Page 117 of Tragic (Lark Cove 3)

“I was excited too.” She sniffled. “But I won’t be able to come now. I, um . . . I just really need to talk to Kaine.”

“I can have him call you as soon as he comes back.”

“Thank you. And I’m so sorry to be missing your family. Please give them my best.”

“O-okay,” I said, stunned. “Bye.”

She hung up, and I turned to Thea. “Well, that was weird. Kaine’s mom isn’t coming for Christmas after all.”

“Why not?”

I shook my head. “She wouldn’t say. Which was the odd part. But it sounded like she was upset and driving someplace. Kaine needs to call her.”

“Do you want me to go and find them?” Thea offered.

“No. I doubt they’ll be gone too long. She didn’t say it was an emergency so we’ll just give it time.”

I summoned the energy to push myself off the couch, then I went to the kitchen and made the kids a snack, getting Thea and me each a bottle of this delicious cream soda I’d found at the grocery store.

Suzanne’s phone call put a damper on my time with Thea and the kids. As we watched them play, my eyes were constantly drifting to the door. Finally, an hour and a half later, it opened and three red-nosed and huffing faces came inside.

“Daddy!” Collin raced across the room to his dad.

Thea was right on her son’s heels, peering around them to see the trees outside. Her face fell into a frown when she saw the massive tree strapped on top of their SUV. Its tip hung over the front windshield and the trunk extended well past the bumper.

“Seriously, gorgeous. You’re killing me.” As she rolled her eyes, Logan just grinned as he stomped the snow from his boots.

Kaine grinned as he came inside. The tree he’d gotten for us was propped against the house. Frost on his beard wet my skin as he bent to kiss my cheek. “I’ll put it in a stand later this afternoon.”

“Okay.” I nodded, though the excitement for our first Christmas tree had also dimmed because of Suzanne’s call. I stepped out of the way so they could all come inside.

Thea helped Charlie out of her snow gear as the guys shrugged off their coats.

“Your mom called a while ago,” I told Kaine as he pulled off his hat. “She wants you to call her, but she said she can’t come for Christmas.”

“What?” His forehead furrowed. “Why not?”

“She didn’t say.”

He frowned, then walked over to the kitchen to get his phone. His boots left small globs of snow along the wooden floor. He lifted my bottle of cream soda off the island and took a sip, then grimaced. “I don’t know how you can drink this. It’s liquid sugar.”

“It’s yummy.” I rubbed my belly where the babies were jiving. “Your boys love it.”

His eyes softened, then he dialed up Suzanne and said hello. But his good mood fled as she spoke, and his shoulders stiffened.

Thea and I shared a look as she guided the kids through the living room to give him some quiet.

While they sat at the dining room table, I walked to Kaine and leaned against the counter, trying to catch his gaze. But he was silently fuming, his grip on my soda bottle getting dangerously tight.

“What’s wrong?” I whispered, but he ignored me.

The next moment, Suzanne must have said something shocking. His entire body flinched before stringing as tight as a rubber band.

Had someone died? Was Suzanne having health problems? My mind was imagining bad scenarios, one right after the other, when Kaine slammed the bottle in his hand down on the granite island. The bottle shattered, sending fizzing soda and glass shards flying.

I jumped and the kids screamed at the deafening noise.

Logan came my way with worry etched on his face. He stood by my side, but I kept my focus on Kaine.