Page 20 of Mistletoe Latte

“Welcome to the real world, population everyone’s out to get you specifically and no one else.”

His thick sarcasm earned him a dramatic sigh. She walked slowly to her room, taking care to just about—but not entirely—close her door.

“You there?” his brother asked, but Nick didn’t say a word until he’d gotten down the stairs.

Tossing his bedding to the couch, he finally said, “Yes. And there’s something we need to talk about. Christmas is coming up—”

“Yeah. About that,” Peter interrupted. Nick could hear him clawing at his forehead, causing the phone to bounce into his skull. “I’m not sure if I’ll be able to send you the money for gifts—”

Nick shook his head. “I already got her Christmas presents…including the ones from her loving father.”

“Oh. Great. How much?”

It didn’t matter what Nick said, they both knew the gesture was empty. He heard a creak up above and, cupping his hand over the phone, glared at the staircase. There was a blind spot where a certain girl could hide to listen in. He waited a few more seconds, hearing no noise, before saying, “Don’t worry about it. Skylar would never eavesdrop on private conversations. She’s too smart to risk a grounding for a week.”

He pretended he didn’t hear a small gasp, then the flap of feet hitting the floorboards. Girl thought she was Einstein and James Bond rolled into one most days. Good thing he knew all the tricks as he’d pulled the same as a kid. Still, better to give himself even more distance. Slipping on his coat, he took the conversation outside.

Cold bit into his cheeks, Nick huddling into the collar of his jacket. “Are you coming home for Christmas?”

His brother sighed the same way Skylar would when Nick had asked if she’d finished cleaning the bathroom. “You know I’d love to if I could, but it’s a long drive, and the traffic…”

“They’ve got these things called airplanes. Might want to look into it.”

“Funny. Even if I had the money for a ticket, I can’t go back to Lake Holly. Don’t ride my ass about it.” The pleading switched to anger in a heartbeat, piquing Nick’s interest.

“Okay, then how about she spends winter break with you?”

“No!” Pete shouted fast, before softening to his smooth-talking sales-pitch voice. “That doesn’t seem like the best. My roommate situation is perilous and—”

“She hasn’t seen you in years.” Every year Skylar got her hopes up that her father would visit for Christmas or her birthday. Every time he’d find a perfectly fraudulent excuse. Nick was sick of it.

“I know,” Pete whispered. “I’d be there right now if I could.”

“Would you?”

“Nicky…”

The wind shifted and the ice cracked on the pond. He used to swing Pete around by his arms on it when they were kids, never once fearing they’d fall in. Now, it felt like he was drowning with the surface just above him, but his fists were unable to puncture the ice. “This is stupid. Just tell her the truth. She’s old enough.”

“You don’t understand.”

“I’m the one who’s keeping her clothed, fed, and out of most trouble. What are you doing?”

His brother sighed. “You’re not a father.”

Nick jerked at the patronizing comment. His fingers clenched so tight around the phone the volume shot up. “So what?”

“So you don’t get it. If she finds out she’ll lose all respect for me. A daughter cannot handle that. It’ll warp her.”

“You think it’s better she only gets the occasional phone call from you instead? We can’t keep this up forever. She’s not an idiot, despite her parentage.”

“You’ve got the same genes, bro,” Pete taunted him, causing Nick to grumble. “Look, this isn’t a good time for me. Next year, I’ll finally be out of here with my own place. We can have a proper family Christmas. I’ll cut down a real tree.”

That’s what he said last year, and the year before that. Rather than call him out, Nick pulled in a breath. Ice stung his nose, the frostbitten winter rallying for another bad year. As much as he hated it, Pete was right. He wasn’t her dad, just the man keeping her safe. “Fine. But next time…”

“I’ll do the whole thing right. I promise. So, um…you think you could wire me some cash? Nothing huge, just a little to get by…”

Nick managed to get out of that conversation having to only Venmo his brother a couple hundred. It wouldn’t help Skylar if her father starved. When he went to return her phone, the lights were off and a lump rested under the covers, so he ignored the halogen glow still radiating from the recently-turned-off bulb.

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