Page 66 of A Christmas Bargain

What the…

I grabbed Claire’s phone and turned off the alarm, not wanting to rouse them.

They didn’t stir, too tired to wake up yet.

This wouldn’t be the first time Naomi snuck out of bed because she couldn’t sleep. Sometimes, she tried to get away with putting the TV on, but with their placement close to the tree, I bet she came out just to stare at it.

And you came out to comfort her.

I gazed at Claire, admiring how effortlessly and selflessly she'd let my daughter into her life.

This had always been one of my biggest concerns, how I’d find a woman who’d fit into my lifewithmy daughter being a huge part of it.

It turned out that I didn’t need to look for her. Naomi had just… found her.

That day at the holiday market was the turning point in so many ways. I’d realized how lonely I had been all these years. I saw how much fuller life could be with a partner at my side.

Claire was tempting me to reach the point that I’d own up to really wanting to commit.

Her phone buzzed in my hand, and I glanced down at the push notification that showed at the top.

Shawn:I’ve got more specs about other land around Macomb and Preston. The stuff you asked for and a few more your Dad emailed me about.

I frowned, then scowled at the screen.

It wasn’t a message for my eyes, but I let this sink in.

What am I talking about?I shook my head as I moved to the kitchen to start coffee.

This is crazy talk. Wanting to commit to a woman who’s made it clear that she won’t stay.

Claire’s life was in the city. She’d made her home and her purpose in Denver. Her career fulfilled her. Her father expected her to run the company he’d started.

Her interest lay in the city life, not this small-town, country pace of living.

How could I lose sight of that?

I’d been so stubborn to resist Stacy’s criticism of Claire, but now I felt like that was a mistake I shouldn’t have made.

My sister was right. Claire was a businesswoman, more apt to scheduling showings and toughing out negotiations than playing with my kid or lowering her nightlife to what Preston had to offer.

It was so easy to get caught up in the newness of being with her and learning about her that I forgot how she wasn’t here to stay.

“Hmm. I thought I smelled caffeine.”

I forced a quick smile on my face as Claire walked up to me.

“Sleep well?” I guessed teasingly as she leaned in to kiss me.

I closed my eyes tighter, stuck in this worry that time was running out with her. That the act, the ruse, would soon be over.

I was stupid to ever get my hopes up high in the first place with her.

“I heard Naomi walking out there in the middle of the night and I read to her until she fell asleep.”

“Until you fell asleep, too?”

She smiled. “Yeah.” With a big yawn, she stretched. “What are the plans for today?”

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