Page 24 of Fierce-Gabe

“I made them for you. I know they are your favorite. I just took them out of the oven. I knew you’d be here early.”

“You did?” she said. She followed him in the back and they put all the gifts under the tree. Looked as if her father might have gone overboard for Willow this year too.

“Just a hunch,” her father said. “You seem a little down lately. Everything okay?”

“I’m fine,” she said. She went for coffee since she didn’t finish her cup at home.

“I know when you’re lying, Elise.”

“I feel like a bitch saying it so I’d rather not.”

“It’s okay to be jealous that your brother found someone and has a family,” her father said softly.

“I shouldn’t be surprised you figured it out.”

“I know you well, even when you don’t want people to know anything about you.”

“Daddy’s little girl,” she said. “It drove Mom nuts that you knew me better than her. That I would talk to you more.” She held her hand up. “I know. We don’t need to bring the holiday down by talking about Mom. I’m just glad she didn’t call me.”

“I’m sure she will later,” her father said.

“Or not. I haven’t talked to her since Thanksgiving. She doesn’t even try. I sent her gifts and I got hers in the mail the other day.”

It was pretty sad, but she was used to this. She and Royce went last year and she got to drink while Royce was driving. She’d needed it. It felt like her mother had a bigger beef with her than Royce because she didn’t want to move and leave her father, her brother, and her friends.

It wasn’t even as if her mother had fought all that hard.

Maybe if her mother acted like she wanted her daughter with her because she loved her, that would be different. It wasn’t the case. Her mother wanted her there because it looked bad that she wasn’t.

Not her problem.

“Then maybe it’s for the best that you have some space,” her father said.

“That’s my thought on it.”

“You know, if you open yourself up a little, you will find someone.”

“Don’t go there, Dad. Don’t even suggest that I let the Fierces set me up either.”

“I’m not going to,” her father said.

“You know, I was looking around at the party yesterday trying to figure out who they had picked out for me.”

Her father looked up at her. It felt almost like he was a deer in the headlights. “Did you see anyone that caught your eye?”

“Nope,” she said. “I knew everyone there and those I didn’t, didn’t interest me. You can pass that back to them if you want. That way if someone is on their list from yesterday they can take him off.”

Her father laughed. “I’ll do that. Are you ready for some food?”

“I need the sugar,” she said. “To go with my aspirin this morning.”

“You look tired,” her father said. “Do you feel okay?”

“I might have had one too many glasses of wine last night,” she said. “Maybe I had a pity party. I’m good.”

She saw her father start to say something and then stop. Instead, he got her a plate and she put a big bun on it and fixed another coffee.

She needed the silence right now and was glad her father realized that.

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