Page 57 of Single Mom's Christmas Wish

Callie finishes her coffee. “Is she really okay?”

“Dakota? Yeah. But I would appreciate it if you would just leave her alone. No matter how this ends, I promise you, eighty million dollars is not a good enough reason to fuck over the one family member you’ve got left.”

“How did you know?” she asks, her eyes widening.

“That you lost your mother last year? I do my homework with people I don’t trust,” I shoot back. “It only took a phone call and a couple of internet searches to find her obituary. You didn’t tell Dakota about it.”

“It was a difficult situation,” she concedes.

“Well, I’m sorry. But surely you understand that the grief you’re feeling now is something that Dakota felt, too,” I say. “Unlike you, however, Dakota never took it out on you. If anything, she hoped you two might someday be close like real sisters.”

Callie reaches across the table and gives me a warm smile, her hand covering mine. It lingers in a way that speaks volumes, as do her eyes and her slightly parted lips. She’s playing at something else here.

“Dakota is lucky to have you in her life, Archer. You are a good and reasonable man. Both are rare traits to find these days. I’m almost jealous.”

“No need. I’m sure you’ll find someone to your liking.”

She stares at me for a while, her grip on my hand tightening with hidden meaning. But I don’t react. I stay still and wait for Callie to let go first.

“Okay, Archer,” she says. “I’ll leave Dakota alone and let time sort everything out. You’re right. It’s just money, after all. But let me at least go upstairs and apologize for my earlier behavior. I feel bad. I’m part of the reason she’s here.”

“Fine. Please keep it civil. She’s been through enough.”

She nods once and leaves the table, hips swaying deliberately as she makes her way across the cafeteria and into the hallway. I listen to the sound of her heels receding up the stairs as a picture forms in my mind. Callie is definitely weaving a new plan in her head. I don’t think she has ever dealt with people like me before.

Raised in a wealthy family in upstate New York, her every whim and desire fulfilled with wads of cash, Callie hasn’t seen the hard side of life. My time with the Marines thickened my skin and opened my eyes to a dimension of humanity of which most people aren’t even aware. Callie Monroe thinks she’s the smartest person in the room, while Dakota thinks she’s going to get farther ahead if she keeps playing the righteous card.

The former is a dangerous snake. The latter is too stubborn for her own good.

And I have fallen too deeply in love with Dakota to let Callie ruin her life. Keith Ellis did plenty of damage already. My woman deserves a peaceful and happy life. While I know she’d rather chew her own foot off rather than ask for help, I’m determined to find a way to help her get ahead.

I just need to be mindful of Callie’s game.

She’s not done playing yet.

20

Dakota

Callie comes in just as I’m about to check my phone to see how long it will be before Chelsea and Maisie get here. The last time I read through the text updates, they were about twenty minutes away. My sister’s presence makes me feel uneasy as I sit up in bed, bracing for more conflict. It’s one of those moments where I regret sending the Faulkner brothers away. I’m overwhelmed. I’ll just push the nurse’s button if Callie gets out of line again.

“What do you want?” I ask, my brow furrowed as I watch her cautiously approach my bed.

“I need to apologize,” she says, looking stern but tired. “I jumped way over the boundaries of common sense and decency with you, Dakota. You warned me about it. You pointed it out. But I was too busy being a raging bitch.”

“Okay, wow.”

She chuckles lightly. “Shocker, right?”

“No, I just don’t believe you.”

“Well, I had a heart-to-heart downstairs with your hubby-to-be a few minutes ago. He made a few points—all of them reasonable—and it got me thinking.” She sighs and tucks a lock of hair behind her ear. I really don’t like the way her eyes sparkle whenever she mentions Archer. It makes my stomach churn. “You’re not to blame for anything that our dad did. And you’re not to blame for Grandma’s decision to change her will, either.”

“I never even reached out to her after Sally’s funeral.”

“I know. The old fiend tore you a new one,” she scoffs and pinches the smooth bridge of her nose. “And so did I. Though, in my defense, I was eighteen and stupid.”

“And what’s your excuse now?”

---