Page 31 of Another Christmas from Hell

“Take her home,” their father said, probably to his brother, but he didn’t fucking care.

Never taking his eyes off Cayley as she took another step back only to have Kevin reach for her, Bryce moved his ass. He watched Cayley step out of his reach as she continued shaking her head and turned around, walking away as she reached up and angrily wiped at her face. She’d barely made it past the next vender when Bryce was there and-

“I’m fine,” Cayley said, sounding anything but fine as she reached up and wiped at her face with the back of her mitten.

“I know you are,” Bryce said as he reached down and took her hand in his. When she moved to pull it away, he tightened his hold as he said, “Let me take you home.”

After a slight pause, Cayley looked away and nodded as she reached up and wiped her face again while Bryce struggled against the urge to turn around and beat the shit out of the asshole. He didn’t know what the prick said to make her cry, and honestly, he didn’t fucking care. The only thing that he cared about was the small woman by his side.

Without a word, they made their way to the parking lot where he helped Cayley climb into his truck before he made his way around and to the driver’s side door, only to find the asshole standing on the sidewalk watching them. Wondering what she saw in the prick, Bryce climbed into the truck, and after one last look at Cayley to make sure that she was okay, he started the truck and pulled out of the parking lot, his gaze never leaving Kevin as he watched them go.

When she still didn’t say anything after a few minutes, Bryce glanced over to find her staring out the window, looking absolutely fucking lost and-

God, she was fucking killing him.

When he came to their street, Bryce sent her another look before he did a U-turn and headed back to town. She didn’t say anything when he parked in front of Brennagin’s Coffee shop or when he climbed out of the truck and headed inside. When he came back a few minutes later with two large hot cocoas, she was staring down at her hands folded on her lap.

“Here,” Bryce said, handing her one of the hot cocoas.

“Thank you,” Cayley murmured quietly as she took it.

“You’re welcome,” Bryce said, having absolutely no fucking idea how to make this better for her, so he did the only thing that he could think of.

He headed for the south side of town, where most of the neighborhoods took decorating their houses for Christmas seriously. He turned on Christmas music for her as he slowly drove through each neighborhood so that she could take in all the Christmas lights. After a few minutes, she began sipping her hot cocoa as she shifted in her seat so that she could get a better look, looking more relaxed than she had an hour ago and-

“Are you still in love with him?” Bryce found himself asking, surprised by just how badly he wanted her to say no.

When she didn’t say anything after a minute, he wondered what the hell was wrong with him, only to be taken by surprise when she answered. “I thought that I was going to spend the rest of my life with him. I was with him for two years, so part of me will always love him, but I’m not in love with him. Just seeing him tonight…It reminded me of just how badly I’ve messed up my life.”

“How so?” Bryce asked, glancing over at her as he took a right onto the next street.

“I just thought that my life would turn out differently,” Cayley admitted, shrugging it off as she took a sip of cocoa.

“Happily married with a few children and a spot on the PTA?” Bryce asked, watching as her lips twitched.

“Something like that,” she murmured as he took a left on the next street, and they found themselves pulling up in front of their apartment complex a few minutes later.

“Did you ever think that maybe things turned out the way that they did because you were with the wrong guy?” Bryce asked as he threw the truck in park.

“Yes,” Cayley said with a soft sigh as she took a sip of her cocoa.

“Why didn’t you end up with my brother?” Bryce found himself asking the one thing that he’d been wondering about for a few years now.

When she frowned in confusion, Bryce said, “Sean,” and watched as a look of horror took over.

“Because I would probably kill him in his sleep.”

“I just thought that you would always end up with him,” Bryce admitted on a shrug as he took a sip of hot cocoa.

“Why would you think that?” Cayley asked, sending him a questioning look as she finished off her hot cocoa.

“Because you’re always together,” Bryce pointed out.

“Not by choice,” she said with a fond smile for his asshole brother before her gaze turned curious and she asked the question that had him biting back a sigh.

“Why didn’t you ever get married?”

“Because of my mother,” Bryce found himself admitting as he thought about what it was like when she was around, how she couldn’t be bothered with them, leaving it up to him to watch over his brothers and sister, and the way that he used to hold Sean and Rory at night when they cried, wondering why their mother didn’t love them.

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