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“Okay, you’re obviously upset, maybe we just need to—”
“The money, Mom. Now.”
Her mother nods, her face falling as she hands over the wad of cash.
“Good. Clean yourself up. Clean this place up, too, it’s disgusting.”
“Hey, now hold on a minute,” Martin starts, but falls instantly silent when Holly’s gaze turns on him.
I step forward, going to her side, and wrap an arm around her shoulders. She softens against me, but doesn’t take her eyes from her father.
“Dad, you need to be quiet for a second and just listen to me. I’m not a little girl anymore. I appreciate everything you’ve done for me. I love you. But, you can’t protect me from the entire world, and you don’t need to protect me from Cole. This is what I want, and you’re going to have to accept that.”
Martin growls, fixing his gaze on me. “And if I can’t?”
Holly draws a deep breath, and for a moment I think she’s going to back down, then she sighs. “That’s your choice. I’m not responsible for your choices. I’m responsible for mine, and I choose to be with Cole. If you can’t live with that, then as much as I hate it, I’ll accept it as your choice and I’ll always hope you’ll change your mind.”
Martin opens his mouth to speak, then closes it again.
“Hey, look man,” I say, for the first time in my life feeling like I need to say something rather than just grunt. “This isn’t just a fling. It’s been a long time coming. I love Holly. I’m going to take care of her.”
He lets out a breath through his nose, then addresses his daughter, and I can’t say I blame him for being mad at me. “And how do you feel about him?”
She shrugs. “I feel the same. I’ve felt the same since I first met him, I just never thought I’d stand a chance until last night.”
Martin sets his jaw so firm I think he might crack his teeth, and I see the expressions cross his face as he processes what he’s just been told. I see anger, frustration, even a little fear, but then he nods. “You’re right, I can’t protect you from everything in the world.” His gaze settles on me again. “Be that as it may, Cole, if you hurt my little girl I’ll—”
“I never will,” I say, shaking my head.
He narrows his eyes, but there’s a small amount of respect in them. “Fair enough. I guess we all need to sit down, together, and talk this through.” He sighs. “Like adults. Sorry, Holly, I guess I’ve still been treating you like a child.”
“Thank you,” she says, and in an instant she becomes the same girl I fell for, soft and easy going. “It’s Christmas Eve and I plan on having the best Christmas ever. I hope you’ll both be able to be a part of it, because Cole will be.”
Her mother huffs, looking defeated but defiant. “I’ve got plans.” She snaps and Holly shrugs.
“Your choice.”
“Well.” I start. “We planned on spending this evening at your house.” I nod toward Martin. “Holly and I have some shopping to do, so if the invitation is still open we’ll meet you there as we planned around seven. Sound good?”
I look at my friend, whose face is tight, but he nods. “Seven it is. This is going to take some time, you know.” He adds and I nod.
“I know it will. But you’ll see, it’s the real deal, man. I’m sorry, if I were in your shoes, I’d want to kill me too, I get it. But just trust me. I’ll treat her right. Nothing and no one will ever hurt her.”
“Good. Because if you ever hurt her, I’m coming for you.” Martin jabs a finger toward me.
“I’d expect nothing less.”
“Okay you two.” Holly interjects. “That’s enough. Everyone take a deep breath, we’ll go shopping, we’ll see you later.” She looks at her dad, then at her mom who is looking at her manicure. “Mom, we will stop by in the morning for Christmas breakfast if we are welcome. If not, that’s your choice.”
Her mom rolls her eyes and spits the words at Holly. “I’m not cooking.”
I deal with that, looking around the house with a practically bare Christmas tree shoved in a corner and no other decorations anywhere. The place is a mess and smells like a bar.
“Here’s what we’re going to do. Christmas morning is at my house. I’ll cook breakfast. Holly will be staying with me from now on, so it’s going to be our house.” I take her hand and pull her to the frond door, ready to be done with this for now. “I hope we’ll see you there. Ten AM.”
With that, I pull her out the door and down the steps to the car. Inside, I look over and see her staring at me.
