Free A Baby for My Billionaire Stepbrother by Cassandra Zara Page B

was a fake candle glowing in a green wreath. It all looked picturesque with the swirling snow flurries kicking around in the air, dusting the house and yard.
    As I grabbed my bags out of the trunk, I heard my Dad and Nancy calling to me from the porch. "Who’s that New York girl and what has she done with my daughter?"
    I closed the trunk, grinning at my dad’s corny and unoriginal joke. He came down from the porch, looking me over. "Seriously, where is my daughter?" He grabbed me and gave me a big hug and a wet kiss on the cheek.
    "She was booked. They sent me in her place," I said, hugging him back. He took my bag off my shoulder and we climbed up the steps to where my stepmom, Nancy, stopped me for a hug. I kissed her on the cheek, too.
    "Allie, wow! You really do look incredible. I just love that coat on you, and your hair! It’s gorgeous." I tried not to blush, feeling a little ashamed because this was the reaction I was hoping to get. At college, my roommate Nicole taught me about makeup, clothes and shoes and with her help—and a little help from the extension of my dad’s credit card—I had managed to transform myself from the mousy girl that drove off to college in the fall into a New York woman.
    My transformation in New York was more than clothes and makeup, though. It was like I got to start my life all over. For the first time ever, I got to be the person I thought I was, rather than the person everyone else wanted me to be. It was intoxicating, meeting so many new people on campus and in the city, seeing how they looked at me so much differently than the people back home. I finally found some confidence. With my new clothes and style, some of the girls from out of state even thought I was a native New Yorker, which was pretty much the ultimate compliment.
    But as I walked into the house, things immediately began to feel more familiar and I could sense the old me everywhere. She was floating around like a ghost, waiting for a chance to take my life over again.
    But I wouldn’t let her.
    I felt Nancy’s warm hand on my arm. "I’m so happy for you, Allie. I knew New York was going to be just what you needed."
    I wasn’t really sure how to answer her. I couldn’t help but feel a little defensive, as the comment implied that I was in need of fixing. But I reigned myself in. That was the old me, the grumpy, angry, misfit. "Yeah, well, I’m happy for me too, Nancy."
    "Do you want to eat something? I can make you a sandwich," my dad said. "Or I can heat up some chili. Nancy made some last night and it’s delicious."
    I shook my head. "No, thanks. I think I just want to unpack and maybe take a nap. It was a long drive."
    Nancy and my dad exchanged a knowing and obvious look between each other.
    What was that about?
    My dad shouldered my bags again and started up the stairs. "Here, I’ll take them upstairs for you."
    Once we were inside my room, he set the bags down and gave me a serious look. "I know you’re not crazy about all this Christmas stuff and the family dinners, but Nancy has organized a small cocktail party tonight for James. I really need you to try and be nice to him. He has done some remarkable things this year and earned our congratulations, even you have to see that."
    The ghost of the old me was raging around the room. I needed to be nice to him ? It sometimes amazed me how much parents could miss when it came to the relationships between their own children. But I ignored the bitching ghost. That wasn't me anymore. She was in the past.
    "Of course, Daddy," I promised.
    He gave me a suspicious look. "It’s just for tonight. We’re going to keep it simple for the rest of the holiday."
    "Daddy, it’s fine. If I built a business worth a billion dollars, I’d want you to throw me a party, too."
    He smiled, obvious relieved. "New York really has changed you," he said. "Okay, go and get some rest." He kissed my forehead and left. When he was gone, I finished the conversation in my