“No way,” I said. “I don’t want a penny from him.”
Emmy’s eyebrows shot up. “Sylvie, be reasonable. It’s two hundred million dollars.”
“I don’t care if it’s two billion dollars. That money comes from destroying everything my family built. It’s blood money, Emmy. I won’t touch it.”
“What about your family?” she asked.
“What about them?”
“Think about your parents,” she said gently. “That money could set them up for an amazing retirement. They could travel, relax, never worry about money again. And Brom and Stacy could start fresh somewhere else, maybe open a new lodge in a place that actually gets tourists.”
I stared into the fire, watching the flames dance over the logs. Part of me knew Emmy was right. The money would solve a lot of problems for my family. Dad could finally stop worrying about keeping the business afloat. Brom and Stacy could give Aspen and Alder opportunities we’d never had growing up in such an isolated place.
But accepting that money felt like accepting what Kent had done to us. It felt like saying his lies were okay because they came with a big enough payout.
“I can’t, Emmy,” I said, my voice barely above a whisper. “Every time I’d spend a dollar of that money, I’d think about him. About how he looked me in the eye and lied to me while planning to destroy my home. I’d think about how stupid I was to trust him.”
“You weren’t stupid.”
“I was,” I insisted. “I was so desperate for someone to save us that I ignored every warning sign. I let him into my bed while he was planning to kick us out of our home. How is that not stupid?”
Emmy was quiet for a long moment. “What if the family votes to take the deal anyway?” she asked. “What if they decide the money is worth it?”
I hadn’t even considered that possibility. What if Dad and Brom and Stacy all decided that two hundred million dollars was too much to turn down? What if they wanted to take the deal despite everything Kent had done to us?
“Then I guess I’ll have to live with their decision,” I said finally. “But I won’t be happy about it.”
“And Kent?” Emmy asked carefully. “What happens with him?”
My chest tightened at the mention of his name. “What about him?”
“Are you really never going to speak to him again? Never going to let him explain or apologize or?—”
“There’s nothing to explain,” I cut her off. “He lied to me from the moment we met. He let me fall for him while knowing he was going to destroy everything I love. What possible explanation could make that okay?”
“Maybe he didn’t mean for it to happen that way. Maybe he really did fall for you too, and things got complicated.”
I shook my head firmly. “It doesn’t matter what he meant to happen. It matters what he did. And what he did was unforgivable.”
Emmy sighed. “I just think?—”
“I’m ready to call it a night,” I said, standing up. The weight of the day was catching up with me, and all I wanted was to crawl into my bed and forget this entire disaster had happened.
Emmy stood too, linking her arm through mine as we walked toward the lodge entrance. “Dad’s waiting for me at Santa’s cabin. We’re heading back to our place in town.”
We stepped out into the cold night air. I walked with her as far as the path that split. One direction led to Santa’s cabin, the other to my apartment above the garage.
“Call me if you need anything,” Emmy said, giving me a fierce hug. “I mean it. Three in the morning, doesn’t matter. I’m here.”
“I know. Thank you.”
We parted ways, and I headed across the driveway toward my apartment, I was fishing my keys out of my pocket when I looked up and froze.
Kent was leaning against my front door, waiting for me.
My heart lurched with a mixture of anger and hurt. He looked terrible. His hair was disheveled, his eyes were red-rimmed, and he was swaying slightly in a way that suggested he’d had way too much to drink.
“What are you doing here?” I asked, my voice colder than the winter air around us. “My father banned you from the property.”
