile of presents in his arms. Nadia let him in.

“What are you doing here?”

“Otto called,” he told her. “Said things didn’t go very well over there this afternoon.”

“That’s the understatement of the century.” Nadia followed Kiran into the living room. He set the pile of presents under the tree and organized them.

“I know you’re leaving for your parents’ soon, so you and the girls can open them when you get back or before. Doesn’t matter.” She didn’t miss the “you and the girls” part but intended to ignore it.

“Are you hungry?”

He nodded. “I ordered a delivery,” he told her as he looked at his phone. “It should be here shortly.”

“For us?”

“Yeah.”

“Kiran—”

“I know what you’re going to say,” he said, shrugging. “This is where I want to be.”

She nodded and told him she was going to set the table. He followed her into the kitchen and helped until the doorbell rang. As soon as they had a mini holiday feast set up on the table, Nadia called the girls down. They loved Kiran, and he had gone out of his way to make sure the past three months had been bearable.

“Mommy, did you see the presents under the tree?” Lynnea asked as she crawled into her seat.

“Yep, Kiran brought them over.”

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