Delivering His Gifts: A Mountain Man's Baby Christmas Romance(4)

“Very cute,” Mason said, likely wondering which one was Peaches and which one was Peanut since they looked almost identical. He smiled, and it felt like a genuine smile, so at least he was humoring Skyler - which was sweet. He wasn’t just hot as hell, but apparently good with kids too. Almost too good to be true.

She led him over to another pen and reached inside.

“Honey, you know I have to help you,” I said, rushing to my daughter’s side. I knelt and picked up a black and white rabbit.

“This is Jellybean,” Skyler said. “Since he’s a bunny, and the Easter bunny brings jellybeans.”

I grinned proudly. “She came up with that all on her own,” I said, holding the rabbit while Skyler stroked his fur.

“We keep the door closed so the cats can’t get in here,” Skyler said. “But I spend time with them.”

“She really does,” I said with a laugh. “Every day, she brings her dolls in here and talks to them. She doesn't want them to get lonely.”

“Sounds like you really do love the animals.”

“I do! They’re the best,” Skyler said.

“Honey, Mr. Harvey and I need to talk about some dog training, so we need to put Jellybean back in his pen for now, okay?”

Skyler sighed dramatically. “Okay. I’ll go play with Cinder and Marshmallow,” she said. “Chewie just wants to sleep.”

“Chewie is old, honey. He likes his naps,” I said softly, putting the bunny back into the pen.

“I know,” Skyler said with a sigh. “I don’t get it, but I know.”

Mason stifled a chuckle, covering his mouth and pretending to cough.

With the bunny secured, we exited the sunroom, and I made sure to check the door before walking back into the living room. Skyler picked up Cinder and ran off, calling out, “Marshmallow, where are you?”

“She’s adorable,” Mason complimented.

“Thanks. She can be a handful sometimes, but she has a good heart.”

“She’s clearly being raised well,” he said.

I felt my cheeks flushing. “Thank you. I do my best. You know, she doesn’t usually talk to strangers as easily as she did you, so I’m impressed.”

“What can I say. I’m a natural with children,” he said, spreading his arms wide. He laughed dryly and added, “Actually, I’m not. I’ve never really been around kids much.”

We walked into the dining room and I motioned for him to take a seat at my makeshift office.

“Oh yeah? No kids of your own?”

“No, I—” he cut himself off, and frowned for a moment before continuing. “Well, two of my brothers are expecting babies, so I’ll have some nieces and nephews at least.”

“Congrats. From the looks of it, you’ll make a good uncle.”

“I hope so,” he said, his voice a bit distant. His eyes met mine and he smiled, and I felt a pitter-patter in my heart.

“Well, I don’t want to waste any more of your time, so let’s get down to business,” I said. “What can I help you with?”

“I have this friend, a Vietnam vet, who had an emotional support dog in the past, and I’m looking into options to get him another one. He struggles with PTSD and has some mobility issues. Plus, I hate that he lives alone, and I think he could use the company.”

“Have you asked him if he’d like a dog?” I asked, raising an eyebrow. “Because while I appreciate good intentions, I want to make sure my dogs go to homes where they’re wanted.”

“Oh yeah, he would love it. He’s had dogs before, and he’s always been very close with them. And I’ll be around to help him, make sure the dog gets the care it needs.”

“Sounds like you’re a good friend.”

“Well, I hate to see people slipping through the cracks, and that’s what happened to him.”

I smiled at him. From the sound of it, this guy was a saint. Surely, though, no man could be this perfect.

“I’d love to help you, but—” Before I could finish what I was saying, my phone buzzed on the table. I frowned as the name Greg popped up on the screen. “Sorry, I have to take this. Just one second, okay?”

I picked up the phone and slipped out of the room and into the hallway. I could hear Skyler in her room, singing a made-up song about the two cats she was playing with. I smiled even though I knew as soon as I answered the call, that smile would be wiped right off my face.

I also knew I had to answer, or I’d pay for it later.

With a sigh, I took the call. “I’m in the middle of meeting with a client,” I said, my voice barely a whisper. “Please make this quick.”

“Oh, I’m sorry, am I being a burden to you? After everything I’ve done for you, you’re going to tell me to be quick.” My ex-husband scoffed from the other end of the phone. “In fact, I’ve clearly been too kind to you. I got another call from the bank, and they said you’re two months behind on the mortgage. As I told you, I didn’t sell the place as a favor to you, but you’re responsible for it now. I agreed to this in the divorce hearing even though it’s unconventional because I wanted to do what was best for our daughter, but if you don’t keep up with the mortgage, I will sell the place in a heartbeat to recoup my losses.”

“I only fell behind because the flood affected my business, Greg,” I replied, my irritation clear in my tone. “I’m still waiting on the insurance check to pay for the repairs and everything, but because of the number of claims in Liberty, it’s taking longer than usual for them to pay out. But rest assured, I’m taking care of it.”

“You better be,” he growled. “You know, you brought this all on yourself when you left me. We could have worked this out together.”

I closed my eyes, my eyelids pressing down hard. My jaw was clenched tightly as well. “Greg…”

“You know, there’s an easy way to solve all your problems.”

“No,” I snapped, my eyes opening. “Nope. There’s no way in hell I’d ever get back together with you.”

“Well then, be prepared to suffer the consequences. If you lose the place, Danielle, and from where I’m standing, it looks inevitable, you will be homeless. There’s no way a court of law wouldn’t see that as a problem when it comes to custody.”

“Stop using our daughter to threaten me,” I said, my back straightening. “Come after me, not Skyler. Don’t use her as a pawn in your games, Greg.”

“Pay your bills, Danielle,” Greg retorted smartly. “If you can’t keep a roof over our daughter’s head, then maybe she would be better off with me.”

My hand tightened on the phone, and I feared I might crush it with my grip - just what I wanted to do with his neck at that moment. I took a deep breath and counted to ten.

My ex-husband was a powerful man. Rich as all get-out, all of it inherited from his grandfather’s luck in the mining business before Greg was even born. Greg owned and operated several businesses of his own, all started with capital from his family’s massive reserves. Most of them failed, but as soon as one went bankrupt, he started another and could always keep up the appearance of success. The family money wasn’t going to run out anytime soon, so he was set for life no matter what stupid decisions he made. I’d once told him he’d have better odds making money from his inheritance by throwing it down on a craps table in Vegas than starting another business, but that just earned me a lecture about “my place” and how I should “stay out of his business affairs” since I was a woman.

A myriad of comebacks rushed through my head, but in the distance, I heard my daughter's sweet voice. The more I pissed him off, the more he’d try to punish me for it - and that usually entailed my innocent child in some way or another. He never hurt her; he was a good father even if he was a terrible husband, but he knew if he took her away from me, I’d be destroyed.

“I’ll take care of it,” I said through gritted teeth.

“You better,” he said before the line went dead.

I stood in the hallway in silence for a moment, the urge to scream deep in my chest. I wanted to cry, not from sadness or pain but from frustration.

Why did you agree to the terms to keep this place? I cursed at myself. Except I knew the answer - I’d had little choice.

Greg had bought the property for me to run my business from while we were still married. The house we lived in had been a rental at the time, just some extra income in Greg’s pocket to justify the cost of the rescue. But since that day, he held the favor over my head - using it to manipulate me into doing whatever he wanted.

It gave him control over me, and I hated it. I wanted to be free from the debt, but the only way to do that would be to buy the place outright and I didn’t have that kind of money. I was paying out my ass in legal fees, thanks to him taking me to court for every little thing, contesting everything even if he’d later agree to it - all to punish me for leaving him.

I took a deep breath and remembered the man in the other room. The potential client. My heart sank as I thought about taking him on. As much as I wanted to, the reality was, I wasn’t really set up for this type of thing right now. I needed work to repair the damage to the property, but I wasn’t sure how I could work when the property was in the shape it was. It was the Catch-22 from hell.