Page 92 of All I Want For Christmas Is You

“No,” he screamed. “No shocklet. Ga-ga.”

“I know, baby. I know. But he’s not here. I am. Will you please let me help you?” My God. The boy was inconsolable.

She hit redial. This time, finally, Beau answered. “What’s up?” He sounded tense, impatient.

“Colt had a nightmare, and all he wants is his grandpa.” With the boy so close, she kept her tone light. “He misses you.”

“Margot, I’m in the middle of a firefight here. I need you to handle that. There’s a fifty-fifty chance we’re going to lose the mine.”

“I know.” In the background, people talked, and she knew she didn’t have his full attention. Which sucked because this little boy was literally cowering in a corner and wanted nothing to do with a woman who’d been in his life a total of five days. “But Beau, listen to me. Your grandson needs you.” Can’t you hear him sobbing?

“I’m sorry to put you in this position, but I need you to step up for me right now.”

“What?” That was not the response she’d expected.

“Margot.”

Oh, she hated that patronizing tone. The one that said, You can’t possibly understand what I’m going through/how important this crisis is/how significant my role is. “No. Don’t Margot me. Your grandson is terrified, and he doesn’t want me. He wants you. You need to take a break from what you’re doing and come home and reassure him.”

“I can’t do that. I’ll be home as soon as I can, but right now, I have to go.”

The line went dead. He’d hung up on her.

Cold seeped under her skin. She’d made it clear his grandson was shaken by a nightmare, and the only person he wanted was Beau.

And he’d hung up on her.

This is bullshit.

No. No.

I’m not doing it again.

Not for anything.

Dropping her phone on the mattress, she sat down. The boy might not want her, but she wouldn’t leave him alone. So, she stretched out on his bed. She’d keep him company, let him know she was there.

What else could she do?

After the boy calmed down, they’d had a snack in the kitchen and then sat on the couch to watch a movie. He’d quickly lost interest, of course, so she’d taken him and a few trucks into Beau’s office while she changed her ticket.

Her session had timed out, but she was glad she hadn’t hit Purchase. Because she was leaving even earlier.

She was leaving now.

It hurt. Oh, God, it hurt. The grip of loss squeezed so hard she couldn’t draw a breath.

Beau.

She wanted him. So badly.

She craved him. It was more than attraction. More than affection. The roots were so deep, the idea of leaving him shook her.

But she wasn’t ready yet. She wasn’t in the right headspace to be in a relationship.

I meet a guy, he asks me to move in, and I immediately become the same woman I was for my twenty-seven-year marriage.

And so, she did it. She changed her ticket to a flight that left tomorrow.

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