by A. E. Radley
‘Because of my degree, I always thought.’
‘Nah’ he dismissed. ‘There’s degrees all over this shop. Phil behind the fish counter has an MA in Physics. You were just a good person to have in the store. Moaning aside, I knew I could count on you.’
Emily looked down. ‘Then I’m sorry.’
‘What for?’ Martin asked.
‘Because I guess I let you down.’
Martin tutted. ‘Don’t be daft. You didn’t let me down at all. In fact, I’m pretty sure you didn’t do anything lots of people don’t do. You just got caught, that’s all. If it was up to me, I’d delete that tape and sack Jeb on the spot for being a sneaky little tattle. But… He’d go over my head and then I’d have to talk to HQ. And then I’d be right behind you in the dole queue.’
Emily laughed sadly and stood, leaning over the desk and offering her hand to Martin. ‘You’ve been a good boss. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you that ‘til now, but there you go’ she shrugged.
Martin shook her hand and gave a grim smile. ‘Good luck, Em.’
Emily walked out of Martin’s office, head low. She was done at Sampson’s. For every time she’d sworn she was going to leave, she’d always believed it would be on her own terms. But the choice was taken. She was now officially one of the unemployed, with no plan for what came next.
Outside, she realised the store was shutting down. Staff were beginning to leave, to enjoy their days off. A soft snow began to fall, cleaning up the slush left by footfall. Emily pulled her coat closed against the cold. It gaped where the missing button was.
‘Emily?’ called a voice and she spun to see Kat, looking worried, stepping carefully over a sheet of fresh ice outside the back entrance, stamped in by the flurry of staff who were fleeing with her. Emily waited for her.
‘What happened?’ she asked, finally crossing the treacherous path and reaching Emily.
Emily gave a loose shrug. ‘I’m afraid we got caught. I’m out.’
Kat was horrified. ‘What?’
‘You’re alright though’ Emily assured her.
‘I don’t care about that’ Kat responded.
‘Well, I do’ Emily told her. ‘You need a job right now.’
Kat’s brow creased in anger. What Emily was saying was true and she knew it. Still, she was livid. Jeb had done this to Emily out of pure spite. She wanted to smack him around the face. She wasn’t prone to violent thoughts, so this took her slightly by surprise. But if she’d seen him at that moment, she was quite sure she would have done it.
Her attention turned back to poor Emily. ‘This is awful’ she said, knowing it was useless. She couldn’t do anything about this crap thing that had happened. In fact, she was part of the cause. ‘I’m sorry.’
But Emily had no interest in her apology. ‘No, we’re not doing that. What happened, happened.’
‘Well, I wish it hadn’t happened’ Kat sighed. ‘I mean, I wish it had happened at another time. Because it’s ruined your life.’
‘I don’t wish that’ Emily said. And it was true. Now the shock of the sacking was passing, she felt sure she didn’t want to take it back. Whatever the cost. It had been something special in a dreary place and time. It felt like it had saved her life, in a funny way.
‘You don’t?’ Kat asked.
Emily was free floating right now, so she reached out for the life raft in front of her. Something she needed to do. ‘No. And while we’re at it… I wanted to ask…’ She stopped and stamped her feet in the cold, trying to get the words out. Once again, it wasn’t the right time, just after being given her walking papers. And it wasn’t the right place, the exterior of the place that had booted her. But she’d started something. She had to go the distance. ‘Will you, or, I thought we could…’
‘Go on a date?’ Kat finished, boldly. She couldn’t imagine jumping in with such confidence to say that a month ago. But that was a month ago. Something had changed. She’d changed. It was scary and wonderful. ‘Is that what you were going to say?’
Emily nodded and grinned.
‘But I just got you sacked.’
‘First off, no you didn’t. Second, so what? I’ll figure this out’ Emily shrugged, hoping that was true. But that was something to think about another time. Right now, she wanted an answer to a better question.
‘I think you will, yes’ Kat said. Because Emily had a way about her. She’d bounce back. She wanted to be there to see it. ‘And yes, I’ll go out with you.’
Emily smiled and leaned in to kiss Kat on the cheek. But Kat didn’t want a cheek kiss and she turned, kissing Emily on the mouth. It became much more than a peck, quite quickly.
And then a voice interrupted the sweet moment, asking smugly ‘God, haven’t you two got into enough trouble as it is with all that?’
Emily and Kat turned to see Jeb, arms folded, smirking. Kat’s eyes narrowed, and she knew what she had to do. She reached down, grabbed a handful of snow and packed it into a little ball.
Jeb saw the danger, too late. ‘You can’t-’ The snowball hit him square in the nose and he gave a very satisfying squawk. ‘I’ll report you for that’ he cried in a wobbly voice, seconds from tears, dusting snow from his face. In reality, he wouldn’t have dared tell his boss that a girl had hit him with a snowball. The shame wouldn’t have been worth the meagre win.
However, Kat didn’t know that he didn’t mean it. But she found she didn’t care either way. She responded casually, ‘Go ahead, Jeb.’
Jeb was rather shocked by the change in the new girl. She’d been scared of her shadow when she’d arrived a few weeks ago. What was it with these young woman, he asked himself as he turned and bolted. Why couldn’t they behave themselves?
Emily, watching Jeb scuttle off, laughed to herself. He might have gotten her the sack today but he was walking away with less dignity than she was. It was something. She thought of Martin and his vow and she knew Kat would be alright, even if Jeb did mean his threat. She was leaving but Kat had at least one ally. And her lack of hesitation to stand up for herself just now told Emily she might not even need that. She was finding her feet, without a doubt.
And then it hit her.
‘Hey, do you think I’d be any good at careers advice? Helping people figure out what comes next? I’ve got a ton of experience, after all. I get how it is when you don’t know what you want to do with yourself.’
Kat smiled. ‘And you’re good at making people feel comfortable when they’re struggling. I can vouch for that. I think you’d be fantastic.’
Emily smiled. ‘Right, well, that’s that then.’ She sighed and looked up at the sky, watching the snow falling. She’d made some sort of decision about her life. It had been simpler than she’d thought. All she’d had to do was get the sack and something had fallen into place, easy as you please.
‘You wanna come to my family for Christmas dinner tomorrow?’ she asked Kat. ‘My dad’s cooking and honestly, he’s terrible but he wouldn’t mind another mouth to feed.’
Kat smiled, the smile turning to a grin, the grin to a beam. Christmas was coming. And she needn’t fear it anymore.
ABOUT NATASHA WEST
Natasha West lives on the south coast of England with a wife who always listens patiently to her ramblings about her newest story and an energetic Jack Russell who doesn't listen to anyone. She's written numerous international bestsellers in the lesfic genre and always strives to give her readers complex, rich characters who aren't always looking for love, but find it anyway - via the funniest, hottest routes possible. If you'd like to be the first to know about Natasha's new releases, deals and offers, sign up to her mailing list by pasting the link below into a browser. She'll even throw in a free copy of her novel, 'The Plus One' for subscribers. She promises never to abuse your info... Unless you ask her to and there's an agreed safe word.
bit.ly/NWsubscribe
Table of Contents
Title Page
Contents
Her Holiday S
ong by Eliza Andrews
June: “Turn the Page,” Bob Seger
July: “32 Flavors,” Ani DiFranco
August: “Bad Romance,” Lady Gaga
September: “Least Complicated,” Indigo Girls
October: “Comfortably Numb,” Pink Floyd
Saturday, November 1: “Fire and Rain,” James Taylor
Mid-November: “Tears in Heaven,” Eric Clapton
Thanksgiving Eve: “Alice’s Restaurant,” Arlo Guthrie
Thanksgiving Day
Monday, November 3 (two and a half weeks earlier): “I Will Buy You a New Life,” Everclear
Mid-November: Kid Cudi, “Pursuit of Happiness”
Thanksgiving Eve
Thanksgiving Day: “Thanksgiving Theme,” Vince Guaraldi Trio
Early December, Part 1: “Scar Tissue,” Red Hot Chili Peppers
Early December, Part 2: “Long December,” Counting Crows
Early December, Part 3: “Back to Black,” Amy Winehouse
Tuesday, December 20: “Last Christmas,” Wham!
Christmas Day: “Let It Go,” Idina Menzel (Frozen)
Boxing Day, Part 1: “That’s What I Like,” Bruno Mars
Boxing Day, Part 2: “Least Complicated,” Indigo Girls (again)
Boxing Day, Part 3: “The Origin of Love,” Neil Patrick Harris (Hedwig and the Angry Inch)
New Year’s Day: “New Year’s Day,” U2
Songs Excerpted in This Novella
About Eliza Andrews
Easier Said Than Done (A Love Bites Christmas) by Lila Bruce
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Epilogue
About Lila Bruce
The Perfectly Imperfect Storm by Giselle Fox
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
About Giselle Fox
A Sweetwater Christmas by Anne Hagan
Dedication
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
About Anne Hagan
Full Circle: A Must Love Chickens Christmas by Jea Hawkins
Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Epilogue
Untitled
About Jea Hawkins
Christmas in Angel Valley by Cara Malone
1. November 23
2. December 1
3. December 3
4. December 5
5. December 8
6. December 9
7. December 12
8. December 13
9. December 14
10. December 15
11. December 23
12. December 24
13. December 25
14. November 23, One Year Later
About Cara Malone
A Christmas Miracle by TB Markinson
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
About TB Markinson
Family Matters by Susan X Meagher
Chapter 1
About Susan X Meagher
Holly Hollydays by A.E. Radley
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
About A.E. Radley
Drive Me Wild by Adan Ramie
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
About Adan Ramie
Greengage Holiday Cheer by Emma Sterner-Radley
1. Holiday Cheer
2. The Three Wise Gay Couples
3. Pinky where art thou?
4. Eight Days ’Til Christmas
5. Pinky Of The Bells
6. Let’s Talk About Sex. And Christmas
7. I’ll Be Home For Christmas, What About You?
8. Treacle and the Frothy-Vanilla-Frappe-Unicorn-Foam
9. Christmas is Coming. You Can’t Hide!
10. Christmas Day Kisses
11. It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas
Author’s Note
About Emma Sterner-Radley
The Gift by Em Stevens
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
About Em Stevens
Stock Take by Natasha West
Copyright
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
About Natasha West