Page 257 of Santa Daddies
Caldwell:
At this time of year? Not happening. Don’t bother me again. I won’t be answering messages until after New Year and by then you’ll be gone.
That . . . that asshole!
She was so angry that tears slid down her cheeks. She hated when that happened. People never took her seriously when she cried, no matter how furious she was.
George had just seen it as another sign of her being weak.
Really, Alice. Can you not keep your emotions under control? I’m trying to have a serious conversation with you. Please try to contain yourself.
Urgh.
Asshole.
And so was Caldwell.
Her phone beeped again and a message appeared from Anson.
Anson:
In bed, baby?
Should she say something? But it wasn’t his problem. She needed to be better than this.
Independent and strong.
So she sent a message back to Caldwell.
Alice:
It is unfortunate that you feel this way. You can expect to hear from my lawyer.
Then she brought up his email and sent him written communication of the issues and reiterated back to him his messages to her.
Finally, she sent a message to her lawyer, too. The only problem was that Helena was a divorce lawyer. Still, she also considered her a friend so she hoped she might be able to direct her to another lawyer who could help.
But that didn’t help Alice right now. A shiver ran through her and she sniffled. Getting up, she grabbed a box of tissues and sat down in front of her laptop.
Her head felt stuffy, though. And she didn’t want to work. So she turned on the television and found a Christmas movie. When her phone beeped again, she checked it and realized she hadn’t replied to Anson.
Anson:
Baby? You asleep?
Alice:
No, just watching a movie.
Anson:
You need your sleep. Are you feeling all right? Did you see the weather forecast? There’s more snow due tomorrow.
More snow? That would be amazing if she wasn’t sure that she had enough firewood to get through it. She just wanted to bury herself in his arms and let him deal with all of this.
A small sob escaped.
Don’t be so needy, Alice. It’s not attractive.
