Page 32 of Baran
Darien stopped walking, anger coursing through him. “I removed his name from that list myself,” he said, his jaw clenched. “Miss Archer must have added it back.” His hands balled into fists at his sides. The thought of her deliberate crueltymade his blood boil. Miss Archer had always been difficult, but this calculated attempt to hurt Baran crossed a line. He’d seen her watching Baran with disapproval, making snide comments about him using him for money, and she had even called Baran a gold-digger, but he never thought she’d go this far.
“I’m going to deal with her,” Darien said, his voice low and dangerous. “She had no right to interfere like this. None.” The protective fury he felt surprised even him—he’d always maintained professional composure with Miss Archer despite her stubborn personality, but this was different. This was personal.
“You might be right about her because when I got up to get some coffee, she told me to make sure I called every single person on the list. Why does she hate me so much?”
“I wish I knew. It may have to do with my banning Hawk.”
“Did she like Hawk?” Baran shivered as he spoke.
“We’re going to talk about this situation at home.”
“Yes, Daddy Darien.”
As soon as they reached the car, Darien opened the door for Baran. He pulled a blanket from the back seat and covered Baran to keep him warm. He turned on the heater and the seat warmer as soon as he got into the driver’s seat.
“Are you upset with me for not finishing the job?”
“I’m upset because you left without calling me first.”
“Did I break a rule?”
“Yes, but I’m going to let it go it this time because the situation is strange to begin with.”
“I felt so hurt. I had to walk, then I felt safe on the train.”
“But you didn’t know where you were going. I understand you needing to take a walk, but you took the subway and had no idea where you were going. At least you answered your phone.”
“You said within fifteen minutes, so I wanted to follow the rule.”
“I want this to be your first and best Christmas.”
“It will be with you. What will we do on that day?”
“We bring gifts to those who need them. We serve a turkey dinner at the shelter and give gifts.”
“That will be fun.”
As soon as they were inside, Miss Charlotte rushed to meet them at the front door.
“Oh, there you are. I was so worried about you, Baran, when Darien called to see if you were home.” She helped to remove his jacket. “I’ll wash those wet clothes now.”
“Could you make him some hot tea and bring it upstairs?” Darien asked.
“Of course.”
Upstairs, Darien found a pair of Christmas pajamas, handed them to Baran, and pointed to the bed.
“You need to warm up in bed.”
Miss Charlotte rapped softly on the door.
“Come in.”
She carefully placed a tray of tea and cookies on the nightstand, the clatter of the china cups and the aroma of the freshly baked cookies filling the air.
“Baran, please don’t take off like that. You gave us a scare. And make sure you eat those cookies.” A warm, genuine smile spread across her face as she looked at him.
“Yes, Ma’am.”
