Mia felt confused and her head was starting to hurt. “I thought I might want to stick around Brook Hollow, but now I don’t know, Reva. I don’t like being the focus of gossip and false rumors. Just because I am a single mom, does that mean I will always be on the lips of the gossipers?”
“Rumors come and go, Mia. Smart people ignore them and they die down eventually. I bet Jane is just jealous. She has been bragging for two years now that she would be marrying the sheriff. Now she knows for sure she has no chance. Abel would have taken her up on her offer long ago if he was interested.”
Mia wasn’t sure what to think anymore. Abel had not even called her since the wedding. She made excuses for him knowing the snow often brought accidents and trouble that kept him busy. She finished cleaning up. She drove home and although the snow falling was a beautiful sight, it failed to cheer up as it usually did.
* * * *
Mia and Becky spent a quiet Christmas day at her house. They baked a ham and watched Christmas movies after exchanging small gifts. Abel asked her to go to his family’s home, but when Melanie mentioned Delores had invited Jane and her father, Mia had said no. Was Delores trying to tell Mia she would never fit in with them? It was depressing. She had a quick phone call from Abel, but he was at work and she could hear all the noise in the background.
Talking to Gwen on the phone only made her feel worse. She missed New York and Gwen, too.
“So Gwen wants you home, huh?” Becky said with sympathy. Mia nodded, holding back her tears.
“She does. I thought about staying here in Brook Hollow but now I am not so sure. People know about the baby and are saying I am ruining Abel’s life and future marriage with Jane.”
“That is all bull.” Becky snorted, setting her cup of hot chocolate on the end table. “He never had any interest in that woman. He is polite to Jane because he has good manners, Mia.”
“Maybe,” she said without much confidence. It was hard when he was so busy she didn’t get to see him much. She felt the eyes of people as she walked through the grocery store, heard the whispers behind her back. What kind of life would her child have here? Would Delores treat her child with affection, or be a grandmother out of obligation only? Her head pounded with the stress of it all.
“I had a good Christmas, Becky. Thank you so much.” Mia gave the woman a smile. “I feel like we are family despite it all being a fake story. I hope that is not too forward of me to say.”
Becky gave Mia a huge hug. It felt so comforting to Mia. She had always wished she had a mom when she was a kid. Some foster parents had been kind but she knew they weren’t her family. “Oh, child, I feel the same way. I adore you as much as I adore Gwen. I have two beautiful nieces and I dare someone to argue with me about it.”
Mia chuckled. “I expect you to come to New York and visit us. This baby needs all the family it can get.”
“Of course.” Mia helped Becky clean up and went home.
She was tired and needed her sleep. She offered to open up tomorrow so Becky could sleep in. She had just closed the door and locked up when she heard a knock. She peeked through the hole and spotted Abel. She was tempted to send him away but her soft heart wouldn’t let her. Mia opened the door.
“Merry Christmas,” Abel said softly, handing her a small black box with a gold bow. Mia grabbed it and went to the couch to sit down. She had bought him a small gift, too. She handed it to him shyly. She hoped he liked it even though it wasn’t expensive. Jane had probably bought him something flashy and expensive, she thought bitterly.
Mia opened her gift a pulled a gold chain with a cross at the end of it. “Oh, Abel, it is beautiful. I can’t believe this. It’s too much.”
His tender smile confused her. He acted like he cared then he ignored her for days. She was tired of the up and down, of having her hopes dashed over and over. “I saw it and thought of you. It’s beautiful and delicate just like you are.”
She blushed and he helped her put it around her neck. She felt his lips brush her skin and she shivered. “I hope you like your wallet. It has a chain on it. I remembered Jessy saying once you kept losing yours, and Lincoln threatened to staple the next one to your uniform.”
Abel laughed out loud and nodded. “He did. Thank you, Mia. I missed you tonight.”
“Even with Jane there?” She couldn’t help sounding petty. It hurt her to know how well Jane fit in with his family. She probably had a family tree hanging on her wall, and Mia had no idea who her father was and who her mother’s family was.
“My mom likes her a lot and I don’t know why.” He sighed, sounding frustrated. “I would have preferred to have you there with me. I was afraid she was going to follow me to the bathroom. Shit, it was a long ass dinner.”
“I guess I feel angry she started all those rumors about me ruining your life,” Mia admitted. “I hear people whispering about me when I pass. It feels like high school all over again and I hate it.”
He gave her a curious look. His brows creased downward. “How do you know Jane started them?”
“Reva told me. She heard it at the salon in town. Jane told people you were on the verge of proposing until I trapped you.”
“I heard the rumors and I ignored them. I did ask Jane if she started them and she swore it wasn’t her,” he said carefully, as if not wanting to upset Mia by calling her a liar. Mia felt her anger level rise up. Surely he did not think Jane was innocent?
“And you believe her? She is always so snotty and rude to me. At the wedding she told me you were texting her.” Mia snorted, crossing her arms angrily. Now she was jealous, too.
“I was not texting her, Mia.” He frowned. “Listen, it’s best to ignore her and any gossip. It will die down. I promise. Gossip in this town comes and goes.”
“Easy for you to say. I am cast as the evil witch in all of this,” she snapped, feeling grumpy. Abel smiled and tugged on her hair. “But you are a sexy evil witch, and I am nothing but your puppet.”
“Oh brother.” She rolled her eyes, trying not to smile. She tilted her head, giving him a curious look. Thinking of Jane made her feel so frumpy and dull. Especially with morning sickness. “Am I sexy?”