“Mom—”
“You can’t help who you love, and I never had any doubt that Michael loved Elizabeth deeply, but that didn’t stop the hurt or heal the pain caused by the fact that he didn’t love me.”
“I didn’t know. Why didn’t you tell me? It explains so much—explains why you’ve always hated the O’Neils.”
“I never hated them. His family never knew about our friendship. I didn’t ski or share any of their interests, but Michael and I were close. We talked. I knew he felt under pressure to take over the business. Maybe he found it easier to talk to me because I was an outsider. Because I didn’t have that connection to Snow Crystal.” Maura Daniels sat still, her hands frozen in her lap. “For a while after he met Elizabeth, I couldn’t spend time near them because it reminded me of what I’d wanted and could never have. It took a while. A long while, but then I met your father and fell in love again. The old feelings faded, but by then I’d put too much distance between us to know how to bridge the gap with the O’Neils. And then you were born, and you bonded with Tyler from the first moment you met, and I saw it all happening again.” There was pain in her mother’s face. “Michael gave you your first skis. He was trying to mend fences, but I was worried that history was repeating itself, and I couldn’t reach out. I regret that we didn’t talk before he died. I regret so many things, but most of all I regret the mistakes I made with you. Instead of nurturing your talent, I tried to stop you skiing, tried to stop you spending so much time with them. But you climbed out of your window and went anyway. And maybe I was a little jealous because the O’Neils could give you something I never could. And when it came to Tyler, you were like glue. The two of you were stuck to each other the moment you laid eyes on one another.”
“He’s my best friend, Mom. He always has been.”
“Yes.” Her mother reached out and took her hand. “And I could kill him with my bare hands for making you hurt like this.”
“He can’t help his feelings. You said that yourself.”
Her mother tightened her grip. “Are you still living in his house?”
Brenna nodded. “The resort is full, there’s nowhere else to go.”
“You could come here. You could sleep here.”
“I can’t.” She thought about the tree, the presents, the house full of decorations. Jess. “Jess is excited about Christmas, and I’m not going to do anything to spoil that. Last year was hard for her. She hadn’t been with Tyler for long, and things were tricky. I want this year to be perfect.”
“She’ll have to know eventually.”
“I’ll tell her after Christmas. Mom—” she swallowed “—I thought you didn’t like the way I was. That I disappointed you.”
“I was never disappointed, but I was scared. I felt your feelings as if they were my own. And because I’d had those feelings myself, I felt them all the more sharply.”
“But you moved on. You met someone else.”
“Eventually. And so will you.”
“Will I?” She couldn’t see any way that could happen. She’d given all of herself to Tyler. What was there left to give to another man? “What if I don’t? What if I always feel this way?”
“You’re determined. And strong. I saw it when you were a child and dragged yourself to school every day even though you hated every minute. I saw it when you faced Janet when she came here that morning, and I saw it when you went to work at Snow Crystal, loving Tyler and knowing he didn’t feel the same way. Humans are resilient. You’re hurting, but you’ll carry on living, and the hurting will grow less over time. I’m proud of you, Brenna. I should have made sure you knew that. I should have accepted how you felt about Tyler instead of fighting against it. All that did was put distance between us. It stopped you knowing how much we love you.”
Brenna stood, choked by emotion as she felt her mother’s arms come around her. She stood stiff, holding everything back until holding back was no longer possible, and she closed her eyes and returned the hug. “I love you, too.”
They stayed like that for a moment, and then Brenna pulled away. “I almost forgot, I have something for you. For Christmas.” She delved into her bag and found the ceramic pot she’d bought at a craft fair in the summer. It was a sunny blue, and she’d thought it might add cheer during the cold winters she knew her mother loathed.
Her mother unwrapped it, and her expression softened as she turned it in her hands. “It’s pretty, thank you. You always know what I like. If Christmas Day is difficult, you can always come over here.” Then she smiled. “No pressure, but I want you to know you can.”
* * *
IT SNOWED HEAVILY on Christmas Eve, and Tyler was finishing his preparations when Jess found him in the den.
“Dad, where have you been all day? I wanted you to ski with me.”
“Tomorrow is Christmas Day. I had things to do.” Things that had kept him awake most of the night and busy for all of the day. He stuffed packages under the sofa and Jess tried to peek.
“Is my present hidden under there?”
“It might be.” It had taken him all day to put a plan together, but he thought he’d come up with a perfect Christmas for Jess. And as for what happened afterward—well, he wasn’t going to think about that right now. He couldn’t. “How was skiing?”
“The snow was awesome. I skied with Brenna again because we couldn’t find you.”
“We’ll ski together tomorrow. I still have things to do, and I can’t do them if you’re hanging around watching me.”
“Where have you been all day?”