Page 36 of The Lie That Stole Christmas

The memory vanished as quickly as it had come.Ashley blinked and returned to the present, trying not to look at Carter as he smiled at Tori or notice the glare Gabe shot in Carter’s direction.It was hard, though.Carter exuded confidence.Even in a room full of chaos and raised voices, he moved through it all with an ease that made him impossible to ignore.Like he belonged here in a way she no longer did.

Tiny clapped her hands together as she looked over her efforts.“Enjoy!”

“You’re not going to join us?”Ashley asked.

“Oh no, I have things to do.A book to finish.Besides, this is a family activity.”

“Then why the hell is Carter here?”Gabe asked with a little too much contempt in his tone.

Carter stood, straightening the cuffs of his blazer.

“Because for eight years he’s been the only family I’ve had,” Grandpa spat.

“Someone on your payroll is not family.”

Grandpa slowly pushed back his chair, the legs scraping harshly across the hardwood floor.The room immediately quieted.Even Aunt Marilyn lowered her wineglass.

“You’re right,” Grandpa said coldly.“He is on my payroll, but that doesn’t make him any less family to me.

Carter shifted, clearly uncomfortable.“Bill—”

“No.I’m tired of this nonsense.”He pointed toward Carter.“That man buried his father and returned to work three days later because he knew this estate needed him.He knewIneeded him.He stayed when everyone else walked away from this place.He’s spent the last eight years making sure Winterridge didn’t fall apart while the rest of you were too busy fighting, running away, divorcing, or pretending this family didn’t exist unless money was involved.”

Gabe’s face paled, the defensiveness draining from his expression.“Grandpa, I didn’t mean—” Gabe started.

“No.”Grandpa’s voice cracked like a whip.“You don’t get to stand inmyhouse and tellmewho counts as family.You’ve had an issue with Carter since you were teenagers, and I’m done pretending otherwise.”

Silence engulfed the room in a thick, uncomfortable blanket.Ashley glanced at Carter.His jaw tightened, eyes fixed somewhere over Grandpa’s shoulder.The easy confidence from earlier had vanished, and in its place was a boy who was unsure of his place.As her mind went through the Rolodex of memories, this wasn’t anything new.Carter always stood a little straighter whenever Gabe walked into the room.

Had she been too wrapped up in Carter to notice Gabe had spent years making Carter feel like he didn’t belong?

Gabe scoffed and leaned back in his chair.“Whatever.”

“Not whatever,” Grandpa snapped again.“You’ve had a chip on your shoulder for too damn long, and I’m sick of it.”

Carter’s eyes briefly flicked toward Gabe in warning.Most people would have mistaken Gabe’s expression for arrogance, but Ashley knew better.It wasn’t arrogance—it was stubborn pride.He inherited it from Grandpa.The two of them were more alike than either would admit, and that was exactly why they clashed.

“Maybe because he forgot his place,” Gabe muttered.

The entire table went still; even Tiny had frozen near the doorway.Carter’s expression hardened, every trace of warmth disappearing from his handsome face.“How can I forget when you remind me every chance you get?”

Ashley opened her mouth, but no words came out.Every instinct told her to stop them, except she didn’t know who deserved defending.

They glared at each other, and the room seemed to shrink around them, the silence pressing against Ashley’s chest.

She’d spent so long believing she’d been the reason Carter walked away.Now, watching the three men unravel in front of her, she wondered how much she’d never seen.

In her heart, Carter belonged with her.But with how Gabe was acting, would Carter ever truly belong in the Wetherby family?

Aunt Marilyn went to grab her wine, her hand smacking the glass and sending it sprawling across the table.Red wine soaked the white tablecloth.Gabe jumped up before it could drip into his lap.Ms.Porter ran over, grabbing napkins and calling over her shoulder for Celia to grab more.

Taylor inched her tray away from the spill, protecting her gingerbread and décor.Tori and Aunt Eleanor both sprang to their feet to offer help.

Ashley looked over to Aunt Marilyn, who gave her a quick wink before downing the little drop of red that was in the bottom of her now empty glass.“Oops.”

“You did that on purpose,” Cole said, pointing an accusatory finger, then laughed.

Marilyn arched her eyebrow.“I don’t know what you’re talking about.I would never waste a perfectly good cabernet.”