I felt some of the tension leave my shoulders at her touch. “You’re already doing it,” I said honestly.
We stood like that for a few minutes. It was exactly what I needed. I needed her arms around me. Her warmth flooded through me while I processed what had just happened. I had essentially been disowned by my father. Cut off from my inheritance. Exiled from the only family I’d ever known.
I should be falling apart.
And somehow, with Sylvie’s arms around me and the sounds of her family’s laughter drifting from inside the lodge, it didn’t feel like the end of the world.
I wasn’t freaking out. Yes, there was a sense of loss, but it wasn’t devastating me like I thought it would.
“I take it he knows about your decision to invest in us?” she asked, her voice muffled against my chest.
“Yep. The lawyers told him. And then I confirmed it.”
“And he’s not happy?”
I chuckled. “No, but what else is new.”
“Did he disown you?” Her question was barely above a whisper. I could hear the sadness. I almost wanted to tell her no. I didn’t want her to pity me.
“I think that’s one way to put it,” I said. “After the first of the year, I don’t have access to my trust fund.”
She stiffened against me. “Are you going to be able to survive without it?”
“Yes. I’ll be fine. I can do this. Things will change, but I expected this.”
“I know but expecting something and then having it actually happen is very different.”
“I’ve got you, right?” I said.
“Yep. Sorry. You’re stuck with me.”
“Good.”
“Come on,” Sylvie said eventually, tugging at my hand. “Help me finish getting ready for tonight. Best way to get your mind off things is to stay busy.”
I let her lead me back inside, where the warm chaos of party preparation immediately enveloped us. Everyone was working on something. They all knew what to do.
“Everything okay?” Stacy asked when she saw us come in, her eyes immediately going to what I suspected was my less-than-cheerful expression.
“Family drama,” I said, not wanting to get into the details but needing to acknowledge the elephant in the room. “Going home for Christmas isn’t really an option anymore.”
Brom looked up from the table he was moving, one eyebrow raised. “Is that right?”
I hesitated, not sure how much to share. These people had welcomed me into their family, but did they really need to know about my father’s ultimatum? About the fact that I’d just been financially cut off from everything I’d grown up with?
“My father wasn’t happy about the investment,” I said carefully. “He invited me to Christmas, but he’s just going to lecture me the whole time, if I’m going to continue making choices he doesn’t approve of.”
The room went quiet for a moment. I braced myself for the awkwardness that would inevitably follow. These people understood family loyalty and family obligations. They probably thought I was crazy for choosing a woman I’d known for weeks over the family that had raised me. Did they think that proved I was disloyal? Did they see that as a red flag?
But Brom just shrugged one shoulder and went back to arranging chairs.
“Maybe you’re already home for Christmas,” he said casually. “Ever think of that?”
Simple words that carried a lot of weight. I looked around the room at these people who’d accepted me despite every reason they had to be suspicious. They included me in their traditions and their business decisions and their family dinners.
Harold caught my eye and nodded once, a gesture that conveyed both sympathy and acceptance. Gigi squeezed my shoulder as she passed by with an armload of candles. Emmy grinned and handed me a stack of napkins to fold. Stacy had a very motherly look on her face. She didn’t have to say anything. Her smile was enough.
I got the message.
