Seaside Christmas

by Stacy Claflin

  "Cruz would never vandalize our building," Talia told Julian.

  "I wouldn't say never." Julian turned to Cruz. "You've egged other churches, haven't you?"

  Anger pulsated through him. "That was a long time ago. I was a stupid teen."

  "Truer words have never been spoken." Julian smirked and turned to Talia. "Don't worry. I'll help you clean it off."

  "No, you won't," Cruz said, keeping his voice steady. "I will."

  "Aren't you busy with your own place?"

  Cruz turned his back to Julian and looked at Talia, squeezing her hand gently. "Is there anything you need help with for the service?"

  She stared at him for a moment before speaking. "Yes, actually. We just brought some songbooks over and need to place them in the pews."

  "I'll help," Julian said, moving around Cruz. "Where are they?"

  Talia let go of his hand, and he and Julian followed her to the podium where a box of spiral bound books sat.

  "I think we have enough for six on each row," Talia said, picking one out.

  Julian reached down and grabbed a stack. Cruz grabbed some, making sure to take more.

  "Thank you," Talia said.

  Cruz flicked a nod, and then hurried to the row across from Julian. He stared at the pew, trying to figure out if he was just supposed to leave the books on the seats.

  Someone cleared his throat. Cruz turned and saw Julian standing next to him.

  "They go in the slots behind you—in the back of the first row." Julian smirked.

  "I knew that," Cruz snapped.

  Julian leaned closer. "You shouldn't lie," he whispered. "Look where we are." He walked away, his face smug.

  Cruz's nostrils flared. He wanted to punch that jerk in the nose. But not here. "You're one to talk, thief."

  "What do you mean?" His tone dripping of mock innocence.

  Cruz went back to the box and grabbed more songbooks, placing them in the backs of the pews as quickly as he could. By the time he finished, the box was empty so he picked it up to get it out of the way.

  Julian was already done putting his stack of books away, and he was speaking with Allen, laughing. He had his hand on the pastor's shoulder. What a suck-up. Cruz held back a scowl and went through a side door, putting the empty box in the corner of a sitting room.

  He came back out and saw Julian still talking with Allen. Talia was busy with Amara and Lana, which meant that Brayden and Rafael were probably nearby, too. He relaxed, feeling better with his whole family there. If that didn't show how important Talia was to him, he didn't know what did. Julian sure hadn't brought his family, just some guys from his church. And given the way Julian kept glancing over Talia, Cruz was sure she was the only reason he was there.

  Allen walked away from Julian, heading for the pulpit. That meant the service was about to start. Cruz had to be sure to sit next to Talia. He headed toward her, and apparently Julian had the same idea. He nearly ran into Cruz as they walked down the aisle.

  "Excuse me," Julian said, glaring at Cruz. He turned his attention back to Talia, his mouth forming a smile.

  "You know," Cruz said in a low voice.

  Julian turned to him, appearing partially curious and partly disgusted. "What?"

  "You shouldn't look at the pastor's daughter like that. Remember where we are."

  Julian's mouth dropped and his eyes narrowed. "You have no idea what I'm thinking."

  Cruz laughed. "I can read you like a book."

  "I'm nothing like you." Julian's nose wrinkled. "If you'll excuse me."

  "There is no excuse for you," Cruz muttered as Julian ran off toward Talia.

  A noise caught his attention, and he turned to see Allen tapping on the microphone. "We're about to get started. If you'll please find your seats."

  Cruz cut across a row of pews and reached Talia just as Julian did. "Can I walk you to your seat?"

  She nodded and held out her hand. Cruz took it and walked down the aisle with her. Julian shot him a dirty look.

  Talia led him to the front row and they sat. Julian sat on the other side of her—of course. He probably wouldn't give up until someone hit him in the face. Maybe Talia would slap him. Cruz chuckled at the thought.

  She turned to him, raising an eyebrow.

  "Sorry. I was just thinking of something."

  Allen welcomed everyone and thanked them for coming to the first service. He shared a little bit about what had brought him and Talia to Kittle Falls.

  Talia's hand slid into his, and she gave a squeeze. Cruz relaxed a little and squeezed back.

  Allen continued speaking, and then asked everyone to bow their heads while he prayed for the service. Talia continued holding Cruz's hand. After the prayer, Allen asked Talia to come up to help him lead the singing.

  While Talia made her way over to her dad, Cruz found a songbook underneath the seat.

  "Please turn to song number eight-twenty-one," Allen said.

  Cruz flipped around the book, confused because it was missing all of the two hundreds and seven hundreds.

  Julian leaned over. "Do you need help? It's counting—just like we were taught in preschool."

  Anger burned in the pit of Cruz's stomach. He found the song quickly and held it up. "I don't need no help."

  "Could use some grammar lessons, though." Julian turned toward the front and raised his voice. "I sang this song in choir. Can I help lead?"

  Allen smiled. "That would be wonderful, Julian. Thank you."

  Julian went up and stood next to Talia, sharing the same mic. He grinned as he looked over the small crowd, but he gave a little smirk as he met Cruz's gaze.

  Twenty Two

  Talia rose from the pew and went to the front for the final song. Julian followed her, standing uncomfortably close again. She inched away, but he only scooted closer. Maybe next week, she could convince Cruz to sing with her. If they practiced all week, he might be willing.

  Glancing over at him, he appeared uncomfortable. Maybe he didn't like singing, but it would be a good excuse for them to spend some more time together. And with them getting along so well now, he would probably appreciate the excuse as much as she would.

  Finally, the song ended and Talia hurried off the stage toward Cruz. She gave him a big hug. "I can't thank you enough for coming—and bringing your family. This whole service has gone so much better than I ever imagined."

  "I'm really glad," he said. "I wanted it to be special for you guys."

  Julian came over. "If you need help with song-leading again, I'd be happy to help for a few weeks. I told our pastor that I might help you two out for a while until you get your feet on the ground. So, anything you need, just say the word."

  Talia's stomach dropped. He was planning on coming around for a while? "You really don't have to. Cruz is going to help us next week. We're going to practice all week. Right, Cruz?"

  Cruz's eyes widened. "Uh, yeah. Exactly."

  "Oh," Julian said, grinning. "I can still assist. When are you practicing? I'll be here early."

  Talia's stomach twisted in knots. He wasn't going to give up. "You know, Julian, we really don't need an extra song leader. Our service is so small. It would be overpowering for the congregation. But thanks for helping today."

  "I don't mind helping, and the more the merrier." He adjusted his tie, eying Cruz.

  Cruz stood taller next to Talia. "She said no."

  Julian narrowed his eyes. "No need for rudeness."

  They stared each other down before Julian spoke. "I'll just speak with the pastor and see what he thinks he needs help with. I'm only here to serve."

  Cruz took a deep breath.

  "Are you okay?" Talia asked.

  He nodded, not answering.

  Talia frowned. Cruz had seemed a little… off all morning. She couldn't put her finger on it, but it seemed like something was wrong. "Are you sure? I—"

  "I'm fine."

  "Okay." She squeezed his hand. "I should thank everyone else for com
ing."

  He nodded, but didn't say anything. She let go of his hand and went over to where Tiffany, Lana, and Amara were talking in a corner.

  "Thank you guys for coming," Talia said. "It really means a lot to have you here for our first service."

  Tiffany smiled, rubbing her stomach. "It was really nice. Jake and I were talking about coming back next week."

  Talia's eyes widened. "Really? Thank you."

  "Yeah, it was great," Amara said. "I really liked the songs. They're fun and upbeat." She lowered her voice, glancing over at the guys from the other church. "Not like at the other one. They only sing songs written over two hundred years ago."

  "We like to keep things fun," Talia said. "Church doesn't have to be boring. Or old-fashioned. But that first song we sang was pretty old."

  Lana laughed. "It was obviously not the way that guy singing with you was used to. He was completely perplexed at first."

  "Yeah, I noticed," Tiffany said.

  Someone tapped Talia's shoulder. She spun around to see her dad. "Julian suggested we all go out for lunch. What do you think?"

  "I'd love to." It would be a good time to talk with Cruz and find out what was bothering him. She turned to the girls. "Excuse me." She scanned the room, not seeing Cruz. Where had he gone? It wasn't like he could just get lost in the crowd. She went out into the foyer, still not seeing him.

  The front door was cracked open, so she peeked outside. An engine sounded and she turned toward Cruz's shop just in time to see his motorcycle rounding a corner. Her face fell. He'd left without saying goodbye?

  Had she done something wrong, or was something else bothering him? Could something have gone wrong with his shop? Or was it something else entirely?

  Sighing, she went back inside. There was no point in going after him because they'd only brought the one car, and she couldn't leave her dad without it. Cruz was also probably far enough ahead that she wouldn't even know where to begin searching.

  Talia stood taller and cleared her throat. She didn't have time to worry. If something was wrong and Cruz wanted to tell her, he would have. She needed to do what she could to make the rest of the day special for her dad.

  Inside the sanctuary, she found everyone discussing what restaurant to meet at. It was hard to focus, and Talia didn't feel much like eating, so she agreed to what everyone else wanted. She climbed into her dad's car, lost in thought as he spoke excitedly about how well the service had gone.

  In the restaurant, Talia sat next to Tiffany. Before her dad had a chance to sit on her other side, Julian did.

  "Can't you find someone else to sit next to?" Talia asked.

  "I thought we could discuss the songs."

  "Why don't you discuss that with my dad? He can sit between us."

  Julian shook his head. "I like it here."

  "I'd rather—"

  He leaned closer, speaking low. "Don't cause a scene, Talia. You wouldn't want to do that in front of all these friends, would you?"

  Talia gritted her teeth. How dare he?

  Julian grinned. "That's what I thought."

  She turned away from him and joined Tiffany and Lana's conversation. It was hard to pay attention, though, because once again, she was rattled because of Julian.

  The waitress came over to the table, and when she got to Talia, Julian spoke up. "She'll have the maple-glazed salmon and coconut shrimp." He turned to her. "Trust me, it's the best thing on the menu. You'll thank me."

  Talia hadn't even looked at the menu, so she nodded at the waitress. "I'll try that, and I'll have an iced tea."

  She wanted to kick herself for giving into Julian, but she didn't want to make a scene. Everyone else probably thought he was just being friendly, anyway. She looked around the table, wishing Cruz hadn't taken off. She turned back to Tiffany and Lana.

  On the other side of her, Julian scooted closer. His leg pressed against hers.

  Talia shot him a dirty look. "Give me space."

  He turned to his other side. "We had to make room for your dad."

  She scooted her chair closer to Tiffany, but Julian only scooted closer. Talia decided to ignore him. She focused on the girls through the entire meal, ignoring him. She half-expected him to rest his hand on her leg, but he walked the fine line of propriety, staying on the right side.

  "How was the salmon?" Julian asked.

  "Fine." She glowered at him.

  He stared at something behind her. "Oh, look. There's Rachel Fuller."

  Talia turned around and saw a group of girls about her age at a table. "Who's Rachel? A friend of yours?"

  Julian nodded. "The beautiful one wearing the sapphire blue top. Cruz knows her. They've been an on-again, off-again thing for as long as I can remember. Pretty sure I saw them talking the other day."

  Talia's ribs squeezed tight.

  Julian shrugged. "I'm sure it's nothing. I probably shouldn't have said anything."

  Talia rose from her seat, eager to get outside. Just as she passed the restrooms, she nearly bumped into someone. It was Rachel. Talia's heart sped up.

  "Sorry." Rachel smiled at her.

  "It's okay," Talia said. "I'm new to town. Do you know Cruz Hunter?"

  Rachel's green eyes lit up. "I sure do. He was the first guy to take me to a dance after I moved here."

  Talia felt like she was going lose her lunch. "Excuse me."

  She hurried outside. On her way back to the car, Dawn stopped her. "Are you all right? You were pretty quiet in there."

  Talia thought quickly. "Just curious where Cruz went. He took off rather suddenly."

  Dawn nodded knowingly. "He's been in a bit of a mood all morning. Sometimes he just gets like that. His temper can flare up quickly, but after he has some time alone, he usually returns with a smile again. He's always been our comedian, but can be a little moody at times."

  Talia studied her face. Dawn seemed sure that Cruz would get over whatever was bugging him. And also, if it had started in the morning, it probably had nothing to do with Talia. "Thanks, Mrs. Hunter."

  "Dawn, please."

  Talia smiled. That made her think of all the times her dad had told Cruz to call him Allen. "Okay, and thanks."

  Her dad came out. "Are you ready to go home, Tal? I could use a Sunday afternoon nap."

  One of their favorite family traditions. And she was sure he was probably more tired than usual, having lead the entire service for a change. As the assistant pastor, he'd rarely had the chance to speak before. Usually just on a holiday weekend when half the congregation was out of town.

  "Sure. I could use one myself." A nice, long one.

  They thanked Cruz's parents again for coming, and then climbed back into the car and headed home. And it was finally starting to feel like home. Now if only she knew for sure that Cruz wasn't upset with her. Hopefully it was just like what his mom had said.

  Once inside, her dad turned to her. "Our first service went pretty well, didn't it, kid?"

  She smiled, enjoying the nickname she hadn't heard in years. "It really did. It was nice of all the Hunters to show up."

  He nodded. "They're really good people. I'm glad we met Cruz, and even happier that you two are getting along so well."

  Talia's face warmed. Did he know how well they were getting along? She would die of embarrassment if he found out she'd kissed Cruz the night before. She didn't want to tarnish his image of his "little" girl, as dumb as even she knew that sounded.

  "It's too bad he had somewhere to go this afternoon. It would have been nice for him to join us for lunch."

  Talia's eyes widened. "He told you had to be somewhere?"

  Her dad nodded. "He got a text while we were talking, and he said he needed to meet his cousin who was only in the area for a few hours."

  "Oh." Relief swept through her. His sudden disappearance really did have nothing to do with her—or a temper.

  "Don't worry so much, honey." He kissed the top of her head. "I see the way he looks at you. He adores
you as much as you do him."

  Talia's face burned. "Dad."

  "You have nothing to be embarrassed about. I want you to find a love as wonderful as what I had with Mom. He cherishes you and has a heart of gold. I couldn't ask for more."

  She gave him a hug and went upstairs, too embarrassed to continue the conversation. Talia had stayed away from boys most of her life, not wanting the distraction. She'd seen what her friends had gone through, and had never had any interest in losing sleep over some dumb guy just to wind up heartbroken a month or two later.

  Talia slid into track pants and an oversized t-shirt and climbed into bed. She sank in and closed her eyes, hoping her dad was right. If he could see how Cruz felt about her, then he was probably right. Her dad was one of the best judges of character she'd ever met.

  Every time Talia closed her eyes, she saw Cruz riding away from her on the motorcycle. It made her heart ache. Why hadn't he at least told her he was leaving? Just because she'd been talking with his future sisters-in-law? It just didn't make sense. They'd been getting along so well.

  He'd saved her from falling and possibly killing herself, and from that moment on, everything had been wonderful between the two of them. Were things moving too fast? Was he afraid they were too different to make it work? Sure, they were from two totally different worlds, but they could make it work if they just believed and tried.

  She tossed and turned, trying to ignore her thoughts and take a nap—which sounded so good at that point. After a few minutes, she gave up and went over to her window, looking out. Snowflakes danced down again.

  "What am I supposed to do?" Talia whispered. She wasn't even sure who she was talking to. God? Her mom? She'd never felt further from one and would never get to see the other again. Not in this life, anyway.

  "Why is this happening?" Tears threatened and then blurred her vision. "I wasn't even looking for a relationship. I never have been. Why this? I don't need more pain in my life."

  She wiped the tears away and then leaned against the window, staring out at the dancing flakes. It was hard enough to deal with losing her mom—her best friend, really. The one person Talia had always been able to talk to about anything. Gone. Forever. She fought more tears that were trying to escape, but couldn't.