Page 32 of Bought By Santa

“Thank you,” I say, even though I’m not sure I should thank him. “Can I call my sister now?”

He smiles, but it doesn’t reach his eyes. “I’ll leave the room while you talk to her,” he says. “But remember, I’ll be watching. One wrong move, and—”

Waving my hand in the air, I interrupt him. “Yeah, yeah. You’ll make her pay, and I’ll regret ever being born. I get it,” I hiss. It’s probably not a good idea to talk to him like this, but I can’t stomach listening to him threaten Willow. “I said you can trust me, Nicklas. Give me the chance to prove it.”

He doesn’t say anything else, just strides out of the room, leaving me alone with my thoughts and phone. With him gone, I sit back down on the couch before I unlock the phone. When I open the message thread between me and my sister, I’m taken aback.

“What the hell?” I murmur, feeling more violated than I can put into words.

There are messages from me that I’ve never sent, and messages from Willow that I’ve never read. Sure, I knew Nicklashad done something like this to keep my sister from realizing I was… well, not missing… but… unavailable. But seeing it is something different altogether.

I swallow down my desire to hunt his ass down and slap him. Mostly because I know I can’t do that. So before I can let my temper get the better of me, I press the video icon on my sister’s name and wait.

It rings once.

Twice.

Three times.

Then my sister’s beaming face pops onto my screen. “Caro!” she squeals.

“Will,” I half-sob, half-laugh. “How are you?”

“I’m doing great.”

I nod along, loving listening to Willow when she’s talking about something she loves. I don’t think she realizes she’s practically shouting and her arm gestures are almost erratic. That’s my sister for you; exuberant and passionate.

“That sounds great,” I laugh as she finishes telling me about the fifty baubles she’s crammed into her room since I left. “Did you stick to the same colors as we used on the tree?”

“No. I was going to go with the blue and white, but then my friend convinced me to pick red. ‘Tis the season and all that.” She laughs so hard tears form in her eyes and roll down her cheeks.

My sister’s laugh is so infectious I join in even though I don’t get it. Red is a traditional color, sure, but it’s not a funny color by any stretch of the imagination. “What gives?” I laugh. “I’m missing something, aren’t I?”

Will turns her head and looks at something—or someone—I can’t see. “Do you wanna say hi?” she asks.

“Sure,” a woman says.

“I want you to meet my new friend,” Will explains. “I think you’ll like her.” She reaches off-screen, and before I can say anything, her friend steps into view.

The woman is poised with an elegance that feels out of place. Her raven-black hair is styled to perfection, not a hair out of place, and her emerald green eyes flash with an unspoken warning. Whoever she is, she’s so beautiful it’s impossible not to feel inferior in her presence—even if said presence is through a camera.

“Ruby, this is my sister, Caro.” Willow’s words are proud, but they barely register.

“Hello, Caro,” Ruby says smoothly, her voice laced with an edge that doesn’t match her cordial smile. “I’ve heard so much about you. I’m Ruby.”

“Hi-hello,” I stammer, making a complete fool of myself. The woman rubs me wrong, she makes me feel like she’s assessing me for weak spots. For my sister’s sake, I keep my face neutral, my smile plastered on even as my mind screams in silent alarm. “Nice to meet you.” I manage to keep my tone light.

“Likewise,” Ruby replies, her gaze unflinching, almost challenging. “As fun as this is, Willow and I have to go. We’re going ice skating—”

“Ice skating?” I sputter in surprise. My sister is in a fucking wheelchair.

Ruby raises a black eyebrow, her gaze instantly becoming glacial. “Yes, is that so hard to believe? Your sister might have certain physical limitations, but that doesn’t mean she can’t have some fun.”

The words hit me square in the chest, making guilt and anger flare to life. I know damn well what my sister is capable of.

“She didn’t mean it like that, Ruby,” Will says, defending me. “She’s just being overprotective.” Then my sister turns to me.“Ruby has arranged for the rink to be mostly empty so she can push me around. Come on, don’t say I can’t go, Caro.”

I open my mouth to answer but no words come out. I just stare at the two women, unsure of what to say. “Wear a scarf,” I say, knowing full well how lame that sounds. “And, umm… have fun.”

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