Page 22 of Snowed In With the Mountain Man
No one had any success getting ahold of Madison, the eldest of this motley sister crew, either. The woman was apparently a nomad. Maybe she was some sort of hippie who didn’t believe in the Internet or something.
Whatever the case, Dahlia was officially done waiting for them. They’d all been in purgatory long enough with this inheritance, and it was time someone made some decisions.
And like always, Dahlia would have to be the one to make the hard choices and take the reins.
She shook off a resentment she’d grown to despise.
“You look good without the weight of the world on your shoulders.”
Her frown deepened into a scowl at the memory of JJ’s words. She’d felt good last night. But he’d been right when he’d said that she shouldn’t leave here without some sort of resolution.
Which was why she’d texted Emma, Rose, and Lizzy after she’d gotten settled back in to request a meeting this afternoon after Emma got home from work.
She could hear their voices coming from downstairs. The laughter and the easy conversation—which would come to an abrupt halt the moment she joined their ranks.
She tapped a few keys to bring her laptop back to life so she could send her bosses a response to their last email but…ugh.
For the third time that day, the Wi-Fi connection decided to act up. She dropped her chin to her chest with a sharp exhale. This pink bedroom was not conducive to work. The desk was too small, and it was miles away from the modem, probably because no one ever thought the upstairs space would be used for working.
She needed to find a spot that had a better connection, but she also needed peace and quiet in order to concentrate. It wasn’t like she could work for more than ten minutes without interruption at the dining room table. She’d just have to find an office downstairs. Surely there was one. The house seemed to have rooms to spare.
With a huff, she crossed her arms and glared at her computer after one more failed attempt to connect to the Internet.
Fine. She’d get back to work later when this meeting was over. And maybe by then the Wi-Fi would be working or she would have tracked down that blasted modem!
She headed downstairs to find her sisters all huddled together in the kitchen. Emma was rubbing at her temples as Rose handed her a mug of tea.
“Sounds like a tough day,” Rose murmured with a sympathetic wince.
“I hope you gave that mother a piece of your mind.” Lizzy looked all worked up on Emma’s behalf.
When Dahlia walked in, their conversation came to an abrupt halt, just like Dahlia knew it would. And aside from Rose’s small smile, she found herself facing a wall of wary gazes.
She just barely held back a sigh.
“What’s this about?” Lizzy asked with narrowed eyes. “Why do we need a meeting?”
Dahlia took a seat at the table and waited for the others to do the same. “Because I think it’s high time we make some decisions about how we’re going to move forward with the inheritance.”
All three pairs of eyes widened in surprise, and silent conversations began between them. Little looks that Dahlia couldn’t miss. She wasn’t blind.
And once more I’m the big bad wolf coming in to destroy everything.
She shook off the thought. There’d be time to pout and rail against the injustice of it all later. For now, she needed to end this drama before it could drag out any longer.
“B-but not all the sisters have seen it yet,” Emma started.
“And who knows if they ever will?” Dahlia shot back. “Look, I don’t know about you, but I don’t think it’s right that we all have to linger in limbo. It’s time to start making decisions.”
Lizzy’s scowl was one of outright mutiny. “And I suppose you’ve already made yours.”
Dahlia lifted a shoulder. “It’s obvious, isn’t it? We have to sell the ranch so we can all move forward independently. It’s the only fair thing to do.”
Emma was clearly horrified, Lizzy indignant, and Rose, of course, didn’t say anything.
Not one of their responses was a surprise, but it still left Dahlia feeling exhausted. She didn’t want to have this battle any more than they did. But she wasn’t delusional. There was no ending for this family in which they all gathered around, baking cookies and singing “Kumbaya.”
They weren’t really sisters. They weren’t one big happy family, and they never would be.
