by Kimi Flores
The part that had shocked me the most when they’d showed up was the monstrous wreath currently hanging above my fireplace. It was larger and more extravagant than the one I’d spotted, and I was only charged the amount of my last bid. It didn’t make any sense since I’d seen a much higher offer sitting on the line below mine. Oh well, who was I to question anything, as long as I got to enjoy the beautiful decoration.
Lina gasped. “Wait, you mean like a real Christmas tree? Messy pine needles and all? Not that tiny, fake, sorry excuse for a tree you usually put out?”
As she said that, I frowned at a few needles scattered on the floor. Apparently, I’d missed some when I’d swept after the guys had dragged it into the house earlier.
“Hey, that little tree served me well for years, and you never even saw it in person. Just pictures,” I huffed. “Plus, I never had a proper place to put a real tree before. It had always been just me and I usually worked through the holidays.”
“Yes, I know.” She sounded sullen. “It’s been years since we’ve gotten to see you on Christmas.”
“Well, I’m free this year,” I answered playfully.
“That’s not fair,” she complained. “You know John’s had this trip planned for months now. Plus, you’re still welcome to come, you know.”
“Yes, I do know,” I sighed. “I’m only giving you a hard time. I’m actually excited about being here during the holidays. It’s such a Christmas-y place.”
“Wait, did I hear you right? Christmas-y?” She laughed. “I don’t even remember the last time you were in the Christmas spirit.”
I chose to ignore her tone—and bringing up my lack of Christmas spirit. “There’s just something about this place. I always associated it with summer, but Lina, you’ve got to come out here while it’s still snowing. It would mean a lot to me if we could show the kids everything we used to do here.”
“It’s snowing?” she said doubtfully. I guess Hope Falls only contained sunshine and rain in her mind. “I would love to bring them. It’ll be fun to relive the good times with you.”
“Yeah and it’s kinda magical.” I glanced outside again, in time to catch Elliott’s truck as he pulled into his driveway. A piece of lumber stuck out from the bed.
Curious, I got up and peeked out the window in the dining room that faced his driveway. Like the nosy neighbor I was turning into, I watched him park and unload the long piece of wood. He usually worked in his office this time of day, so I wondered what was so important that had taken him out of the house. I remembered him saying last week that he was working on a project and I figured it might have something to do with one of the properties they were selling.
“When we get back from Spain, let’s plan something.” Lina continued our conversation, oblivious to my distraction.
Sidetracked, I murmured, “Yeah, sounds good.”
“Honey, mommy’s on the phone right now. Give me a few minutes and I’ll get you a snack,” Lina said, I assume to my niece, then I heard a door close in the background and what sounded like the squeak of her office chair. “So, have you had a chance to look at any of those sites I sent to you?” Lina had been worried about me since I’d announced I was buying this house and moving away from the larger job market.
She was a consultant for a children's book publisher and was familiar with working from home, so she’d sent me several sites for at-home businesses. Nothing had interested me, but I didn't want her to think I was ungrateful.
“I’m still checking them out, but I’ve found a few companies looking for HR consultants. I figure I can do that until I find something stable.” I craned my neck to see if I could spot where Elliott was going but lost sight of him, so I moved on to the last room, my office. From there, I pulled back the curtains and watched him open his garage door before hauling the lumber inside.
Man, I was really becoming a stalker.
I’d done the same thing the other day when I’d heard him playing drums. He wasn’t kidding when he said his garage was well insulated, but even with the door closed, I was able to hear the steady beat he rocked out and the clashing of his cymbals. I may have even done a little air guitar as I sang along to what sounded like Bon Jovi’s, “Living on a Prayer”—in the privacy of my office after I closed the drapes, of course.
“Listen, I wanted to talk to you about something that you probably don’t want to hear.” She hesitated before continuing. “Dad and I are concerned about you living in the middle of nowhere all by yourself.”
Nope, I didn’t want to talk about it because I was actually happy here. “I know you guys are worried. Dad already tried to talk me out of it before I signed the papers.”
“You don't think you’re trying to hang onto Mom by living there?” Shortly after our mother had passed, Lina had gotten wasted, then slammed her car into a tree. Once she was out of the hospital and physically healed, she’d had to go to court ordered counseling. It had been a good thing for her, since she’d learned how to let things go in a healthy way. Apparently today, she thought I needed that same counseling.
“Lina, this is the first time in years that I’ve felt comforted by something. It feels really good to be in this home. I know Dad couldn’t take living in the house we shared with Mom as a family, but there’s something different about this one. I can’t explain it, it’s just this feeling. I love the town and the longer I’m here the less it’s bothering me how everyone is in everyone else’s business.” And apparently the more I turned into one of them. I didn’t mention that to her, though. She’d never get off my back.
We laughed in unison, but I could still feel her hesitation to let it go.
I sighed. “Lina, please just support me, okay? I need this.” Once those words were out of my mouth, it hit me how true they were. Up to this point, my focus had been all about the daily grind, but now, I felt like I had something more meaningful to look forward to each day.
I could hear her tapping on her laptop keyboard, no doubt posting something on social media. “Fair enough.”
There was a moment of silence while I kept my eyes on Elliott as he took off his jacket and beanie, then turned on his table saw.
“I wonder what he’s working on,” I mumbled to myself.
“What who’s working on?”
Flustered, I quickly pulled the curtain over as if to hide that I was staring. “Oh, um—my neighbor has his table saw on in the garage and I was just wondering what he was doing.”
“He?” Here we go. She’s like a dog with a bone once she sniffs out a possible romance.
“Uh, yeah. He’s a guy,” I answered, trying to sound casual. “A very nice man who took care of the house for Gus before he died and happens to live next door.”
“Yeah, I figured he was a guy,” she said, amused. “So tell me more about him.”
I attempted to make light of my thoughts about him. “I don’t know much. His name is Elliott, he’s in his early forties, divorced, has three daughters and lives alone.” Yup, that should be enough.
“Interesting. And you’re just now mentioning him?” The sing song tone in her voice told me everything she was thinking.
I had to clear my throat. Why was my mouth so dry? “Oh, it’s not like that. He’s just a really nice guy. He was close to Gus and offered to help me with a few things in the house.”
“Is he hot?”
Great, she’s now moved into the dreamy state. I’d bet money she was picking out the perfect wedding dress for me in her mind.
“Do we call guys hot at our age?” Deflect, deflect! I needed to get her off this topic. I didn’t even know what Elliott and I were.
She chuckled. “Yes, definitely and you just answered my question. Take a picture and send it to me.”
Standing up straighter, I squeaked out, “No, that’s creepy.”
“And staring at him through your window isn’t?” She snickered, the brat.
“Fine,” I grumbled. “Hold on a sec.” I got close to my window,
opened my camera app, zoomed in, then moved the phone around until his face was in focus. I sat and stared at it for a second when I heard her yelling into the phone.
“Hello! Tess! Did you forget about me?”
Crap, how long was I really staring at him? I snapped several shots, then sent her the less fuzzy one that showed his features best.
I put the phone back to my ear and heard my niece in the background, “Mommy, is it story time yet?”
“No, honey, not right now.” One of the things my sister did as a consultant for the children’s book publisher was a weekly live reading on social media where she would either read one of the featured books to her kids live on camera or directly to her audience.
“Oh my god, Tess. He’s gorgeous,” she gushed. “Please tell me you’ve at least flirted with him.”
Out of habit, the moment I sat down in my office chair, I reached for my mouse and moved it back and forth, waking up my computer while answering nonchalantly, “Maybe a little.”
I mindlessly clicked through my emails and job postings, pretending like this conversation wasn’t making me uncomfortable.
“Well, now that I know the real reason why you love living there, I can’t say I blame you.”
I rolled my eyes. “Really, Lina—”
“I know, ‘It’s not like that’.” She laughed. “But it’s also not horrible to live next door to a very handsome guy.”
She did have a point there, but I needed to take her attention off Elliott. “Oh, so you’ll never guess who I ran into a few weeks ago, before I moved.” Although, this was a really weird distraction on my part that was about to open up a whole other can of worms.
She wasn’t fooled. “I see what you’re doing, but I’ll bite—who?”
“Liam.” I said my ex-boyfriend’s name in a casual tone, but immediately regretted bringing him up.
“Really? How’d that go?” She’d always thought I’d missed my golden opportunity with him and was convinced I’d one day agree with her.
“He’s married and his wife is about to have their first child.” I purposely used a neutral tone, not wanting to give her any ammunition.
“How did that make you feel?” There was her counseling coming back again.
“It was weird,” I admitted the truth. “For a second, I thought, ‘That could’ve been us’, but I stand by my decision and know I did the right thing by turning down his proposal. While I did care about him, things were just so meh with us. There was no spark.” Unlike the one I felt every time Elliott was near.
“You mean in the bedroom?” She asked, curiously.
“That too, but more important, he wasn’t very affectionate and not thoughtful at all. We blew each other off so many times when we were supposed to go out. Our careers always took priority, and I couldn’t ever imagine either of us putting the other first.” I pictured him with his wife and how odd it had been to see him staring at her in a way he’d never looked at me. It was the first time I realized we hadn’t been in love and that we never even said those three words to each other. Come to think of it, I hadn’t ever said those words to anyone other than my family members.
I frowned at my realization as I continued to talk about Liam and my run-in. “The funny thing is, his hands never left her once while we stood there talking. Not like he was trying to show off in front of me, but almost as if he just couldn’t help himself. So obviously, I wasn’t what he needed and vice versa.”
“Hmmm, I wonder if Mr. Sexy Neighbor is what you need or maybe he can just give you what you need for now.” There she went again. But to be honest, I didn’t hate what she’d just implied. I wasn’t about to give her the satisfaction of knowing that I thought so too.
“Would you stop that?” I opened up Facebook and got a notification that Lina was currently live, so I clicked on the link and busted up laughing at what was on my screen. “Nice rack, baby sis.”
“Huh?” She asked as I watched my niece poke her head through the crook of Lina’s elbow and giggle, then moved to the other arm and did the same.
“Your cleavage is currently live on Facebook.”
“What?” she asked, horrified. “Is that why my phone is going crazy with notifications?” I watched her straighten up and fix the tank top she was wearing, open the laptop screen and stare at her image. By the original view, I assume she’d only pushed it down about a fourth of the way and that’s how my stinker niece had been able to make her ninja move.
Lina spoke into the camera, “Oh, hey guys, sorry about that. My daughter must’ve clicked on the live button.” She looked flustered as my niece jumped up and down, her tiny ponytails bouncing in the background as she tried to steal a glance of herself. “Storytime will still take place at its normal time and this video is going to be deleted. Sorry again.”
A faded shot of her frozen cleavage then popped on the screen before the video suddenly disappeared.
“Emma Marie, you get back here right now!” Lina yelled in her serious mom voice, then spoke into the phone, “I’ve gotta go. Talk to you later, promise.”
She ended the call before I had a chance to say goodbye, but I didn’t expect her to stick around after using my niece's first and middle name. Emma was a total ham. Add technology to the mix and that was some serious trouble for my sister and brother-in-law.
I was still giggling when my phone rang again. My previous boss, Franklin, popped on the screen, throwing me. Why was he calling me, especially on a Sunday? Then again, he’d been one of the reasons I’d become a workaholic.
“Hello?” I answered in a suspicious tone.
“Hey, Tess, it’s Franklin. I’ve got a proposition for you.”
“Okay—”
And then he asked a question that turned my world upside down, almost bringing me to my knees.
“How’d you like your old job back?”
Chapter Nine
Elliott
As I pulled my truck up to the shooting range, I couldn’t remember the last time I’d been here. The large wooden facade had always reminded me of the lodge my father used to go to when I was a kid.
Toward the left, just outside the building, was one of the archery ranges and on the right side was the shooting area for gun owners. I couldn’t hear any shots so it seemed like everyone was probably inside today.
I looked over at Tess in the passenger seat, thoughtfully staring out her window like something was weighing heavily on her mind. She’d been that way the last few evenings when we’d met for dinner. During our drive here, I’d tried to make small talk and had only been given a few quick nods in response.
I turned off the engine and she startled when I placed my hand on her shoulder. “Hey, you okay over there?” I swallowed hard, unsure about my next question. “Did I do something to make you uncomfortable?”
With her hand suddenly on the sleeve of my jacket, she was quick to clear things up, “Oh God, no. You’re wonderful and I’ve loved spending time with you.” Her beautiful brown eyes turned to her lap as she exhaled and fiddled with her mittens. “I’m just trying to figure some stuff out.”
I ran my finger down the chestnut colored strand of hair that had escaped her beanie, before gently tucking it back in its place. “Is there anything I can help with? Are you unhappy here in Hope Falls? Homesick maybe?”
Waving her hands in front of her, she assured me, “Naw, I love it here. Maybe if I was unhappy with my life now, it would make things easier. It’s just some unexpected news I need to work out.”
Something about that statement bothered me. When you counted the weeks, we hadn’t known each other long, but we’d spent countless hours together, and I’d hoped she was on the same page as me. It seemed to me that she’d let me in, but I guess she still felt like there were certain things she had to do on her own. As much as it killed me, I’d have to respect her wishes.
“Okay, let me know. Even if you just need someone to listen while you work it out.”
“Thanks, bu
t for now, let’s go have some fun.” The sparkle in her eye was exactly what I’d hoped to find and now it was my goal to keep it there all day. “I’ve been looking forward to this since last weekend.”
Our feet made crunching sounds in the snow as we headed toward the building. I was glad she’d taken the time to purchase proper winter clothes as I had suggested.
Her snow boots were one hundred percent girly, fluffy pom poms hanging from the back and all, but at least they’d keep her feet warm and dry. A chuckle escaped me when I noticed how much larger my footprints were compared to hers.
Glancing up, she gave me an inquisitive stare. I pointed to the ground and explained, "I was noticing how your whole foot would fit in my boot print."
She lowered her gaze and started giggling. Glimpsing back to the truck, she began to laugh, filling the air around us with pure joy. "From the looks of my trail, I either don't know how to walk straight in the snow or I had one too many spiked eggnogs."
I couldn’t help but join in her laughter. She looked adorable wrapped up in her puffy white jacket with brown and tan furry lining on the hood, vibrant blue beanie, and those tight jeans that hugged her ass perfectly.
Yes, I’d been staring at her ass every chance I’d gotten today.
Holding the door open, I motioned for her to walk in first. I’d completely forgotten about the very large, upright stuffed grizzly bear that stood near the entrance, ready to greet everyone who walked in, until Tess jumped back and nearly knocked me over.
Instinctively, I wrapped my arms around her as she gripped onto the zipper of her puffy jacket. “Holy shit! That scared the crap out of me.”
With a wicked smile, I leaned in and whispered in her ear, “Well, I’d like to say I’m sorry he scared you, but now that you’re in my arms, I can’t say that I am.”
I heard her quick intake of breath before she whipped her head toward me, millimeters away from our lips touching. We’d been this close already, but this was the first time I thought we'd actually kiss. That was until I heard a familiar voice.