A Fairytale for Christmas

Chapter 7

Robin was livid. Somehow Keith had managed to convince Cora Mills that he was the mystery man Regina had spent the evening with at her party. And it seemed he was about to do the same with Regina herself even though Robin knew it was a lie.

But he held his tongue. To reveal that Keith was a liar would also require him to admit to his own deceptions. He certainly didn't want to do that just yet, even though he had been ready to tell Regina the truth. Robin wanted to do it in private and to try to limit the damage to his company once Cora and his cousin learned he had deceived them.

He hoped he still could do that and keep Regina from marrying the wrong man.

"Well, cousin, what do you say?" Keith asked, wrapping his arm around a clearly uncomfortable Regina. "You ready to plan our wedding?"

"I suppose so," Robin said through gritted teeth. "Do you want me to tell you what we've decided so far?"

Keith waved him off. "I'm sure my bride can fill me in on the details."

"Maybe later," Regina said. "We should probably talk and get to know one another better."

Cora clapped her hands. "That reminds me! I booked you a table at Tony's for tonight. You should probably start to get ready."

"Oh," Regina said, looking a bit confused. Her eyes darted toward Robin. "What about Robin?"

"He can come back tomorrow," Cora said, turning to Robin. "You can go now."

Robin nodded, knowing that ultimately Cora was his client since she was paying the bills. He motioned to the kitchen. "Let me just get my stuff and I'll be on my way," he said.

"I'll come with you," Keith said. "Mrs. Mills drove me straight here after our meeting so I'll need a ride back to my car."

Cora waved her hand. "I'll have someone return it to you. And you can call me Cora. We are going to be family after all."

Keith beamed. "Thank you, Cora."

"You're welcome," Cora said, stepping forward and taking Regina's hand. "Now, we're going to get Regina ready for your date. She'll see you soon."

"Uh, yeah," Regina said, sounding and looking dazed as her mother pulled her away. She stopped for a moment, looking right at Robin as she said: "Goodbye."

He waved and was about to return the sentiment when Keith jumped ahead of him. "This isn't goodbye. We'll see each other in a little bit," he said.

Regina frowned as her mother jerked her forward, practically dragging her up the stairs with her. Once they disappeared, Keith turned to Robin and clapped him on the back. "You ready to go?"

"Let me just get my sketchbook and keys," Robin said, eager to get into the van to unleash his anger on his cousin.

As he entered the kitchen, he found Granny standing there with her arms crossed. She frowned as she gazed at his cousin. Robin grabbed his things and said goodbye to the older woman. Granny turned slowly toward him and said: "You tell your cousin that if he hurts Regina, he will have to answer to me."

"Understood," Robin said, glad someone in the house was looking out for Regina. "I may join you."

"Good," she replied. "I will happily share."

He nodded, grabbing his sketchbook. "I hope to see you again soon."

"Me too," she said. "I think you're going to be a voice of reason in the coming weeks. And Regina is going to need that."

"I know," he replied, walking back into the foyer.

Keith stood there, tapping his foot with a scowl. "About time you stopped talking with that old woman. Let's go!"