Page 16 of Her Christmas Lumberjack

I can’t decide whether this is good or bad news. Either she’s so busy putting together a rock-solid case that she hasn’t had time to message me, or there are no updates because things aren’t progressing. Hopefully, it’s the latter.

Despite Liz’s radio silence, I roll my eyes when I see three texts and a missed call from Samuel Thorne.

Give me updates!

Still waiting…

I’m not paying you to ignore me!

I turn my phone off and pore over the documents, reading each one until my eyes blur. There’s the will that names Samuel’s father, various plans of the land I found at the clerk’s office, family letters, and sworn statements. I read each one over and over until my eyes are dry and scratchy.

Let there be something.

Anything.

I might work for Liz, but my loyalty is toward Nolan now. I never thought I’d say this, but screw the law. This is his home. His livelihood. I’ll do anything it takes to bring Samuel’s case crumbling down. But as the hours pass, lack of sleep is catching up with me. When I can no longer read the words in front of me without dozing off for minutes at a time, I shove the papers into my bag and put it back in the corner. Then I get into bed with Nolan, the first light of dawn already creeping through thecurtains. I’m too tired to think anymore, and as soon as my head hits the pillow, I’m fast asleep.

It feels like only moments have passed when I’m woken up by Rudolph, his tongue licking my hand, but it’s been hours. The sky outside is completely light now, and I can hear Nolan in the kitchen cooking breakfast. My head feels like it’s full of cotton wool as I trudge toward the smell of bacon, smiling at the sight of Nolan leaning over the stove. He’s already dressed in jeans and a green flannel shirt, and I can’t help giggling when I see that he’s wearing a Santa hat.

“Good morning, beautiful,” he says, turning to me with a smile. “Merry Christmas.”

“Merry Christmas.” I join him by the stove, rising on my tiptoes to kiss his cheek. “I love your hat.”

“Thanks, I thought you would. Hey, how’d you like your eggs?”

“Sunny side up. Thank you.”

He stops cooking long enough to give me a long, lingering kiss. It melts and breaks my heart all at once. Last night’s failure to find anything useful is still raw, and as Nolan carries our breakfast to the table, his face lit up like a Christmas tree, I know there’s only one thing for it.

I have to tell Nolan everything.

If he knows what Samuel is planning, at least he can prepare himself. Nolan and Declan can hire a lawyer of their own and get ready to fight the claim with all they’ve got. If I can’t do anything to disprove the claim, the least I can do is make sure they’re forewarned.

It’s the right thing to do.

The only thing to do.

But it still sits heavy in my chest, squeezing my lungs until it feels like I can’t breathe. When I tell Nolan the truth, he’ll hate me. Whatever has bloomed between us over the past few dayswill be over forever, and I’ll never see him again. Thinking about it is like a knife slicing through me, but deep down, I know it was always going to end this way. Nolan would have found out the truth one way or another. It’s better he hears it from me.

“What do you want to do today, sugar?” Nolan asks from across the table, digging into his breakfast. “I know it won’t be a typical Christmas, but I still want you to have fun.”

My throat burns too much to respond. I take a sip of orange juice, catching sight of the snow falling outside.

A white Christmas.

It must be snowing where my parents are too. If only I’d gone to the mountains with them instead of taking this case. It would be awful if I never met Nolan, but breaking his heart seems even worse.

“Aurora?” he asks, frowning in concern. “You okay?”

Before I can answer, I hear a skidding sound coming from the hallway. Something being dragged along. Rudolph’s paws tapping against the wooden floor. He’s whining with excitement, and I watch as he enters the living room, my stomach plummeting when I see he has my bag between his jaws. He stuffs his head inside it, papers flying everywhere as he hunts for something he can’t quite reach. A moment later, he reappears, teeth clenched around a packet of Reese’s

“Shit,” Nolan says, jumping up. He grabs the orange packet and pulls it out of Rudolph’s mouth. “You can’t eat that, buddy. It’s chocolate.”

My heart is in my throat. Nolan checks the Reese’s and there are no holes in the pack. Rudolph didn’t get to it. But the floor is littered with my documents, and I jump up from the table, grabbing every piece of paper I can reach. I stuff as many as possible back into my bag.

“Don’t worry, sugar, I’ve got it,” Nolan says.

I’m not fast enough. He grabs one of the documents, and all I can do is watch in horror as he looks down at it. I recognize the paper from here. It’s his grandfather’s will—the one that leaves everything to Samuel’s father. Nolan’s face is blank at first. Then confused. Then angry. His features harden, his eyes still on the will as he asks, “Aurora, what is this?”

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