Page 83 of Single Dad's Christmas Cookie

But I wasn’t wrapped up in the warmth and happiness I thought should have come with everything. I felt hollow, empty. My best friend had betrayed me and I was too far from home. I wasn’t alone, but I certainly felt like I was. I needed a hug from my mom.

I was torn between feeling sad that I had moved so far away and realizing if I hadn’t, I wouldn’t have met Bryan.

I was officially still on cooking duty, but now that I lived here, I didn’t have to find random tasks to keep myself busy in my downtime. I wasn’t being paid anymore. Now when I cooked, I was feeding my family. My family. I sighed. It gave me a spark of happiness and belonging, but not one big enough to erase the malaise I was experiencing.

Amelia was having another one of her tea parties with Humphrey, the stuffed cat, and the new doll.

“You okay there?” Bryan asked as he walked through the kitchen.

“Huh? Yeah. Getting a snack?”

He held up a small bag of chips. He stopped and our eyes locked. I tried to smile. It must not have been enough for him. He crossed and sat in an empty chair at the table. Tossing the chips to the side, he placed his hand over mine.

“You’re not okay. What’s bothering you?”

I bit my lip and grimaced. “You want the list?”

“Your car is being towed to the shop. You’ve given notice, and a moving crew is scheduled to get everything out of the apartment next week.” He cast a quick glance at Amelia. “And my mother hasn’t been here to pester either of us for two whole days. That might be a record for her.”

I had a hard time meeting his eyes.

“Nova?” He rested his palm against my cheek.

“It’s going to sound stupid.”

“Your feelings aren’t stupid. What’s wrong?”

“I miss my mom. The whole Veronica thing has me really down, and…” I slid out of my chair and onto his lap.

I’m not sure if I moved on my own or if he pulled me to him. He felt so sturdy and strong. He could protect me from everything except from my own hurt feelings. I leaned into him and his arms came around me.

“You really miss her?”

I nodded. “My dad too. I thought I was going to be able to go home over break until the school screwed me over. So it’s a double blow, you know?”

He made a low hum that vibrated through his chest.

“When does school start up again?”

“I don’t know if Leeds is on the same schedule as Wentworth, but we’re back a little later, the second week of January,” I said.

“That’s over a week away. We have time. Why don’t you pack bags for you and Amelia for a few days? We can go down for a long weekend.”

My head popped up. “Are you serious right now?”

Bryan chuckled. “You ask me that a lot. If you haven’t figured it out by now, you should know I don’t usually joke around. If I say let’s go to Atlanta and see your parents, I mean it.”

“Won’t last-minute tickets be expensive?”

Bryan lifted one eyebrow at me.

“Right, right. I’m probably never going to be used to that. The whole having money to do what you want with at the same moment you want to do it. You don’t have to save for anything, do you?”

He opened his mouth to say something.

“Wait, don’t answer that. That’s clearly need to know, and I don’t need to know.”

He chuckled more, and I leaned into his chest, enjoying the rumble and movement. “At some point, we should go over finances.”

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