Without giving a thought to his action, he leaned toward her.Though he longed to kiss her rosy lips, he aimed for her cheek.The kiss was light and quick.
Then he turned and headed for the stairs.In no time, he headed out into the wintery day.Would she call him?He honestly didn’t know.
With every step he took, there was something inside of him that said he shouldn’t leave her.And yet that’s what she’d asked of him.
There had to be some way to help her.And then he had a thought.He pulled his phone from his pocket and called his mother.She was well-connected in this town.If anyone knew how to reach Mr.Robert Price, Esq., it would be her, or she would know who had the number to reach him.
As he briefly explained the situation to his mother, he climbed into his pickup and started the engine.His mother didn’t have Mr.Price’s cell number.And so, he sat there as she asked his father if he knew.Together, they came up with two people in town who might have the phone number.
He got the phone number from the first person.And then he placed the call.Mr.Price was surprised when he took the call.Colin didn’t waste any time.He explained the situation and didn’t know what to think about Mr.Price’s quietness.Was he angry that his holiday break had been interrupted?Would he do anything to help Holly?
In the end, Mr.Price told him he was on vacation, but he would look into it.He didn’t say how soon or even if he would get back to him.There was a simple,thank you for callingand then the phone went dead.And Colin didn’t know if he’d done anything to help Holly or not.He wouldn’t say anything to get her hopes up.
Chapter Nineteen
Nocallback.
No message.No nothing.
Holly was climbing the walls.She thought for sure that Mr.Price would have checked his voicemail and realized the seriousness of the matter.But as Monday gave way to Tuesday and morning gave way to afternoon, she was starting to think that perhaps she needed to consult another attorney.But that would be hard because Mr.Price knew their family history.He’d been the one to draw up the will.
But if it took her reciting her painful family history, she would do it.There was no way she was going to roll over for Billie Jean and Roger.They would get the soap company and the apartment over her dead body.
The last two days had been very busy at the shop.It wasn’t so much customers getting last-minute Christmas presents but rather friends who had heard what had happened at the Kringle Cup Café stopping by to make sure she was okay.It was very sweet, but she hated the situation was public information.
Colin had been one of the people who had checked in on her.She’d assured him she was fine.But she could feel herself shutting down and pushing him away.And it wasn’t his fault.It was hers.
Tater Tot walked over to her and jumped up on her leg.She bent over and scooped him up into her arms.He pressed his head to her shoulder.She laid her cheek against the back of his head.He was just the sweetest.
Her thoughts turned back to Colin.She needed time, she told herself.Once Billie Jean and Roger left town—once she showed them there was nothing they could take from her—she would get herself together.She would be able to deal with her growing feelings for him.But right now, she couldn’t admit those feelings to herself or him.
Buzz.
She pulled the phone from her back pocket.It was Colin again.Either he wasn’t working at the clinic that day or he was calling her between patients.She’d talked to him two times so far, once at lunch and once after lunch.She felt the hint of a smile pulling at the corner of her lips.
Colin was such a great guy.He deserved someone who didn’t have such a complicated life.It wasn’t fair to pull him into her troubles.
And that was exactly what she was going to tell him when the shop door swung open and in walked Billie Jean and Roger.Tater Tot began growling.Holly tightened her hold on him.
“We have something for you.”Billie Jean waved around some papers.
“Get out and take your papers with you.”The phone, still in her hand, stopped ringing.
“We aren’t going anywhere.”Roger paused to turn the sign on the door to Closed.“We don’t want to be disturbed.”
“We’ve tried to be friendly,” Billie Jean said.“We thought you would understand that you can’t take what doesn’t belong to you.”
Holly stood her ground.“Leave right now, or I’m calling the sheriff.”
“You aren’t going to scare us off.”With an angry glint in his eyes, Roger took a step forward.
His glare and his closeness were quite disconcerting.When her phone started to ring again, a quick glance let her know it was Colin.She pressed a button to answer the call.
“I want you to leave.Now.”She hoped that her voice came across as firm and not shaky like she felt on the inside.
“We don’t have to go anywhere.”Billie Jean stepped up next to Roger.“This is our property.”
“You’re our kid,” Roger said.“You’re supposed to listen to us.So, make this easy for everyone and stop fighting us.”
