Gemma smiled. Despite the horrible evening and the sleepless night, she was beginning to feel a little more hope for the future. Sure, she was out of a job. But she had skills. There were even headhunters who wanted her to apply for their jobs. She’d be fine at the end of the day.
Katherine grabbed her hand and squeezed. “I guess you’ll be calling that headhunter back from L.A.”
She puffed out her cheeks and squeezed her eyes closed tight. “But I don’t want to leave you…”
“Gemma Ann Rink.” Katherine straightened her spine and put on her best teacher glare. “I didn’t raise my daughter to be afraid of change. You’re only twenty-eight. You’re allowed to explore new places and new jobs. You can’t be stuck at a dead-end job at the New Hope grocery market because your mother was sick a year ago. I won’t allow it.”
She smiled despite herself. Her mother knew her all too well. The grocery market had been her first fallback idea. She was right, of course. She shouldn’t spend her life there in New Hope if there was no future for her career. The west coast had opportunity and growth. Maybe they wouldn’t get to Europe this year, but that didn’t mean it couldn’t happen in the future. A job like that would make it happen.
“I know now what I want to do with my bonus,” she said, rising from the couch. Katherine smiled and sipped at her tea. “I’m going to run, but I’ll be back in an hour with Ben & Jerry’s and a chick flick. Don’t move.”
She grabbed her coat, the check still in the pocket, and sped out the door.
Fifteen minutes later, she was standing inside the New Hope Children’s Home. It was still early in the morning, so the only person awake was the receptionist who smiled at her as she walked in. She made a straight line for the Christmas tree, alive with every possible shade of red and green. There was the ugly Santa ornament she’d given to Lance as a joke. It hung at eye level, a painful reminder of why she was there.
She pulled over a chair and sat beneath the tree for the longest time, soaking in the sounds and smells of the home. Even without Chloe’s complicated spreadsheets of calculations in front of her, she knew the truth. Without the Foundation’s support, the Home wouldn’t last another year. It was only a matter of time before the boys were separated and sent to new homes. There’d be no guarantee of the safety of those homes or the love that filled them. Gemma’s heart ached for the boys and their indefinite futures. Here, they were loved and cared for. Out there, who knew what would happen?
It was with surprise that she looked up and saw someone standing next to her. Lance was still wearing last night’s suit, but his face had lost the newly shaved look. Dark circles under his eyes told her that he’d had about as much sleep as she had. He smiled grimly at her and rubbed a hand over his head.
“I thought I’d find you here,” he said in a whisper. “I’ve been at the office all night long, but I just had a feeling you’d be here. I need to apologize.”
She held up a finger and pressed her lips into a thin line. “No, you don’t get to apologize. You don’t get to feel better for deceiving me and my friends. Not today, at least. I’m not going to give you that satisfaction.”
“But I need to explain,” he held up his gloved hands. “The Foundation has become a black hole for the company and Uncle Matthias needed me to close things up. I never expected to find someone like you here. I didn’t realize…”
“The Foundation isn’t a black hole.” Gemma could feel the anger rising in her voice and suddenly she wanted another pillow to throw. “It’s a charitable organization that keeps things like the Children’s Home running. How can you call it that?”
“I know that now.” He took a step back, his gaze sliding from her face to her hands, fisted at her sides. “And I tried to fight it, I really did. But he wouldn’t listen. He said I wasn’t ready to take on a partnership in the company. I think he’s going to fire me, too.”
“Poor, poor you.” Her less than enthusiastic frown slid off her face. “I sincerely hope you can recover in your pent-house with all your money. In the meantime, I’m going to be helping the Home close up shop. So, if that’s all, you can go ahead and leave now.”
Pain flickered in Lance’s blue eyes. For a quick moment, she felt regret for speaking so harshly. He had been a pawn in his uncle’s game as much as she. But the feeling didn’t last long. He’d still lied to her, made her believe he was falling for her all the while dissolving her job behind her back.
Taking her Christmas bonus check out of her jacket, she waved it in front of his eyes and slapped it on a nearby desk. With a furious scribble, she signed the back of it and folded it into a small square.
“I think they need it more than me,” she said with a determined frown.
Lance stepped closer, his sleeve brushing her arm. Despite her rage, she felt her heart beat faster at the contact and hated herself for it.
“But your trip,” he said. His eyes narrowed in concern. “What about Europe?”
“Europe will still be there.” She backed away, unsure if she could handle being that close to him. A donation box sat on top of the receptionist’s desk. “The Home needs it more than I need that trip. I’m donating my bonus.”
She dropped it into the box and tried to glare at him, but she was too tired. Anger had taken all her energy and now all she was left with was a hollow and painful disappointment. The handsome man standing in front of her with his dropping shoulders only made her heart hurt. She stuffed her hands in her pockets and gave him a nod.
“Merry Christmas, Lance. I wish you all the best. Good luck in Minneapolis.”
Turning on her heel, Gemma walked calmly out the door. Her heart pattered away a million miles a minute, but her breath remained steady. She’d never liked goodbyes.
It was definitely a Chunky Monkey kind of morning and she had half a dozen pints to buy.
Chapter Thirteen
Lance watched the sleek silver office building come into view as his driver pulled up to the home of Barkley & Barkley. He hadn’t even bothered dropping his suitcase off at his penthouse. Being alone right now felt like the worst possible thing to do. He’d lost Gemma and everything good with her. Sitting in a dark apartment would only remind him of his loss.
Frankie was sitting at his desk when he arrived on the floor. From the assortment of takeout containers strewn on his desk, he’d been waiting a long time for Lance to show up. With a guilty smile, he stood up and pulled his hat off his head.
“Go ahead,” he said, squeezing his eyes shut.
Lance paused. “What exactly am I supposed to do?”
Frankie looked at him through one eye and then squeezed it shut again. “Deck me. I deserve it. I ratted you out to your uncle.”
He sighed and patted Frankie on the arm. “We’ve been friends for over a decade, Frankie. I know you didn’t mean to get me in trouble. It’s my fault, too. I should’ve come clean to him before the party.”
Frankie opened his eyes and then wiped his shiny forehead with his hat before pulling it back on. He grinned and held out a Styrofoam container. “Fried rice? I find greasy food always makes me feel better.”
Lance waved it away, not particularly in the mood to get salmonella from a room temperature leftover that had been sitting on that desk for probably the past twenty hours. “No, thanks.”
“Look, dude.” Frankie set down the Chinese food on his keyboard. “I thought what you did was really awesome.”
Lance grimaced and dropped his suitcase. It felt like it weighed five hundred pounds. "And what is that? Destroyed a town and broke a woman’s heart?”
“No, dude. You found a cause you believed in. You stood up for that town and their foundation. Gemma’s crazy not to think you fought for her.”
He swallowed hard. It hurt to hear her name. “Yeah, but I lied and hid the reason we were there. They never saw it coming.”
Frankie plopped into his chair and grabbed a forkful of the fried rice. “You were doing what your uncle told you to
do. It wasn’t personal. But man, you really changed in those two weeks. I’ve never seen you so passionate about work. Usually, you kind of phone it in.”
He raised his eyebrows at his sloppy assistant with rice stuck to his shirt.
“Well, duh, man. I phone it in everyday, but that’s my M.O. You’re the next boss in line. You don’t have that luxury. But in New Hope, you were different.”
Leaning his back against his office door, Lance stared at his assistant, trying to understand what he was telling him. “Yeah, well the work I was doing actually mattered.”
“It matters here, too.” Frankie chewed with his mouth open, masticating the egg and rice between his teeth. “Not everyone’s got a nice big trust fund to fall back on. Our jobs matter to us. This company matters. Did you know, Mandy in copying is adopting a baby girl from Africa? Or that Edgar in ad sales has twins headed to Stanford next year? I heard that the security guard is saving up to retire in Nova Scotia, or something crazy like that. I mean, who wants to retire to someplace cold? Insanity, if you ask me.”
Understanding finally hit Lance’s brain, pulling him out of the cloud of confusion. “I know, this place matters, too.” He looked up from his hands. “All this time, I’ve looked at life as just one big booze and skeezy party. I’ve been acting like a total jerk, haven’t I?”
Frankie grinned. “Well, I wasn’t going to put it that way…but yeah.”
“Dad loved this company,” he continued. “Just as much as he loved the people who worked for him. I’ve been so stupid.”
“Hey, now,” Frankie flicked his fork and a pea went flying. “Don’t talk about my boss that way.”
Lance grinned. He tightened his tie around his neck and jogged toward the hallway. “I’ve got something I need to handle, but you know what, Frankie? You deserve a raise.”
Frankie leaned over his desk and shouted, “I’m holding you to that.”
He smiled and waved over his shoulder. The office was quiet on this Christmas Eve morning. Most of the employees had taken off for an early holiday break. But Lance knew one office that would be hard at work. He pushed the door open, stepping into Uncle Matthias’ stuffy and hot office where the man himself sat behind a desk piled high with files.
Uncle Matthias looked up at him, one bushy gray eyebrow raising. “You’re back. I didn’t expect you until after the holidays.”
“Not me,” Lance replied. He could barely stand still. “Not when there’s work to do. I need to talk to you about something, Uncle Matthias. Something important.”
His uncle frowned, unimpressed. “Yes?”
Dropping his rear into a leather chair, Lance chewed on the inside of his cheek for a moment. “Look, I know I’ve been a real disappointment to you. I’ve failed to take this job seriously. I thought I was doing everything right; going to college, getting my masters, interning. But I was skimming along, doing the minimum effort. I see that now.”
Matthias nodded his head and pursed his thin lips. “That’s a relief.”
“And you have every right to kick me to the curb,” he sped along, hoping to get it out before his uncle could interrupt. “I deserve it. But you can’t close down the New Hope Foundation. I won’t let you.”
Matthias sat back in his chair, a thunderous frown rolling over his face. “What’s done is done. And thanks to Frankie, I know all about your little girlfriend. You know as well as I do that making business decisions because of personal reasons almost always backfires.”
“Yes, I was dating the foundation’s director.” He splayed his hands out in front of him. “But, that’s not the only reason you can’t close the foundation. The community depends on that support. Did you know, Ricardo’s Dog Shelter is the only no-kill shelter in the tri-county area? He’s rescued over five hundred dogs and found them new homes in the past three years.”
Uncle Matthias folded his arms, less than enthused.
“And did you know, the New Hope Foundation funds children’s after-school activities in the area and that they have proven to keep kids from getting into trouble during those crucial few hours before their parents get home?”
Lance could feel his uncle’s attention waning. He took a deep breath and willed his racing heart to slow.
“Finally, the Foundation supports a local children’s home. These children have failed out of foster homes and have nowhere else to go. If we close it down, they’ll get lost in a system that doesn’t know how to provide for them. Kids like my buddy, Brandon, won’t have a home. We can’t do that to them.”
That was it. His heartfelt argument. He only hoped that his uncle could see the truth. New Hope deserved their help. He’d never seen a community so closely knit, so ready to help a stranger. Even hundreds of miles away, he could feel a string connected from his heart to that town. It pulled at his insides, willing him to come back into the safety of its arms.
“I’m not a monster, you know.” Uncle Matthias unfolded his arms and rubbed a hand on his chin. He was perfectly shaven, like every day. Lance wondered if he did it himself with a straight razor every single morning. “I don’t like shutting down our charity. But the truth of the matter is that this is an area we can no longer afford.”
“But that’s not totally true.” Lance perked up. He’d been going over the company’s numbers a dozen times in the past week. “With the tax breaks the company gets from supporting this foundation, it’s barely a nuisance.”
He dug into his pocket for the sheet he’d folded up and stuffed in there yesterday before the party. It was the argument he’d meant to make to his uncle, but never got the chance. Finding the correct piece of paper, he shoved it across the table and into his uncle’s hands.
Matthias did him the favor of pulling on an old pair of wire glasses and looking down at the small print. His eyes grew wider as he studied it, until finally he put the paper down and looked up at his nephew. “These are the numbers from our accounts?”
Lance jumped up and pointed to the charts. “The very same. I had accounting pull them five days ago.”
“And you’re saying we can afford to keep the foundation open?”
“Yes!” He jumped up and grinned. “This is what I’ve been trying to tell you. The numbers are clear.”
Uncle Matthias looked back down at the paper and considered them for a full sixty seconds of agonizing silence. All Lance wanted to do was shout, jump in the air, or even do a small fist pump. But he held perfectly still, barely daring to breathe for fear of disrupting his uncle’s concentration.
“Alright,” he finally said. “I’ll let you keep your foundation. You’ve won yourself a deal.”
Lance yelped. At the same time, his uncle raised his eyebrows at him and he felt blood rush to his ears.
Uncle Matthias dropped the crinkled paper and smiled. For the first time in Lance’s memory, it was a joyful one. “Go spread the good cheer.”
“Yes, sir.” He spun to head out the door, but not before his uncle’s voice stopped him.
“Oh, and son?” He pulled off his glasses and began to wipe them with a microfiber cloth. “I’m proud of you and your work. You’re going to be a wonderful partner.”
Lance could hardly breathe as he smiled and backed out of the office. It was everything he’d been working for these past ten years. He couldn’t believe how this holiday had taken a turn for the better. There was only one person left who could use some extra cheer.
He only hoped she’d listen to him.
Chapter Fourteen
The city park was once again alive with lights and colors and songs. The whole town had shown up for Christmas morning in the park. Children ran back and forth, showing off their newest toys and gifts from Santa. Adults loaded up on free coffee, the steaming hot cups warming their frozen hands. The local barbershop quartet sang carols from under the bandstand. There were fun and games everywhere Gemma looked, enough distraction to drive away the winter blues that had settled in her heart the past few days. At least - for a f
ew minutes, anyway.
“You’re really going?” Laurie looped her arm around hers and pulled her in tight. “You’re going to California?”
Gemma squeezed her hand. “It’s just an interview. But yes, I’m going. Mom was right. If there’s no career for me here, I need to branch out. I can’t be afraid of change anymore.”
Chloe took her other arm and smiled fiercely. “Good for you. Our Gemma bird is flying the nest. I’m proud of you. But, I’m not ashamed to admit I’ll miss you.”
“I’ll miss both of you so much.” She passed their stroll and pulled them both into a hug. “Work just won’t be the same without my ladies. I am so incredibly lucky to have both of you in my life.” She hugged them again and then pulled away to wipe at the tears clinging to her lashes.
“Have you heard from Lance?” Laurie asked meekly, watching her friend for her reaction.
Gemma grimaced and took a sip of her coffee. “I’ll be happy if I never hear from him again. He wasn’t who I thought he was.”
“The boy lied,” Chloe replied. She shrugged in her puff jacket and sighed. “I won’t deny that. He messed up big time. But I don’t think he was all bad.”
“Yeah, it took him a while to warm up, but when he did, I think it was genuine,” Laurie added. “He really liked you. No one could fake emotion like that.”
“Girls…” Gemma held her hands up. It was a beautiful, crisp December morning. She was surrounded by people she loved. She didn’t want to be thinking about him at this moment. “Let’s not. He was a mistake, and I learned my lesson. Time to move on.”
“He wasn’t just a mistake.” Chloe glared at her, her dark eyes narrowing. “Admit it: you were in love. It might not have ended like you wanted it to, but love is never a mistake.”
Mistletoe in the Snow: A New Hope Sweet Christmas Romance - Book 1 Page 7
