The Billionaire’s Fake Christmas Engagement - Leslie North Page 0,49

her brow furrowing with intensity. “Your dad what? What your dad did doesn’t have to define everything for you,” she ground out.

She put the burger down. After Gabe had found out about her dad, he’d hesitated. Hadn’t followed her out when she left. Hadn’t spoken to her since. Gabe might have had issues with his family. Who didn’t? Not even money could buy your way out of some family drama. But he’d tried to help her and show her he cared. And he’d protected her.

Anna had been so aware that their arrangement came with an expiration date that she hadn’t been able to see the situation clearly. Gabe’s painful expression when he found her packing made her believe he cared, but it didn’t change anything. He’d let her go.

“Yeah,” Elena said softly. “See?”

“I’m a little annoyed at you for pointing it out,” Anna said, but it wasn’t Elena she was irritated with—it was herself. How long was she going to fixate on the things her dad had done? She could leave those things in the past, where they belonged, and keep living the life she’d built for herself. In fact, that was her only option.

The one thing she couldn’t do was turn back time and fix things with Gabe.

“You can be mad at me.” Elena popped a fry in her mouth. “I know you’ll get over it when you taste the cake.”

“Speaking of cake...” Anna held out a hand, and Elena passed her one of the containers. Chocolate cake—her favorite. The thin layer of white icing on the top would burst on her tongue with so much sweetness it brought tears to her eyes. Anna scooped up a fork from the table and stabbed it into the dessert. Cake, unlike herself, never let her down. Cake was always there for her. “What am I going to do?”

“What do you want to do?” Elena blew out a breath. “I’ll be behind you, no matter what. I know I was...maybe unnecessarily harsh during our phone call, and I hope you know I’m sorry for that, and I’ll support you with whatever you want to do.”

Anna reached out and patted her friend’s hand. “I do know that. You were worried, and you had every right to be. It did turn out to be a disaster.”

“Disasters can be fixed,” Elena said briskly. “You can clean up and start again. Starting with the icing on your face.”

Anna used her finger to wipe off the icing and then licked it off her finger, not wanting to miss a single drop. Somehow, half the cake had disappeared without Anna realizing it. “Even with people, though?”

“Oh, please. You work with disasters all the time. I’ve never heard of a situation you couldn’t fix.”

Anna thought of all the times there’d been sticky negotiations with hotels and last-minute itinerary changes and freak accidents with equipment and scheduling. Over the years, she’d come to think of those things as part of the job and not anything to be especially shaken by. What would she say to a client who’d had a curveball thrown at them? Things happen. We’ll get through this. Well, things had happened. And she would get through it. But the next thing she did after reassuring her clients was to take action.

“You’re right,” she said softly. “I can at least try to fix this.”

“In the meantime, are you going to come over on Saturday?”

Anna blinked at her. “Come over for what? And when’s Saturday?”

Elena sighed. “You’ve really been out of it, haven’t you? It’s Thursday now. Tomorrow’s Christmas Eve. You’re invited to my family’s Christmas dinner, just like you always are.”

The dinner at Elena’s house would be a family affair, and a crumbling feeling in her chest told her she’d never make it through. Not unless—and until—things with Gabe were all patched up. Everything felt too sensitive and raw. Showering for a burger was one thing; getting dressed up for a Christmas dinner while she was supposed to be at the Elk Lodge was quite another. Not this year.

“I—I don’t think so,” she admitted. “You know I love you and your family. I just don’t think—”

“It’s okay,” Elena said quickly. “There’s always next year, or really any year. But I just need you to know that you’re welcome. No matter what happened in your past.”

Anna reached out and hugged her.

“I know you’ll figure things out,” Elena said into her hair. “You always do.”

“I think that’s what I’ll do on Christmas,” she said, letting a small smile escape. “Figure