The Holiday Swap

by Maggie Knox

  “How are you here?” Cass murmured to Miguel, her eyelids fluttering. Then she looked at her sister. “Charlie, how is he here?”

  Charlie laughed softly and smiled at Miguel. “My guess is you made a pretty great impression.”

  23

  Charlie

  Friday: 1 Day Until Christmas . . .

  Starlight Peak

  Charlie sat in a chair opposite the hospital bed, watching her sister sleep. The stitches on Cass’s head were almost covered by her hair—but not quite. They were a reminder of the harrowing events of the day before. Charlie reached forward and held her sister’s hand, the way she had several times in the preceding hours when the sharpness of the realization that she had come very close to losing her had hit. “I don’t know what I’d do without you, Cass,” she murmured. “You’re my heart, you’re my soul. I don’t work without you. I’m sorry for—”

  Her voice broke and she stopped talking. Although the doctors had assured her Cass would be just fine, until she saw for herself, until her sister finally opened her eyes again of her own free will, Charlie wasn’t going to be able to relax. Keeping hold of her sister’s hand, she turned and grabbed a tissue to blow her nose and wipe the tears away.

  “Oh, Charlie. Don’t cry. I’m fine.”

  Charlie spun around and dropped her sister’s hand. “Cass! I can’t believe I missed it!”

  Cass laughed. “Missed what, exactly?”

  “The moment you opened your eyes. I’ve been sitting here waiting for—” She checked her watch. “Six hours?” Charlie dashed away a tear with the tissue. “I was so worried, Cass. And I’m so sorry.”

  Cass grabbed her sister’s hand and gave it a squeeze. “Oh, Charlie. Do we really need to apologize to each other? Isn’t it just a given that I forgive you, and you forgive me, always, no matter what?”

  Charlie put her forehead to her sister’s for a moment, and it felt like they were little kids again.

  “I guess so. But I still am sorry. I thought I was going to lose you, and thinking about how we had left things— We can’t do that again, ever.”

  Cass laughed. “I think we learned a few lessons over the past week, haven’t we?”

  “That might be the understatement of the year.”

  “And now look at us. We’ve taken this whole twin connection thing a bit far by getting matching head injuries, haven’t we? Plus, we have something else that matches, too, now.” Cass let go of her sister’s hand and held hers up.

  Charlie looked at her sister’s wrist; there was a bandage there. “Hey, what’s this? Did you hurt your wrist, too?”

  “Actually . . .” Slowly and carefully Cass pulled back the bandage to reveal a fresh-looking tattoo. It was gorgeous, an artful depiction of a constellation of stars. “I got a tattoo, just before I left L.A. It’s the Gemini constellation.”

  “It’s gorgeous! But you, get a tattoo? I guess this really has been a transformative week.”

  Cass gazed down at the tattoo, and for once Charlie couldn’t read what she was thinking. “When I started my hike yesterday I was thinking about what I was going to say to you, how I was going to make things right—not even realizing I was taking a stupid risk going for that hike at all and might not get the chance to talk to you! I was just still so torn up about everything that had happened. I really care about Miguel—”

  “That much is obvious. And he’s nuts over you—”

  “But none of this is more important than my relationship with you. And this tattoo, it represents that. My connection to you, and my life here—and also, my connection to the world. My resolve not to forget how I felt when I was in L.A. I know what it looks like, like I was running away from your life because of a guy—but, that’s not all. I also want you to know I was upset because of Sweet and Salty, because of the way they were treating you. The way Austin treated you, all of it. You are so much more than that. I would never walk out on something that was really, truly right for you. And it really didn’t feel right. But that wasn’t my call to make.”

  “I talked to Priya. She told me word on the set after you left was that Austin was getting the job over me, and that the reasons for that were completely unfair. There was nothing you, or I, could have done. You’re right. I needed to walk off that set, and I needed to call Sasha and give her a piece of my mind because she more than anyone needed to stand up for me. And she didn’t. I’m glad I had you there to see what was really important.”

  Cass leaned back against the pillow and closed her eyes for a moment—during which time Charlie felt alarmed, as irrational as she knew that was—but she quickly opened them again. Her light brown eyes were bright and alert, and Charlie knew everything was fine. “Amazing, right?” her sister said. “That in the end, I’m the one who stood up for you?”

  “Hey, you are way more assertive than you realize. I mean, that e-mail to Makewell’s? That was amazing. When I first saw it I thought it was out of character for you and I was concerned—but it wasn’t, not really. I’ve had a little time to sit here and think about that. You’re a strong person, Cass. Much stronger than you realize.”

  Cass nodded her head, then winced.

  “You okay?”

  “Just a little tender. And you might be right. I know I’m in the hospital—and I know I’ve made some mistakes. But I feel strong. Meanwhile, I think all this has made you see a new side of yourself, too, right? You’d become so caught up in your life in L.A. I was starting to think you didn’t care about home anymore. That maybe you’d even lost a part of yourself. A part of you I loved.”

  “I found that part again,” Charlie said softly. “And it’s thanks to you. Because being in your shoes made me realize the things that are really important to me. I’ve been sitting here thinking, for hours. And I’ve decided I’m going to call my agent later today and take a hiatus. I need to figure out what I really want from my life. I need a break.”

  Cass squeezed her sister’s hand one last time, then let go and sat up, pulling her hair away from her face, revealing the dark row of stitches—but somehow, now they seemed less ominous.

  Charlie expected her sister to say what she normally said when Charlie had a plan for her life. That’s a good idea, Charlie. You know what you’re doing. “Are you sure about that?” Cass said instead. “I think you need to reevaluate, sure. But a break? I don’t know about that. You’re Charlie Goodwin. You’re a hot commodity in L.A. You can do whatever you set your mind to. You just need to figure out what it is. As much as I wish it could be here in Starlight Peak, I don’t think that’s the answer. Not quite.”

  Charlie flopped back in her uncomfortable hospital chair. “Except Jake,” she began.

  “Jake. Yes.” Cass smiled. “I didn’t see that one coming. You two are . . . Well, even in my state yesterday, I swear to you I could see the sparks fly between the two of you. You’re in love!”

  “Really? Because I think he’s disappointed in me right now, knowing I was lying about who I was this whole week. I don’t think that’s a situation I’m going to be able to rectify.”

  “I know Jake. He’s the type of guy who gives second chances. Plus, I don’t think he’s going to find it easy to walk away from you.” Cass reached for the plastic cup of water beside her bed, sipped it, wrinkled her nose. “This water tastes like hospital. What I really need is a good coffee, some coffee cake to go with it, and to be home. Do you think you could arrange that for me, Charlie?”

  Charlie jumped up. “Of course I can. The doctors said when you woke up on your own we’d talk about releasing you into my care, and the care of a certain sexy physician assistant—whom they seemed very impressed with, by the way. He really knows his stuff. I think they tried to offer him a job. Plus, it turns out the head of the ward is a fan of Sweet and Salty. Give me five minutes. I’ll get you out of here.”

  Charlie left the room and
strode down the hall. Out the window, the world was blanketed in snow, and she could see the mountains in the distance, and the colorful storefronts of the town she loved, all decorated for Christmas. Cass was back, and that really was all that mattered. But her relationship with Jake was still up in the air and, to top it all off, her parents’ flight had been further delayed. It was possible that, for the first time ever, the Goodwins weren’t all going to be together for Christmas. And that Woodburn Breads was not going to be able to provide enough Starlight Bread—275 loaves in total this year—for the town square Christmas Eve celebration. But getting Cass home would be enough. The rest, she could try to deal with later.

  * * *

  • • •

  Charlie pushed the bakery door open slowly, knowing how sensitive a person felt after a head injury, and that even the slightest sound—like the tinkling of bells—could cause agony. She had driven home from the hospital at a snail’s pace, with the radio off even though at this time of year she constantly listened to Christmas carols. But Cass seemed perfectly fine. In fact, as the bells tinkled and the door opened, her entire face lit up. She looked happier than Charlie had ever seen her. Charlie followed her sister’s gaze.

  Walter, Jake, and Miguel were lined up along the granite work space in the middle of the bakery, each wearing a Woodburn Breads apron. Miguel had some flour on his face, Jake had it all over his muscular arms, and Walter even had some in his hair. Bruce Springsteen was singing about kissing his baby beneath some mistletoe, and the three men were so busy with their work they didn’t notice Cass and Charlie enter.

  The sisters stood and watched for a moment as the assembly line progressed: Walter would pull a sourdough boule out of a proofing basket, Miguel would knead the dried fruit and nuts into it, and Jake would carry it to the oven.

  “Oh my,” Cass murmured. “I could watch this for hours.”

  “Same,” Charlie said. “It’s like . . . the best television show in the world.”

  Walter looked up and saw them. He waved at Charlie and Cass.

  “Welcome back, you two! We’re all good here. How many loaves to go, guys?”

  “Maybe two dozen?” Jake answered.

  “Coffee me,” Miguel said, and without missing a beat, Walter filled his coffee cup and handed it over. Miguel gulped the coffee like it was water.

  “We’ve been up all night,” Walter explained. “Having the first-ever Woodburn Breads Starlight Loaves Marathon. And, I hope you don’t mind”—he pointed at the laptop sitting on the granite worktop—“but I decided to turn it into a Live.Li broadcast. It’s going well. So far we have . . .” He leaned forward and peered at the screen. “Thirty thousand viewers.”

  “Thirty thousand? Walter! There aren’t even three thousand people living in Starlight Peak.”

  “Yeah, I think a lot of our viewers are in L.A.” A series of bings emitted from the screen, and Walter’s eyes roved over it. “Yep. All city folk. And they are loving this.” He typed a comment, then turned back to Charlie and said more quietly. “How’s Cass? Do you need to get her upstairs?”

  Cass was standing rooted to the floor, a dreamy smile on her face—directed at Miguel. He was grinning back at her, flashing some extremely endearing dimples. “Permission to leave assembly line for ten seconds, boss?” Miguel said to Walter.

  “Granted,” Walter said, but he spun the laptop around and the camera followed Miguel as he crossed the bakery floor in two strides and had Cass in his arms. “Ten, nine, eight . . .” Miguel kissed Cass quickly, then pulled away. “You’re okay? Really okay? I mean, you look okay—better than okay, you look great. But you’re really fine?”

  “I’m fantastic,” Cass said. “I’m better than I’ve ever been. And I want to help. Hand me an apron?”

  “No way,” Miguel said. “I’ve been down this road with you two before.” He twinkled his charming smile at Charlie, then pulled a stool up to the counter and said, “You, sit. No working for you today. Charlie, on the other hand . . .” He grabbed an apron and threw it her way. “I’m pretty sure our viewers would get quite excited about a cameo appearance from the famous Charlie Goodwin.”

  A cacophony of bings from the laptop in response indicated this was true.

  Charlie laughed and put it on, then stepped into the sight lines of the camera. “Hey, everyone,” she said. “Thrilled to be here at the first-ever Woodburn Breads Starlight Loaves Marathon. Seems I’m a bit late to the party—only two dozen loaves left to bake? These guys must have been seriously busy last night!” At this moment, Jake slipped past her and his arm brushed hers. She lost her train of thought as he started working alongside her, but managed to keep talking. When she was done, she looked at him sidelong. “Hi,” she managed, hoping she wasn’t imagining that there was still chemistry between them—that maybe, just maybe, it wasn’t all over between them.

  “Hi,” he replied, grinning down at her. He nodded toward the camera. “I’m enjoying seeing you in action, Charlie Goodwin.”

  She turned back to the camera, realizing as she did that her sister was right: a hiatus wasn’t what she wanted at all. “I assume you’ve all met Jake, our sexy resident firefighter?” She had realized something else: she loved being on camera. But she loved it most when it was with a group of people she enjoyed being with. At Sweet & Salty, that had been almost entirely true—she liked and respected so many people on the team, like Sydney and Priya. But having someone like Austin in the mix was—well, it was the icing sugar in the sourdough starter. One wrong ingredient ruined everything.

  She was never going to let that happen again in her professional life, she decided then and there. Cass was right. She was better than that; she deserved better than that. As she chatted to the camera, and bantered with Jake, Miguel, Walter, and Cass, an idea began to take shape. She reached into her pocket and tapped out a text to Priya. It was Christmas Eve—and the Sweet & Salty crew would be together, wrapping the marathon.

  Any chance you can get Sasha in front of a screen for a few minutes?

  She gave the name of the Woodburn Live.Li channel. A second later, Priya wrote back.

  Way ahead of you, friend. We are freaking rapt over here. The entire crew. This is quality entertainment! Like FRIENDS meets a reality baking show.

  Charlie smiled and put her phone away, then turned her attention back to the bakery she adored and the people she considered dear friends—and, in the case of Jake, something more. As she picked up a cooled loaf to package up for the party in the town square that night, she felt a deep sense of contentment.

  “Hey, wait,” she said to Walter. “How did you even do this? Last I saw, the Woodburn Breads starter was on life support.”

  Walter grinned. “That reminds me . . .” He leaned toward the camera and said, “Just a reminder, for all your dog biscuit needs, turn to Top Dog, www.topdog.com. Use code STARLIGHT for free shipping.”

  Charlie’s eyebrows raised. “What in the . . . ?”

  “I’ll explain it all later,” Walter said. “Meanwhile, keep on packaging! We’re almost there!”

  Jake swatted at her good-naturedly with a dish towel as she passed and Charlie threw a handful of flour at him—but half of it got on Cass, who jumped off her stool and tossed some back at her sister.

  “Focus, everyone, focus!” Walter called out. Charlie smiled. Walter blossomed under the spotlight, and she couldn’t help but feel a sense of pride over this fact.

  She retrieved the next batch of loaves from the oven, breathing in their comforting, spicy-sweet, and yeasty scent. It was the smell of home, family, and everything that was important to her. She glanced over at Cass and saw she was doing the same thing: her twin was just taking it all in.

  Charlie made another resolution: she would try to do the same, whenever possible. From now on she was going to take the time to pause in her pursuit of happiness and success and just
be happy.

  “Only a dozen to go!” Walter sang out and Charlie snapped back to attention and kept working, letting the sense of contentment flow through her as she did.

  * * *

  • • •

  Charlie ducked out of the bakery with her cell phone in one hand and the recycling bag in the other. She put down the bag and was about to make the call she had been planning when her phone rang in her hand.

  “Sasha! I was just about to call you . . .”

  “Great minds,” Sasha said. “Charlie, listen, you have got to give me first crack at producing this show. I mean, this has everything. A built-in fan base—did you see the comments? And last I checked, your views were still skyrocketing. Plus, a good-looking cast, with so much chemistry I nearly went blind from all the sparks. An adorable set, too—that bakery your family owns is beyond charming. Bottom line? I want in.”

  Charlie leaned against the outer wall of the bakery, looking up at the sky. The blizzard was over, but there were still small clusters of snow clouds dotted across the gloaming. “Sasha, this is great news. I need to add a few caveats, though. My agent will be in touch about this more formally, but I need you to know, too. First, I’d like to have more control over my own career. I don’t want what I do to always be at the whim of others. And so, I want to be an executive producer, and I need to know there will be no additions to the cast I don’t approve. No antagonistic element, for example. No matter how much you think that works for viewers.”

  “Trust me, I’ve had it with antagonistic elements. When I say I want in with this new baking show you’re envisioning, I’m asking in part because I’ve decided to pull out of Bake My Day. I have no interest in working with talent I don’t think is talented! Or total jerks, for that matter.

  “It only took one day without you on set to make me realize as much. You are the real deal, Charlie—screw any questionable research the network did that suggested otherwise. I’ve been around long enough to know Austin isn’t going to hold viewers without you there to keep it real. I’m so sorry it took you leaving for me to realize that. I’m also sorry I didn’t tell you right away what I knew about Austin getting the job. I had my reasons, but they weren’t good ones. So, look, I’ve been in talks with some executives from a new streaming service, and this is exactly the kind of content they’re looking for. What do you think of the name Double Sweet?”