Page 73 of Please Send Snow
I remind myself that I’m still mad at him.
And he must be able to see that because he stops in his tracks like he’s turned to stone.
“I’m sorry,” Jake says softly, his voice cracking a little.
“What you said was wrong,” I tell him in a bell-clear, serious tone I barely recognize. “It was unforgivable.”
“You’re right,” he tells me, his voice louder now, like he’s not ashamed to admit it. “I owed you the benefit of the doubt. I don’t expect you to forgive me. But I still need you to know that I’m so sorry, Maddie.”
I’m so surprised by his frank confession that I just blink at him for a moment. The whole lobby has gone silent around us. Even Penelope has stopped singing, leaving Mariah Carey to finish the song by herself.
“Michael let me know what you were really doing here,” he explains. “And that fits perfectly with the person I know you are. You help people, Maddie. You care enough to sacrifice even when you have nothing for yourself.”
So why did you forget that when it mattered most?
“I’m still surprised you never did,” Jake goes on. “But if you had searched my name online, you would have seen that I’m supposed to be a brilliant tech CEO. So brilliant that my wife left me last year for my business partner, and I was so buried in work that I didn’t see it coming.At all.So I have a pretty good track record of not noticing the important things even when they are right in front of me.”
I stare at him, amazed.
“He was my best friend,” Jake continues. “But the two of them played me for a fool.”
Thisis why he’s always so worried about how people will see him. It’s why he won’t let his guard down. He’s been made to look foolish in the most public way possible, at home and at work at the same time.
“But none of that hurt me the way it’s going to hurt to lose you,” he says, his voice breaking again. “Because I’ve never felt about anyone the way I feel about you, Maddie.”
I choke back a sob as I see the pain in his eyes.
If I’ve learned anything this Christmas, it’s that I’m stronger than I ever knew.
The best gifts my father gave me are the ones that can’t be taken away. And I’m not talking about the factory. I mean the resilience and faith that he instilled in me for my whole life.
And I won’t live my life on other people’s scraps anymore. I don’t want to put my trust in someone who turns on me the minute the chips are down. And if he did it once, how can I know that he won’t do it again?
Jake’s words might be nice, but I’m more concerned with his actions.
“You can say you care about me,” I tell him. “But I care about this place, and the people who work here, and you know it. And you’re still going to tear it down.”
I gesture to the workers who are curled up on the couch with their cocoa. They will no doubt be starting work as soon as the weather allows. It’s not even like he’s trying to hide it.
“You got it all wrong, lady,” one of the men says, standing. “We came here to give him a timeframe for the demolition, but he changed the work order last night.”
“He did?” I ask, amazed.
“Now we’re giving a quote for a rebuild on the front porch,” another worker tells me.
“That’s what I was here to tell you,” Jake says.
“You’re here for electricity and food,” I lob back at him, trying to ignore the little voice in my head that’s sighing with happiness over the idea that the lodge might just be saved.
“I’m here foryou,” Jake says firmly. “Weare.”
I look down at Dylan who is still holding my hand and feel a pang of guilt.
“I shouldn’t argue with your father in front of you,” I tell him honestly. “But he was very disrespectful to me. It’s good for you to know that women don’t like that—peopledon’t like that.”
Dylan hugs himself to me and I can feel his sorrow. It almost breaks my resolve.
“Let me make it up to you,” Jake says instantly, as if sensing my vulnerability. “Let’s both show him howpeople who care about each other make things right after a misunderstanding.”
