Page 131 of Theirs for the Holidays

“I keep doubting myself,” I admit. “I was so happy when Grandmother said she was giving me this building, but if she never took Isabelle’s name off the deed, then what does that mean? Did she change her mind? Did she think I couldn’t handle it or didn’t deserve it?”

Isabelle has always been the more outgoing of the two of us, so maybe… maybe Grandmother worried that I wasn’t cut outfor running a business. Maybe she always thought Isabelle was better suited for it.

Before I can spiral down that path, Simon shakes his head. “No, Violet. Eleanor talked all the time about how much faith she had in you. She wanted to do something that would help you get a leg up in following your dreams. Isabelle still being listed as the owner was a mistake. I know that for a fact. Your grandmother loved you dearly, and all she wanted was to see you thriving.”

That sets me off again, and I bury my face in my hands. Simon just sits there, patient and steady.

“I don’t know what comes next,” I admit when I can talk again. “This was everything to me. All of my plans, all of my dreams. Everything was built around this bakery and trying to make it a success. I don’t have the money to buy a new place. I barely had the money to get this one outfitted the way I needed it. I can’t start over.”

“Something will come along for you,” Simon says.

“How are you so sure?”

“Because you deserve it. It’s true that life lets good things happen to bad people and that good people have too many bad things happen to them. But you are one of the hardest working young women it has been my pleasure to know, Violet. You have an entire community of people who will rally around you. You’re not alone in this. And you’re not starting over. You’ll be… rebuilding on the foundation you’ve already built. It will probably be hard, but you’re strong, and you have people who care.”

His words are sincere, and I sniffle, trying not to start crying again.

“Thank you,” I murmur.

“My pleasure, dear heart.” He gets up and pulls me into a hug. He’s getting older, but his hug is solid and warm. “Now,” he says, stepping back. “You should go home.”

“But—”

“No buts. You can finish packing things up later. It won’t kill your sister to wait. You should go home and be with the men you love.”

My cheeks immediately flush. “I—I mean?—”

Simon just chuckles. “You know, it’s funny, considering what a big splash you all made around town with your… untraditional relationship.” He smiles. “You all seem flustered when people call out the obvious love between you.”

I have no idea what to say to that, so I just offer Simon some of the leftover baked goods and tell him to get home safe.

When he’s gone, I stand there in the center of the room and try to memorize the image of my bakery as it is now. In a few days, this will be nothing but an empty space again, and I want to remember it as it was when it was mine.

Then I turn out all the lights, lock the door, and drive home.

All three of the guys are at the house when I get there. There’s a fire going, and Rhett doesn’t even seem to have anything negative to say about Sawyer’s fire building skills.

Lennox is in the kitchen making lunch, and my stomach growls at the smell.

“How was it?” Rhett asks, looking like he’s not sure how to proceed.

“It was… sad,” I tell him. “But then Simon came by.”

He hides a smile. “That was nice of him.”

“It was. I needed the pep talk after everything. It was just hard being there, knowing that it’s not really mine anymore. I keep trying not to think that it was never really mine, since Isabelle’s name is on it, but it’s hard.”

Lennox scowls, flipping burgers in a pan. “She might own it legally, but it was your hard work that made it into what it is. She can’t replicate that.”

“Does she even have a business idea?” Sawyer asks.

I shrug my shoulders. “I have no idea. Knowing her, it’s something she saw online or just made up.”

“Well, most new businesses fail within the first couple of years,” Lennox says. “So there’s that. She doesn’t seem like the type to stick it out once it stops being fun and the shine of her ‘winning’ wears off.”

That still leaves me with nothing, but I don’t say that. The guys are already pissed enough at my sister. I don’t know why I’m trying to protect her. Maybe because I know being mad at her won’t change anything.

“You should skip the wedding,” Rhett says.