Seaside Christmas

by Stacy Claflin

  Julian spun around and banged his forehead against the structure.

  "If you're gonna do that, you may as well make it look real." Cruz held up a fist.

  "Go ahead, loser. Make my day. Oh, and I don't care about Talia. She's a whore."

  "Oh, no you didn't." He swung, hitting Julian square in the jaw. The crack echoed in Cruz's ears. It felt so good to finally do that after so many years of wanting to.

  Julian stumbled back, his hand covering where Cruz had hit him. "Is that all you got? You've gotten weak. Sure you're man enough for her?"

  Adrenaline pulsated through Cruz's body. He ran at Julian, grabbed his shoulders, and threw him to the ground. Cruz hit him in the eye. Then the other eye. Then in the nose. Then the other side of his jaw.

  That was for Talia.

  "I got it, Julian!" came a male voice from around the building.

  Cruz looked up to see Doug Crowley running toward them with a cell phone raised.

  "Every single punch is on here."

  Julian rose to standing, wiping his eyes. "That should be enough to put him away for a while. What will sweet Talia think of the video?"

  Cruz clenched his fists. Blood covered them.

  What had he done?

  Julian pushed past Cruz. "Get some good close-ups of my wounds."

  Cruz's hands shook. He shoved them in his pockets, took a deep breath, and stood taller. He stepped closer to them. "Those will go great with the pictures of my bike. The ones that have already been emailed to the police."

  Julian rubbed his cheek. "Property damage is nothing compared to physical assault. Sorry to disappoint."

  Doug snapped pictures of Julian's face.

  "So, you admit to damaging my bike?" Cruz demanded.

  "Yeah, but you'll never prove anything." Julian laughed. "I was with Pastor Allen the entire time. It's an airtight alibi."

  He and Doug gave each other a high five.

  "What? You just took a long bathroom break?" Cruz narrowed his eyes.

  "Something like that. I can't tell you how much I enjoyed it." Julian spit some blood onto the ground and smirked. "Almost as much as I liked egging you into punching me."

  "Oh, really?" came a familiar masculine voice from the alleyway.

  Cruz whipped his head around. Bobby, Rafael, and Brayden came out. What were they doing there? Bobby held up his cell phone.

  "What…? How…?" Julian's shoulders dropped.

  Doug backed up a few steps. "You guys got that?"

  "Every last second of Julian taunting Cruz," Bobby said. "Even a nice show of him injuring himself. Want a closing statement?"

  "How did you know?" Julian asked.

  "Easy," Rafael said, stepping forward. "When you idiots discussed it in my shop."

  "I've never set foot in your store," Julian snapped.

  "Let me rephrase that." Rafael glanced at Doug. "This idiot was discussing it on his phone while tie shopping."

  "Stupid!" Julian yelled. He jumped at Doug, swinging.

  Doug moved to the side. "Hey!"

  "Wanna get that, too?" Cruz asked.

  Julian stopped and glared at Bobby. "Better not."

  "Looks like we're at a crossroads, boys," Brayden said. He moved over to Julian and Doug. They both backed up, clearly intimidated by Brayden's height. He was a head taller than all of them. "What should we do about these videos?"

  "What's say we all delete them?" Bobby asked. "Call it a wash. Cruz don't say nothin' about who ruined his bike, and Julian keeps quiet about who improved his face."

  Julian glared at Bobby. "Funny."

  "Can you agree to that?" Rafael asked. He looked at Julian and Doug. "I'm sure you wouldn't want your reputations soiled, now would you?"

  Julian and Doug exchanged glances. Doug shook his head. "I can't. I'm aiming for a promotion at work. This will ruin it." He glared at Julian. "Why did you talk me into this?"

  "You think I saw this coming? You're the fool who discussed our plan in Rafael's shop!"

  "I didn't realize it."

  Bobby grabbed Doug's phone from him and slid his finger around the screen. "Are those the only videos and pictures?"

  Doug snatched it from him and looked at it. "That's everything. Now yours."

  "Sure." Bobby flicked his head, getting hair out of his eyes. He held up his cell and showed everyone as he deleted the videos. "Even-Steven."

  "Anyone else get videos?" Julian glared at Rafael and Brayden.

  "Nope," they both replied.

  "Good," Julian said. "You guys stay out of our way, and we'll stay out of yours."

  "Perfect," Cruz said through gritted teeth.

  Julian kicked the wall.

  "Merry Christmas," Bobby said.

  Doug and Julian hurried away.

  "Don't worry," Bobby said. "I kept a copy of the video."

  "Thanks, dude." Cruz leaned against the wall.

  "Are you all right?" Rafael asked Cruz.

  He took a deep breath. "Just shaken up."

  "Do you need a ride home?" Brayden asked. "I'm staying in my old room tonight. You know how Mom likes us to be there Christmas morning."

  "Hold on." Cruz pulled out his phone and found his text conversation with Talia.

  Can I still come over tonight?

  Yeah. I haven't left the church yet. Where are you?

  At my shop.

  Okay. I'll meet you over here.

  See you in a few.

  He turned to Brayden. "I'm going over to Allen and Talia's for a bit. I'll see you guys in a couple hours."

  They all said their goodbyes and Cruz headed to his shop. He needed to wash his hands before Talia saw the blood. Once his hands were clean, he double-checked for red anywhere else. Everything appeared good.

  Cruz locked up and headed over to the church. Talia stood in the courtyard, looking up at the icicle lights that had nearly killed her. The day Cruz realized he couldn't live without her.

  He tiptoed over to her, careful not to let the snow crunch under his shoes. He wrapped his arms around her and kissed her cheek. "Good evening, beautiful."

  She turned and smiled, her eyes shining. "I'm so glad you changed your mind. It's always so much fun to open a present early. Dad was really hoping you'd open his."

  Cruz spun her around brushed his lips against hers. "I already have the best gift of all."

  Sneak Peek of Bayside Wishes

  Freya Hunter tugged on her bag. A cart carrying about a dozen pieces of luggage smashed into her suitcase. Something cracked.

  She groaned. Shards of black sat on the ground near her feet. Sure enough, a wheel was destroyed. She pulled on the baggage, but it wouldn't roll with a broken wheel.

  "Sorry," someone called from behind the cart.

  "No problem." She'd only have to replace the suitcase.

  Freya took a deep breath and brushed some hair behind her shoulder. She scanned the baggage claim, looking for the tall, dark, and handsome man whose smile could always turn her bad day into a good one.

  She squinted, tugged on the black dress, and spun around, trying to find him. Shale was already supposed to be there. Her brother's flight had been due half an hour before hers, so they'd agreed to meet and split a cab to the funeral.

  Her flight had been delayed nearly half an hour. Maybe he'd given up on her.

  Freya pulled the handle out on her suitcase and dragged it to a less crowded part of the baggage claim.

  He was nowhere in sight. It was time to give him a call.

  She pulled out her phone and scrolled through her contacts.

  Someone bumped into her. "Sorry," he said.

  She turned around. "No probl—Shale?" Freya stared at the skinny, bearded guy with dark circles under his bloodshot eyes. She almost didn't recognize her own twin.

  Freya wrapped her arms around him and squeezed him tight. He looked like he needed it more than ever. Shale returned the embrace, but with little enthusiasm.

  "Are you okay?" she asked, a
lready knowing the answer.

  "Yeah. Fine."

  "Don't lie to me. Twin ESP, remember?"

  "You look great." He appeared to mean that, at least.

  Freya grabbed her suitcase from next to her. "Don't change the subject, either. Where's your luggage?"

  He avoided her gaze. "Long story."

  "And you'd better tell me every detail." She looked him over. Aside from the lost weight, facial hair, and obvious lack of sleep, he seemed okay. All muscle, no flab, so he hadn't stopped working out. But maybe he'd been overdoing it. He'd grown too skinny. Almost gaunt. Her heart constricted. "What's going on with you? Talk to me."

  "Like I said."

  "Long story." She shifted her weight to carry her suitcase.

  "Here." Shale took it from her. "Let me carry that."

  "Thanks." Freya would gladly let him take it. He was a firefighter, and used to carrying much heavier equipment than her clothes and makeup.

  "You still haven't learned to travel light?" he asked.

  "At least you haven't lost your sense of humor."

  "You think I'm kidding?"

  They made their way outside to where cabs waited to give travelers a ride.

  Shale headed for a tall cab driver about their age, and Freya followed.

  "Just one bag?" the man asked.

  "We like to travel light," Shale said. He gestured for Freya to get in first.

  "Where to?" asked the driver.

  "Enchantment Bay." Shale slid in next to Freya and buckled himself.

  "Okay. Should be half an hour." The driver turned on the car and a top twenty song played.

  Freya waited for Shale to say something.

  He didn't.

  She turned to him and put her hand on his knee. "How've you been holding up since Mia? Clearly not as well as you've led on."

  Shale's mouth curved down at the mention of his wife who'd passed away nearly a year earlier. "What do you expect?"

  "That you would've told me the truth. To be completely honest, you look horrible."

  "You always are—and I don't really feel like talking about it."

  She put a hand on his arm and squeezed. "I hate seeing you like this. It's almost been a year. Have you talked with anyone? Guys from the station?"

  "What good would that do?" His brows came together. "She's gone, and nothing's going to change that."

  "It'll do you some good. Talk to me."

  "I don't feel like it."

  "If not me, then who? Don't shut me out." She studied his face, noticing deeper lines around his eyes. Her heart ached, seeing how much pain he was in. "I can tell you're hurting. Talk to me."

  "Okay, but not here."

  Freya pulled out her phone and checked the time. "We should have a half an hour before the funeral. Let's go to the coffee house down the street. I could use some caffeine, anyway."

  "Sure." He turned and looked out the window.

  "Take us to the coffee place off Main Street, near Pine," Freya told the driver. She watched her twin, trying to figure him out. He'd always been the opposite of her in so many ways. Where she was one to wear her heart on her sleeve, he tended to keep everything inside. And it looked like Mia's death had been no different. Maybe made that part of him even more so.

  Freya had always been able to get him to open up to her, though. And she would this time, too. From the looks of it, he'd been holding onto all of his pain and trying to suck it up and be strong without leaning on anyone. She might have her work cut out for her, and she only had a few days.

  "Have you been working a lot?" she asked.

  Shale turned to her. "Yeah. Why?"

  "Just asking."

  "No you aren't."

  The corners of her mouth twitched. She cleared her throat. "You've been focusing on work so you don't have to think about Mia, haven't you?"

  He shrugged.

  He was even more shut off that usual. She squeezed his hand. "I can't even pretend to know what it's like to—"

  "Not now." Shale turned back to the window.

  That stung, but she brushed it aside. "I'll buy the coffee. Still like mochas?"

  "Drip coffee. Plain black, iced."

  Freya arched a brow. "Okay."

  Her phone buzzed, indicating she had a text. It was from her roommate back in New York, Jules.

  Get in safely?

  Yeah. Heading to my friend's funeral.

  Sure ur ok about that?

  Yeah. It sucks & is depressing, but we haven't spoken in years.

  Good. How's your brother? Still hot?

  Um, ew. Did you go out with Aaron yet?

  No. He picked up a gig for the afternoon. Going for dinner.

  Have fun. I better go.

  Hollis was asking about you.

  Freya groaned. Shale turned to her with a funny look.

  Tell him I'll never be interested.

  Gladly. Have fun!

  At a funeral?

  I meant seeing old friends.

  We're probably all going to be crying.

  But there'll be spirits at the wake, right?

  Bye, Jules.

  Love ya.

  U2.

  Freya sighed and put her phone back.

  "What's going on?" Shale asked.

  "I'm tired of guys who won't take a hint."

  "You're the one who wanted to be a model."

  "Thanks. You're a real sweetheart." Freya scowled at him.

  "I'm just saying. You're beautiful and on display."

  "You make it sound like I'm a lingerie model."

  "Trust me, most of the guys out there are picturing you that way."

  Freya shrugged. "That's why I don't date most guys." Especially not Hollis, the newest of her stalkers. With any luck, he'd find someone new to bother while she was away for the weekend. "How long are you staying in town?"

  Shale released a long, slow breath. "Permanently. My stuff is coming in a moving truck."

  Freya's eyes widened. "You're leaving behind your whole life?"

  He raked his fingers through his hair. "I can't take it anymore. Everything reminds me of Mia."

  "I'm so sorry." She rested her hand on top of his.

  "Mom and Dad are going to let me stay in the spare bedroom for a while. I'm going to apply at a few fire stations and then get my own place."

  "Maybe you should stay with them a while."

  He wrinkled his forehead. "Why? I have plenty in savings."

  Clearly, he hadn't been spending much on groceries with all the weight he'd lost. She looked into his eyes. "Being around family will be good for you. You need the support."

  "Gauging by your response, I'm sure no one will leave me alone."

  A smile spread across her face. "You know us Hunters. We take care of our own."

  "Fortunately and unfortunately." Shale toyed with a loose thread on his pants.

  The cab pulled over. "We're here. Sixty-two even."

  Freya pulled out her wallet and handed him a hundred. "Keep the change."

  His eyes lit up. "Many thanks. Have a wonderful day."

  She and Shale went into the little cafe and settled into a booth in the back corner. Freya wanted to talk with him before people noticed them. Once their friends realized the Hunter twins were back in town, no one would give them breathing room. Enchantment Bay, Oregon was not only a small town, but the Hunters were especially well-known. Five siblings—and the "babies" of the family were twins, drawing even more attention. Since they'd both moved away after high school, they always received even more fanfare when returning.

  Shale sipped his black, iced coffee, avoiding Freya's gaze. "Sucks about Chase."

  "Yeah, but we're not here to talk about him. You—"

  "He was only on the force a year before being shot."

  Freya put her cup down. "We'll talk about him at the service. Tell me what's going on with you."

  He still wouldn't look at her.

  "Please," Freya begged.

 
; He finally met her gaze.

  Freya pleaded with her eyes. "Talk to me. I'm worried about you."

  Shale returned the same expression.

  She nodded, urging him to speak. "Time's ticking. Not just for the service, but I'm not going to be here long."

  He closed his eyes for a minute before opening them. "I've been falling apart, Freya. Okay? Are you happy?"

  "Of course not." She frowned and held his gaze. "Why haven't you talked to me? I'm just a phone call away."

  Shale swished his coffee around, making the ice bump against each other. "I haven't known what to do with myself since Mia's death. I just work as much as I can."

  "Do you feel responsible?" Freya asked. "For what happened?"

  "Of course not. It was the restaurant." His eyes shone with tears. "I wish I'd been the one to get the e-coli."

  Freya's throat closed. She shook her head. "Don't say that."

  "It would have been better."

  "You know that's not true. It would kill Mom and Dad. Me. What would I do without you?"

  He looked her over. "You've been doing just fine without me."

  Freya's eyes narrowed. "Because I know you've been alive and well."

  "Still, it should have been me. Not her."

  "Why?" Freya exclaimed.

  Shale took a deep breath and wiped at his eyes. "Mia was pregnant." His voice shook.

  Freya's mouth dropped. "What? Are you serious?"

  He nodded and cleared his throat. His eyes shone with more tears.

  "But you guys…" She searched for words.

  "We hadn't even told anyone."

  "I didn't know you were even trying." How far apart had she and her twin drifted?

  Shale finished his coffee and took a deep breath. "We were just about to tell everyone. Mia was out of the first trimester and we were planning a funny post on social media to announce it. Mia wanted everything just perfect. We'd even started decorating the nursery." His face clouded even more. "But then she got sick and died. It all happened so fast."

  Freya stared at him before finding her voice. "Why didn't you tell anyone about the baby?"

  "What would be the point? It would just upset everyone more."

  "You've been holding onto this for a year?"

  He nodded. "And don't you tell anyone, either."

  "What?" she exclaimed.

  "You're the only who knows, and I want to keep it that way. I trust you."