Page 45 of A Very Daddy Christmas

“Okay, Cora,” Waylan cuts in, visibly annoyed. “If that’s what you’ve decided, we can’t stop you. We’ll keep it professional.”

“Waylan, please, don’t be mad—”

“I’m not mad. I’m being professional.” He sits up, every gesture abrupt and determined to brush off the discomfort I know he’s feeling. “I have to go get ready as well. We don’t want Dario to be late.”

I watch him leave the room, his steps as heavy as my heart.

Sebastian takes another deep breath, releasing it slowly. “We can’t stop you, Cora. We’ll respect your wishes. But don’t think for a second we won’t intervene if you run into any more trouble with St. James and Hamilton.”

“I don’t like this,” Riggs says. “It feels like you’re bailing out.”

“I am,” I shudder as I get up, my knees weak. “I am bailing out, and maybe you don’t understand any of this right now. But someday, you will.”

Riggs gives me a hard look. The pain in his eyes is real. It cuts through me like a knife. “Oh, but I do understand. I just don’t like it.”

“I’m sorry,” I mumble and dash out of the kitchen.

As I reach my bedroom, the nausea that had been unfurling in the pit of my stomach crawls its way up my throat. I hit the bathroom and lose what little breakfast I ate into the toilet.

It’s just another sign that this is all too much right now.

I hate doing this, but I keep telling myself it’s better this way.

Even though I know that’s a lie.

13

Sebastian

“What the fuck was that?” Riggs says.

He pours himself another cup of coffee. Waylan is back after having dropped Dario at school. Cora has already left for the bakery. The house feels emptier than ever, even though all three of us are here. It’s weird—how much a good woman can forever change the atmosphere in one’s home.

“She’s scared,” I tell them. “Confused. Worried. It’s dealer’s choice at this point. There’s a lot on Cora’s plate right now and dealing with a relationship involving all three of us probably does feel like too much.”

“We didn’t put any pressure on her, whatsoever,” Riggs says.

Waylan shrugs, busy with the dishes in the sink, rinsing them before placing them in the dishwasher. “We showered her with gifts. Gifts she considers over-the-top. Maybe Sherry was right. Maybe we really are out of touch with the reality of those who don’t make nearly as much as we do.”

“Yeah, the success got to our heads,” Riggs agrees with a dry chuckle. “Right.”

“Actually, it’s precisely what happened. Cora warned us, and we told her we’d do better. Or do less, at least.”

“What’s so wrong with doting on our woman, on giving her only the best?” Riggs asks, genuinely befuddled.

“There’s nothing wrong with it, but we should’ve listened more,” I say. “This is purely a reaction.”

“What we need to do is understand that this whole hyper-independent thing is a shield,” Waylan scoffs. “Nothing more, nothing less. Cora lost her parents at a young age. It’s something at least one of us can relate to,” he adds, shaking his head. “It’s hard growing up without your parents to rely on and watching your sibling struggle to provide for the both of you.”

“That’s what happened to you and your brother,” I say quietly.

“And as a woman, it’s even more complicated when society keeps trying to teach you to depend on somebody else. It obviously isn’t Cora’s nature. We could’ve been more sensible about it. But the truth is, the excessively expensive gifts aren’t the real problem here.”

“What is, then?” Riggs asks, but he already has an answer to that question. All I have to do is put it into words.

“She’s terrified somebody will find out about our less than conventional relationship. If that happens, it will be a shitstorm. It could be a mark against us when Dario’s final custody and adoption come into place. People like St. James could easily use our relationship to hurt us, as revenge for the whole bakery stunt. And you both know he would gladly use it to ruin Cora’sreputation, too.”

“That man would rather burn the bakery down than let Cora have it,” Waylan grumbles. “And I’ve yet to find the sense in that.”

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