Page 64 of The Naughty Or Nice Clause

“When I signed the papers granting him the majority, I did it to protect you. After our initial meeting, I knew the company couldn’t continue as it was. I wanted you to take my place, but not my problems. Mr Klaus informed me our finances weren’t secure; you could have ended up in a terrible position. He was willing to reinvest in the company – he even paid those who were laid off double their severance. When the factory closed, he made sure the workers were taken on by different factories. It took money to do that. Money which you could have only come up with by selling your mother’s house, and she never would have wanted you to do that. Once the business was stable, it was written into his contract that he would leave.”

She had known the company’s situation, but she hadn’t wanted to admit it – to admit how much she had needed Mason’s help. But she hadn’t known that he had personally invested in the company. She wished she had.

I did it to protect you.Mason’s words cut through her as she realised he had done more for her than she knew. Collecting herself, she picked up her phone as her dad called her name.

“Sorry. I’m here. You should have told me before! Given me some say, some understanding. I wouldn’t have seen him as an…”

“Enemy? Not for a minute. He was our miracle!” Lyla’s dad laughed without a care in the world. “We’ll talk again soon. I’m late for a date.”

“Careful, Dad. Don’t want to hear of wife number five before I’ve met number four.”

“You wound me; you’d be lucky to have one husband. Being alone in that house isn’t good for you.”

She certainly didn’t want to havethisconversation. “It’s not my fault you left once Mum was gone.” She tried to make light of it, putting her empty mug in the copper sink.

“Honey, I didn’t leave you. I moved on. Life is for the living, and I wish you would do the same—”

The phone cut off as they lost signal, and Lyla didn’t have the energy to ring him back.

“What have I done?” she groaned, stroking Jones’s ears as he purred into her chest. There was nothing she could do to change the past. Instead, she scooped the cat into her arms and went to bed, hoping everything would look brighter in the morning.

Christmas Eve

LYLA WALKED BACK through the city streets after escaping the buzz and merriment of Sam’s annual Christmas Eve party. The only promising part of the night was discovering that the watermelon turkey wasn’t being served. Sam had convinced her to go by saying that getting out of the house would make her feel less alone, but as she’d watched everyone celebrating the season, all she could think about was Yule and the kind people she had got to know. How she wouldn’t see Lou again, or receive another hug from Mrs Klaus. She hadn’t even had a chance to say goodbye to Kevin. She hadn’t just lost Mason – she felt like she’d lost a family.

Despite the rain, she didn’t hail a taxi; she needed the walk to clear her head.

Reaching the steps to her door, she searched in her tiny purse for her keys. Her fingers were so numb from the cold that she dropped them.

“Damn it,” she groaned, reaching into the puddle and pulling them out.

“I thought you wouldn’t be home,” Mason said.

She jumped and turned. He was standing at the top of the steps.

“Jesus, you scared me to death. Don’t sneak up on a girl at midnight!”

Then she realised who she was scolding, and was too surprised to speak again. She made her way slowly up the steps, afraid that if she spoke, if she moved too quickly, he would disappear.

“I think it’s warranted, considering you tore my heart out,” he said, though there was no malice in his voice.

“I’m sorry, but can we stand inside? I’m so cold,” she begged, silently pleading for him not to leave. Once the door was open, she had to put Jones in the other room to stop him escaping. When she looked back, Mason was still standing in the entryway.

“Aren’t you going to come in?” she asked, trying not to hope.

Mason shook his head. “No, I can’t tonight. I don’t have long.”

She had to tell him how she was feeling. It was now or never.

“The last thing I wanted to do was hurt you. When I wrote that email to Sam, we weren’t even friends. There was nothing between us. Or, at least, Ithoughtthere was nothing between us. I was so focused on having something of my own that I never considered sharing it with someone I love.”

“Someone you love?” he asked, his eyes searching hers.

“I hate it when you’re cold and distant, but yes, I love you! Before I only saw one side of you, but I didn’t know everything you did for the company, the workers – for me. I didn’t know your heart before, and I’m sorry I never gave you a chance.” Her words were so frantic she hardly knew what she was saying. All she knew was that she had to say it.

Mason left the entryway, disappearing out the door without a word, and she thought the floor would open beneath her feet. She forced herself to swallow the tears, but then heard footsteps again. Mason stood before her in the hall, a small red box in his hand tied with a bow.

“Don’t worry, I’m not going to propose. I had to dry my feet on the mat,” he explained. She stared at the box, furious at him for worrying about her flooring at a time like this.

---