Page 58 of A Second Chance Christmas Kiss

She yanked it away from him. “Melody, if you don’t think it’s fair, we can talk about it. That’s why I’m here.”

“I’m not doing this with you anymore. I will figure out a different way. I’m not going to argue with you. Please just leave.”

Peter glanced at me, frowned, and swung his gaze back to her. “I need to talk to you privately about Will.”

That got her attention.

Okay, enough was enough. I finally spoke up. “This is just a negotiation tactic. He’s using your relationship with your son for a chance to talk to you alone.”

“I know.” Melody hesitated. “But I want to hear about my son. I’m sorry. Can I call you later?”

Anger shot through me. It was like I was being rejected all over again, though maybe it wasn’t as bad as being kicked out of a church.

Melody grabbed my hand and squeezed. “I’m sorry.”

My anger evaporated. Even though I knew he was lying, I started walking to the door. “Okay, I’ll see you later.”

Peter gave me a smug look. “See you later,rich guy.”

The irony that he was teasing me about being rich wasn’t lost on me. It was the same way her mother had always pitted her against me.

I stalked outside and got into my truck, not wanting to leave but knowing I had to. This whole ‘falling in love with her’ thing was fragile.

What if she decided to get back together with Peter? What if she left? The idea was worse than the bullet I’d taken in the shoulder right before getting discharged as a SEAL.

I got in my truck and drove off, unsure where to go. I couldn’t go back to my grandmother’s. I couldn’t face all the questions.

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Melody

I stared at Peter, my whole body shaking. “What do you really want?”

Peter prided himself on not losing his cool. He always told people it was the quality that made him a good litigator. He moved over to sit in a chair next to the Christmas display. “I want to talk. Can we just talk?”

I didn’t want to talk to him, but I would do anything for my son. “You said you were going to tell me something about Will.”

The façade that he’d had on since Charles and I walked in melted away from his face. He reached for my hand and scooted his chair over to me.

I scooted back. “What do you want to say?”

Anguish creased his face. “I messed up. I talked to Will this morning. Did you know he’s in Park City with some friends? I thought he was with you.”

“I know. He mentioned it to me.”

He scoffed. “And that’sokaywith you? That he’s not celebrating Christmas withyou? You always made such a big deal about Christmas.”

I wanted to fly off the handle, but I didn’t. “Will is almost twenty years old. That’s his choice. I guess when his father asked for a divorce last year, he decided it was too painful to have Christmas with us.”

“It wasn’t all my fault. You knew we had grown apart.” Peter flung his hand toward the dolls. “Your mother kept having you come back here. Time and time again, you were away from me. What was I supposed to do?” He pointed at me. “And our son won’t even tell me when he’s coming to be with me for the holidays. You need to fix that.”

Calm settled over me. I’d been processing my feelings about this situation for the past year, but it seemed Peter was just now realizing he’d lost a family. “My mother had cancer. She’s gone. Our lives are separate now, Peter. I’m not mad at you anymore.” I stood. “But you can’t come here and disrupt my life. Will is going to spend New Year’s with me. You need to be the one to talk to him about spending time with you. That isnotmy job.”

Peter looked at me with accusation in his eyes. “You always took my son away from me. I could never connect with him because of you.”

I gestured toward the door. “If that’s the story you need to tell yourself to feel better, that’s fine. It’s time for you to leave.”

Peter stomped over to me. “It’s your fault I never connected with him. It’s your fault he doesn’t want to see me now.”

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