Even though he didn’t celebrate, he found himself picking up the phone and dialing a familiar number.
“Merry Christmas,” a cheerful voice said over the line.
Griff almost dropped the phone. “Dad?”
“Oh, hi, son. Surprised to hear from you today.” His tone dropped, as though he was embarrassed.
“I’m...” Hell. He didn’t even know what.
“What’s wrong?”
His father always could tell. “I met someone.” He found the whole story tumbling out.
Silence came from the other end, followed by a deep sigh. “I’m sorry about what happened with your mother. I can’t change the past.”
“I know.” He didn’t expect anyone to change anything.
“It was for the best. Things are better now.” There was a slight pause. “She’s remarrying next month. She’ll have no more access to any of our accounts per the remarriage clause of the settlement.”
That was kind of a blow. A good blow. Still. “Who?”
“Does it matter?”
“Not really.”
“Andrew Kelly.”
“Your ex-best friend?”
“Uh, yeah.”
Wasn’t that the nail in her coffin? She didn’t give a damn about either one of them. He couldn’t say anything to his dad to change that.
A female voice echoed from his father’s background. “Come back to bed. Oh, sorry.” It was as if the speaker suddenly realized his father was on the phone. Shuffling and whispering resounded through the line. Followed by awkward silence.
How did Griff start this conversation? “Who was that?”
“Um, Susan?” It sounded like a question. “We’ve been living with each other for a while.”
“How long is a while?”
“A few years.”
“Years?” He didn’t know his father at all. Had it been that long since he’d been to visit his father at the condo? They’d kept in touch, but Griff had kept his distance. “You didn’t tell me.”
“I know how you felt about things. I wasn’t sure you were ready. I knew you’d be skeptical of her intentions.”
Would he have been? Was he now?
A slight pause from his dad. “I’d like you to meet her.”
“I’m an ass,” Griff realized. Sure, he’d always known it, but man, he’d managed to screw a lot of things up. “I’d like to meet her.” His dad actually sounded happy, and if the woman lived in the condo, she wasn’t with him for his money. There simply wasn’t much left compared to the old fortune. They had more than enough by average standards, but not enough for women like his mother.
A relieved breath came through the line. “I’ve always carried the guilt relating to your mother and I wasn’t sure how you’d react to someone new.”
“Anyone who makes you happy is okay in my book.”
“She does. Don’t let your mother stop you from having a relationship. If you fell for Hannah, she has to be a good person.”
“She is,” Griff admitted. “The best. I’d like you to meet her too. You know, if she still wants to be with me.” He hadn’t exactly swept her off her feet the last time they’d spoken.
“If she loves you, you’ll make it through this.”
“God, I hope so.” He’d been doing an excellent job of complicating things.
“We’ll set something up for January.”
“I’ll call you again soon.”
Griff clicked off and stood staring out his window. Damn it. His emotions mixed inside him, each warring against the next.
He wasn’t sure what to do first. How did he fix things with Hannah? They’d both made mistakes and he didn’t know where to start.
I missed you. Hannah’s last words to him echoed in his mind. Maybe it started and ended there. Hannah had missed him. Did anything matter more than that? Mistakes were for the past. They were even, if it came to that. He wasn’t usually one for keeping score.
He was going to have to make their foolishness up to Hannah. He was going to have to live with the fact the town knew he wasn’t that bad of a guy. Not his preference because it would make him uncomfortable. But it was completely worth it if he could keep Hannah. He loved her. He couldn’t think of anything more important than the solid but new core truth.
He’d never felt like he belonged anywhere, except with Hannah. Even though he hadn’t known he’d been searching for her and this fragile feeling. Now that he knew what he hadn’t admitted to himself, he’d never turn away from this. He’d never again turn away from Hannah.
And that’s when he realized exactly what he needed to do to win her for good.
* * *
For another depressing week, Hannah kept replaying her conversation with Griff over and over in her mind. She sat in the audience of the New Years’ Eve celebration and fought a desperate need to make things right. She even sat on her hands and hooked her ankles around the chair to keep herself in place.
She had visions of jumping up, running onto the stage, and pronouncing to all that she was wrong, that she was sorry, that she was done with being Haughty Hannah.
There she went again with all the shes. She couldn’t do it. She had to prevent herself from going up and making a spectacle of Griff. She’d done it once, and she couldn’t do it again. Things between them were uncertain, but her temptation to make a grand display was not going to help anything. She might in fact make Griff angrier.
Her heart ached. Not only did she miss him, but this was all her fault, her burden. She was the cause and there was nothing worse than hurting someone you loved. She hadn’t even known she could hurt him in this way. She would never be so careless with his feelings again. She just needed one more chance.
A figure moved onto the stage. The movement caught her attention. Griff’s gaze connected with hers as he walked up to the microphone. He straightened his posture and looked for all the world as if he belonged in the spotlight, even though she knew it wasn’t a place he’d choose to be. She knew that now. But Griff stood in front of everyone.
Her throat clogged. He was here. He was up on the stage. Why was he here looking so determined?
“Hannah.” He said her name like a caress. “I’m sorry.”
Tears came. They had to. He was up there, apologizing to her in front of everyone, when this wasn’t even his fault.
He didn’t say more. He just stood there, staring at her. No one else mattered in that moment. She only vaguely thought of running up on the stage, but she was done with grand gestures and surprises.
She didn’t need them anymore. She didn’t need to be perfect, or fill her mother’s shoes. She didn’t need to be normal. She wouldn’t manage any of that anyway, so why even try?
All she needed was Griff, showing her in ways she’d never imagined, that he was here and he cared about her. She didn’t need more words.
All she needed was him. He was the one who cared about her. He was the one who accepted her much better than she’d ever accepted herself. He was the one for Hannah.
She even had more hes than she did shes in those equations.
Neither of them needed to say more to each other to understand. Neither of them had to be perfect with words. Most importantly, neither of them had to be alone. She didn’t need to be up on stage or in front of a crowd to know it. She just had to see the promise in his eyes.
Epilogue
One month later, Griff rocked back on his heels and surveyed the new baby trees he’d planted. He enjoyed both the view and the company.
Hannah stood beside him, watching with him. “How’d I do?”
“You’re a natural.”
“I love it here.”
He put his arm around her shoulder and drew her closer. “Does that mean you’ll live here with me?” Nerves intruded on him.
She grinned up at him. “Yes.”
“And marry me?”
“Do I get a ring?” He fished something out of his pocket and still battled back uncer
tainty about proposing. “I asked your sisters for help. They said you don’t like diamonds. I have no idea how that’s possible for a woman. I’m eighty percent sure they were screwing with me. Then I found this.”
He handed the box to her and lingered on her soft skin.
She took it, shaking her head. “I was kidding. I don’t need a ring.” She opened it and gasped. “Oh. I’ll take this.”
“Please tell me that’s a good ‘oh.’” He waited in restless anticipation.
“The best. A simple white gold band is perfect.”
He freed a breath. “I figured if they were messing with me you’d forgive me since you grew up with them.” Her sisters really were batshit crazy.
She laughed. “Yes, I would have understood. It means more that they told you the truth. It means they like you.”
“They have funny ways of showing it.”
“Agreed.”
“I’m going to kiss you now instead of telling you how much I love you.”
“I’ll allow it. I’ve always kind of had a thing for Scrooge.”
Everything inside him solidified into peace. “It’s a good thing too. Because he’ll always be around for you.”
He’d be happy as long as Hannah continued always kissing her Scrooge. He’d never be Hannah’s level of excited for Christmas, but she had changed him a little. The holiday season was when he’d fallen for Hannah. For that reason only, maybe he could celebrate.
* * * * *
About the Author
Kinley has a terminally tender heart and an inconvenient sense of humor. She loves puppies and cries at celebrity weddings. Kinley believes “happy ever after” isn’t only for the normal. Kinley Cade's contemporaries are known for their sexy heroes, resilient heroines and memorable characters. However, she also writes sexy paranormal heroes, resilient heroines and memorable characters as Kinley Baker. To learn more about her contemporary romances visit www.kinleycade.com. To check out her paranormal romances visit www.kinleybaker.com. And for just Kinley you can visit her at her blog at http://kinleybaker.wordpress.com or on Twitter @KinleyBaker.
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ISBN-13: 9781426897542
FOR MY OWN: A CONTEMPORARY ANTHOLOGY
Copyright © 2013 by Harlequin Books S.A.
The publisher acknowledges the copyright holders of the individual works as follows:
A CHRISTMAS FOR CARRIE
ISBN-13: 9781426897573
Copyright © 2013 by Alison Packard
CHRISTMAS CURVEBALL
ISBN-13: 9781426897566
Copyright © Sharon Muha
KISSING HER SCROOGE
ISBN-13: 9781426897610
Copyright © Marissa Berry
Edited by Angela James
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All characters in this book have no existence outside the imagination of the author and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names. They are not even distantly inspired by any individual known or unknown to the author, and all incidents are pure invention.
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For My Own: A Contemporary Christmas Anthology Page 35