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Chace met and held her dark gaze. “Did you try to talk her out of contacting me to come home?”
“No.”
Did you want to? Chace refrained from asking though he really wanted to. “Were you responsible for Alex expediting the arrival of my replacement?” he inquired instead.
“I didn’t have to after you told her you were on assignment in Egypt. As soon as she hung up, Lyss contacted Wyatt Steele directly.”
Damn.
Straight to the top of Steele Security and Investigations, huh? His little sister’s bold move didn't surprise him, but Chacewasduly impressed. He also couldn’t help but wonder if—or rather when—Wyatt would bust his balls about Lyss’s blatant disregard for the chain of command.
Not that Chace cared, since his family would always come first regardless of what Holly thought.
“Did Alex let you know I would be arriving tonight?”
She lowered her gaze and rubbed at a spot on her pajama bottoms. “He’s kept me informed.”
Did she mean in this particular instance or for the entire time he’d been employed at SSI? Not that he was about to ask her. Besides, it didn’t matter anyway.
Or rather, it shouldn’t.
“If the girls don’t know the real reason Lyss is visiting Sean, what are we supposed to tell them?”
Her shoulders lifted and fell in a shrug. “Why do we have to tell them anything?”
“They’re bound to ask questions, Holly. Especially with me showing up.” Plus, Chace felt they deserved to know about their father. Not all the gory details, of course, but at least that he’d been injured in the line of duty.
“Lyss promised to video chat with them every day. She can answer their questions then.”
“Leaving us to deal with the fallout. And depending on the severity of Sean’s injuries, who knows how long that might be?”
“I know.” Sighing, Holly rubbed her forehead with the tips of her thumb and forefinger, clearly indicating a headache was brewing. “On top of that, Christmas is only three weeks away.”
And the hits just kept on coming.
When on assignment, particularly those outside the country, Chace often lost track of things at home, like upcoming birthdays and holidays. This year was even worse, with his parents scheduled for a two-week Mediterranean cruise and Lyss deciding that with Sean deployed, she and the girls would spend Christmas in Florida with her in-laws. Since his family had all made other plans and many of his colleagues had spouses and children at home, Chace had volunteered to work through the holiday season.
That was why, until three days ago, he was in Cairo heading the security detail for a foreign dignitary and his family as they traveled through Egypt and parts of the Middle East. The gig was to last until the end of January.
“What are you thinking?” Holly asked as the silence stretched between them.
“You don’t want to know.” Considering the assignment he’d relinquished to return stateside hadn’t been without risk, shereallydidn’t want to know. Or maybe Chace just didn’t want to see the recrimination on her beautiful face.
“Already planning your escape?”
Direct verbal strike, no facial expression necessary. “Nice,” Chace commented sardonically. “And no. I’m not.”
Surprisingly, Holly let it drop.
For now, anyway. Because Chace knew better than to think Holly would never address the elephant in the room again while he was in Hickory Ridge.
“Then what do you suggest we tell the twins when they start asking questions?”
“We’ll answer them as honestly as possible without getting into specifics.” Though he refused to lie to his nieces outright, he had no intention of scarring them for life either. “We’ll go with the flow. Take things day by day. Or minute by minute. As soon as Lyss knows the full extent of Sean’s injuries and prognosis, I’m sure she’ll explain everything to Emme and Wren in terms they can understand but won’t cause unnecessary angst.”
“What if she’s not back by Christmas?” Holly continued to play the devil’s advocate—a trait she’d mastered long ago.
Sometimes Chace couldn’t fault her for it. He suspected this might be one of those times. “Day by day, remember? And if the three weeks pass and Lyss isn’t here by Christmas Eve, we’ll celebrate the best way we can. Lyss can participate via video chat. Hopefully, Sean too. Whatever happens, we’ll keep everything as normal as possible for the girls, including all their holiday traditions.”
