Page 22 of A Holly Brown Christmas
“Holly, come on. Don’t be mad. He probably doesn’t have a date.”
“But he might!”
“You could ask him.”
“Are you insane? How crazy would that be? I’m just an employee who’s volunteering to help plan a party. He doesn’t owe me any explanations about what he does in his personal life.”
“See? Now you’re hurt and you don’t even know if there’s a reason!”
“Can you please just text Henry? It’s almost time to head back to the office.”
But her good mood was officially ruined.
Maybe Crystal was right. Maybe she was getting too involved and it was too much for her. Unfortunately, she was fully committed now and couldn’t back out. So she’d just have to deal with whatever it was that Lucas was doing.
Or who he was doing.
Ugh.
“Dad? Why am I looking at a flyer for some holiday yacht parade?”
Lucas had just gotten back from lunch and opened his email to what he assumed was a joke. The flyer looked almost cartoonish and read, “Experience the true meaning of Christmas! Win money, money, money! Spectacular, super-colossal, Christmas lights and display yacht parade!”
It was the most ridiculous thing he’d ever seen and had no idea why his father had emailed it to him, leaving him no choice but to pick up the phone and ask.
“I need you to read the fine print on the contract for the yacht and make sure it’s all on the up and up! I want to make sure the terms are just right so I can officially enter the contest. They’re giving away some huge cash prizes for the most festive yacht and I want to enter! What a great way to kick off the holidays, huh?”
“Are you kidding me right now? Last we spoke, you were on some golfing tour! Why are you now on a yacht? And when did you get a yacht? We’ve never had a boat before!” Internally, he was screaming because his parents were going to be the death of him.
“I always wanted a boat, but your mother wouldn’t allow it. She said it was a waste of money because we weren’t boat people. Pfft. What does she know? Maybe we could’ve been boat people if she had let me go to the coast more often instead of all those trips to Paris and Milan! Well…I’m going to show her! I’m going to buy this yacht, decorate the hell out of it, win the cash, and sail around the world everywhere except Paris and Milan! Ha! And I’ve got a group of single friends already looking forward to setting sail with me!”
Oh, good grief…
Sighing loudly, Lucas took a moment to collect his thoughts.
“Okay, you and mom are having issues,” he began carefully. “But this sort of thing isn’t helping the situation, Dad. And shouldn’t you be thinking about spending Christmas with your family instead of on some yacht with…all your divorced friends? What about Anna and Katherine and the grandkids, huh?”
“Oh, they’ll be fine spending the holidays with the in-laws this year. It’s not like we’re the only grandparents. Besides, your mother’s off at some all-inclusive spa, getting daily rubdowns from young guys with names like Alessandro, Santiago, and Valentino! Why shouldn’t I have a little fun too?”
“First of all, where are you getting your information? And do real people actually have those names?”
“She’s been sending me pictures of all the hot young guys working at that spa! Well, wait until I sign the contract for the boat! Then I’ll be the one sending pictures and I’ll pick up some nice bikini model to pose in them!”
“Dad, seriously, stop. Just…stop. No one’s picking up bikini models, and I’m sure Mom’s not getting all…you know…rubbed down by hot guys named Chad.”
“No one mentioned a Chad, Lucas. Honestly, it’s like you don’t even listen.”
I wish I weren’t listening right now…
“I am listening, Dad. I just don’t agree with what you’re doing.”
“What about your mother, huh? So now you’re on her side?”
“Believe it or not, I’m not on either side! I think you’re both behaving poorly and you’re making fools of yourselves. Everyone in the company knows that the two of you split up thanks to your email about the Christmas party. Which, by the way, really upset the staff.”
“I can’t help that. The party was your mother’s thing. I thought it was only fair to let everyone know she’s the reason it’s not happening this year. Or ever again.”
This time, he mentally counted to ten before responding.
