The words hit me hard. I’d known Derek had hurt Holly, but I’d assumed it was emotional damage from a bad breakup. I hadn’t realized he’d committed actual theft, hadn’t understood that her financial devastation was the result of someone she trusted betraying her in the most comprehensive way possible.
“Jesus Christ,” I breathed.
“It gets worse,” Matt continued. “She found out about the money the same day she discovered he was cheating on her. Guy had been planning his exit strategy for months—stole her savings to finance his new life with his assistant, then disappeared.”
I felt something dark and furious rise in my chest at the thought of someone doing that to Holly. Sweet, generous Holly, who organized festivals for her community and solved electrical problems with handmade diagrams and worried about disappointing people. Someone had taken advantage of her trust and left her broke and homeless, and I wanted to find this Derek asshole and make him regret every decision he’d ever made.
“That’s why she’s so guarded right now,” Matt continued. “It’s not just heartbreak, Declan. It’s complete financial devastation by someone she thought she could trust. She’s questioning her judgment about everything.”
“Why are you telling me this?” I asked, though I suspected I already knew the answer.
“Because I can hear it in your voice when you talk about her,” Matt said simply. “And because I saw how you looked at her when we were teenagers. And because she deserves someone who understands what she’s been through.”
“Matt—”
“I’m not giving you permission to date my sister,” he said quickly. “That’s between you and her. I’m just saying, if you’re interested, be aware that she’s going to need time to trust again.And be aware that she might not believe someone could want her for the right reasons.”
The idea that Holly might doubt her own worth, might question whether someone could be genuinely interested in her rather than just taking advantage of her situation, made my chest tight with protective fury.
“She’s incredible,” I said quietly. “Anyone who can’t see that is an idiot.”
“I know that, and you know that, but Derek spent months making her feel like she was lucky he was putting up with her,” Matt said with disgust. “Guys like that—they tear you down so gradually you don’t realize it’s happening until they’re gone, and you’re left wondering if maybe they were right about you.”
I thought about Holly’s defensive comments about her competence, her worry about disappointing people, the way she seemed surprised when I complimented her skills. All signs of someone whose confidence had been systematically undermined by someone she’d trusted.
“Thanks for telling me,” I said finally.
“Just... be careful with her, okay? She’s been through enough.”
After we hung up, I stood outside the coffee shop for several minutes, processing what Matt had told me and trying to understand how it changed things between Holly and me. Because it changed everything, even if I wasn’t sure exactly how.
I understood now why Holly was pulling back, why our conversation about professional boundaries had made her more distant rather than more comfortable. She wasn’t just being cautious about romance—she was protecting herself from someone who might hurt her again.
And I understood why every compliment I gave her seemed to surprise her, why she questioned her own competence despite being obviously gifted at everything she attempted. Derek hadn’tjust stolen her money—he’d stolen her confidence in her own judgment.
When I returned to the coffee shop, Holly was on her phone, and from her tone, it was clearly a festival-related call.
“Yes, I understand that’s short notice,” she was saying with admirable patience, “but we confirmed this arrangement two weeks ago. The festival is in nine days—we can’t just find a replacement vendor at this point.”
I slid back into my seat, watching Holly handle what was clearly a crisis with the kind of calm professionalism that would have impressed any corporate crisis management team.
“Mr. Patterson, I completely understand that it’s family first,” Holly continued, “but you’re our only local baker, and we have three hundred people expecting fresh holiday treats. Is there any way we could work out a compromise?”
She listened for a moment, then started taking notes with quick, efficient movements.
“Okay, what if we adjusted the delivery schedule? Instead of fresh items each morning, what if you prepared everything the night before, and we picked it up early?”
I watched her negotiate the logistics with impressive skill, finding solutions that worked for both the vendor and the festival while maintaining the friendly tone that kept difficult conversations from becoming confrontational.
“Perfect,” she said finally. “We’ll have volunteers pick up everything Friday evening, and we’ll store it properly overnight. Thank you so much for working with us on this.”
After she hung up, Holly looked up at me with an expression of mixed relief and exhaustion.
“Crisis averted?” I asked.
“Crisis temporarily managed,” Holly corrected. “We’ve worked out a solution, but it means completely restructuring our food vendor timeline.”
“What do you need me to do?”
