Page 125 of Her Billionaire Bargain (Kensington Square)

“Hi, Dad.” My smile was strained at best. “Courtney.”

“Son.” His own smile was barely a slash of his lips. And to think, I’d once been his favorite. Seemed like a lifetime ago. “Hi, Shelby. Hi, Alice.”

Alice. Wow. Which meant Berry had identified herself that way to him?

Mumbled hellos were said back as it started to snow and someone in the hot cocoa bus turned on both the colorful Christmas lights strung around the window and jaunty Christmas tunes.

“Stopping to get a tree?” I asked, a bit redundantly.

“Not much else to do here.”

I motioned to the line we were in. “Hot cocoa is always welcome.”

“Sure.” My dad tucked his hands in his pockets. “Look, Dex, can I talk to you in private for a minute?”

“No.” I kept my face pleasant. “Anything you want to say to me, you can say in front of my family.”

Shelby poked me hard in the side. “It’s fine. We can go look in the store. Look, Berry, they have all kinds of ornaments.”

“No.” My pleasant expression was in danger of disappearing. “In a minute, we’ll all go look together. What’s up, Dad?”

He let out a windy sigh. “Fine. Since your brother is no longer even pretending to speak to me and I’m assuming you’re following his path, I’m not going to bother stopping by your mother’s house for the holiday. We’ve spent enough years on this farce.”

“Yes, we have, at your doing.” Before Shelby could poke me again, I waved a hand. “But Mom says we should be magnanimous, so do as you wish. We’ll be spending the holiday at our house. Mom will be coming over, as she would like.”

“Mom, look at that sign!” Berry pulled on the sleeve of her mother’s coat. “They have so many hot cocoa flavors. Even rocky road. Think that’s as good as the ice cream?”

Shelby grinned. “I’m game to find out.”

“We’re in line for cocoa. Just a minute more,” I murmured, glancing at my dad.

“Does that mean I’m invited too? And Courtney?”

“For cocoa?”

“No, to your house for the holiday.” He gripped the hand of the silent blond woman beside him even more tightly. She didn’t lift her gaze from the ground, maybe because I’d once had a harmless flirtation with her when she was my father’s admin. Thankfully, it hadn’t gone any further than extremely casual.

I glanced at Shelby, and the compassion in her eyes surprised and stirred me and had me agreeing.

When they walked away a moment later, I tugged her into my arms and framed her cold cheeks between my bare hands. “Even after all you’ve gone through, you still think of others.”

“Of course I do. Who hasn’t dealt with crap? And he’s still your dad.” She clutched my hand against her cheek. “Who must not be all bad if he has a son like you.”

“Can I just get some cocoa? Tired of waiting,” Berry lifted her small crossbody bag shaped like a bright red sneaker. “I have my own allowance. I can buy for all of us. This line isnotmoving.”

“Speaking of good parenting…” I murmured, kissing Shelby’s forehead while Berry groaned. “This is good for you. Builds character to learn patience.”

“Here we freaking goooo.” Somehow she made the last word sound seven syllables long.

I had to laugh as I circled my arm around Shelby and turned her toward a faster line at the cocoa bus. “Sure you want another?” she asked in an undertone.

“Yes.” My answer was immediate.

“You are a glutton for punishment.” She leaned her head on my shoulder.

After we each had cups of cocoa, we wandered over to the many, many,manyChristmas trees in the crowded lot. It was early December so other than the diehards who arrived right around Thanksgiving, the cream of the crop was still on the premises.

At least to my untrained eye.

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