by Jill Sanders
A Pride Christmas
Jill Sanders
Contents
Summary
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
Also by Jill Sanders
About the Author
To my family
Summary
Take a magical trip back to Pride, Oregon. Meet some new people and watch how the Jordan family welcomes them in this special holiday novella.
* * *
Alice McKinney was supposed to be home for the holidays, enjoying her mother’s homemade pies and her father’s fried turkey. Instead, she’s trapped in a blizzard, holed up in a small cabin somewhere on the coast of Oregon. If that wasn’t bad enough, her brother had sent his best friend, Eric, to drive her home instead of coming himself, which means she’s stranded with the man of her childhood dreams.
It was supposed to be a simple road trip to help his best friend out. Go down to Cali, grab Alice, and bring her home to Portland. Spending fourteen hours in a car with the girl he’d always wanted but couldn’t have was punishment enough. Then the storm hit, leaving them stranded in a romantically perfect setting. Now, he’ll get to spend the holidays with his dream woman in a very magical place.
Chapter 1
Alice stared down at the black Mustang and frowned.
“Well?” Eric said impatiently. “Are you going to get in or just stand there and get soaked?”
Her brother, Chris, had sent Eric Jenkins to pick her up from school and drive her the fourteen hours home, which pissed her off. Especially when Eric continued to sit in the warm dry car instead of jumping out and helping her haul her luggage down the pathway and put it into the trunk.
“Trunk’s open,” he called out to her through the crack he’d opened in the window.
She ground her back teeth and growled as she quickly made her way through the California rain, trying to avoid some of the larger puddles in the pathway as she hurried. Putting her three bags in the trunk, she narrowed her eyes at the back of his head.
Two of her friends had had to help her carry her suitcases down the dorm stairs, and when she bent over and tried to lift the largest one into the trunk, her back cried out in protest. She grunted loudly and tossed the thing in, slamming the trunk as hard as she could.
She could just imagine Eric hissing at the abuse of his “baby.”
Jumping in the passenger side, she made sure to shake the raindrops from her hair, letting them splatter the interior of the car. He hissed and wiped the dashboard dry with a small yellow cloth.
“Why are you here?” she asked through her clenched teeth.
He stopped wiping the dash and looked over at her. “To get you,” he answered slowly, as if she was dense. “You did want to go home for the break, didn’t you?”
“Yes, but Chris was supposed to drive me there. Not you.”
He shoved the yellow cloth back in the glove box and started the engine. “Well, Chris had a change of plans, so you got me instead.” He shrugged as he pulled out of the parking lot.
“What other plans? He is going home, right?” she asked, worried that she wouldn’t be able to see her brother during her break.
She’d been away at college a few months and needed this family time. She’d expected school to be hard but hadn’t planned on being so homesick. Even though she and her brother went to school in the same state, three hours and lots of traffic between them meant she didn’t see him much. As a matter of fact, she’d only seen Chris a handful of times since she’d moved to California and even less the couple of years before that after he’d gone to school.
The fact that she hadn’t seen Eric for almost that long as well hadn’t escaped her. Eric Jenkins had been her very first crush. To this day, her heart skipped every time she was in close proximity to him.
He was everything she’d ever dreamed about: her prince, her leather-wearing biker, her football superstar, and her beach-bum god in nothing but swim shorts. He fit the bill for every fantasy she’d ever had.
Back in middle school, Chris had scolded her and told her she was being too weird around his friend and to knock it off.
Over the years, as her infatuation with Eric grew, this… annoyance had grown between them. She’d started thinking of it as sexual tension and fed off of the attention.
Now, however, she was truly annoyed that Chris wasn’t there to get her. After all, she was wearing a cozy pair of yoga pants, her worn Ugg boots, and an oversized UCLA sweatshirt. Her dark hair was tied up in a loose bun, which was tucked under a heavy beanie.
If she’d known Eric was coming, she would have made sure to look much better.
She held in a gasp when she realized she wasn’t even wearing makeup. Was it too late to run back inside? She glanced out the window and realized he’d already turned onto the highway. Damn. She was going to have to keep her face turned away from him for most of the trip. Maybe if they stopped for gas, she could run in and apply the basics.
“This is a first,” Eric said easily as he got into the fast lane on the 405 heading north.
“What?” she asked, trying to keep most of her face turned away from him.
“You… quiet.” He chuckled.
Her eyes narrowed as she turned to him. “Don’t you have something better to do than drive me all the way home?”
“Nope,” he said easily. “So, what is it? A man?” he asked, continuing without a hitch.
“What?” she asked, her heart skipping as she looked at him.
He was dressed in worn jeans and a black sweatshirt. It was hard to tell if his dark hair was long or short at the moment since he was wearing a ball cap. He looked like the epitome of her college boy fantasies.
“Are you quiet because of a man? Did you break up with him?” he asked, then gave a faux gasp. “Did he break up with you? Inquiring minds want to know.” He smiled at her.
“Shut up,” she said, crossing her arms over her chest and glaring out the window.
“So, it was a boy.” He paused. “Or am I totally off here? Was it a girl?”
“No,” she answered easily.
“No to the boy or the girl?” he asked, and she could hear the curiosity in his voice.
“Neither,” she said, wishing he would just shut up. She was finding it hard not to be charmed and knew that the fourteen-hour drive would be absolute hell if she fell even harder for him.
“Alice, it’s going to be a very long trip if we don’t talk,” he finally said a few minutes later. “You can’t be that mad at Chris.”
“Why can’t I?” she asked, her arms still over her chest.
“Because it was sort of my idea,” he admitted, shocking her.
“Why?” she asked him, feeling the tables turn.
“Because…” He darted a glance in her direction. “He wanted to spend time with Dawn and…”
Whatever else he had to say, she blocked out.
“Chris ditched me so he could spend the time with his girlfriend?” She almost squealed it out, causing Eric to hiss.
“I… didn’t… no…” He shook his head. “You can’t tell your folks that he ditched you. Not yet.”
“Why not?” She jerked her head towards him, totally forgetting about her bare face.
“Because I promised…” He sighed. “Please? Don’t say anything to them?”
She could see the plea in his eyes. No matter what she thought of Eric, he’d
always remain a good friend to her brother. She only wished she had friends of that caliber.
“Fine,” she finally groaned. “But just because I’m pissed at him and he’s not here. Of course, you know this means you’ll be getting the second degree once we get home.”
“Nope, I’m going to drop you off and then head home myself.” He smiled.
“I thought your folks moved to Arizona.”
“They did, but my sister and both brothers are still in Portland. I’m spending the holidays with them and my nephews. All three of them.” He smiled.
“How is everyone?” she asked. She’d seen pictures on social media of his older sister’s new baby, Joshua. His brothers both had sons too. There wasn’t a girl in the bunch.
“It’s the first time I get to meet the little guy. I’m told he reminds her a lot of me.” His smile grew bigger.
“Then your sister and Mike are in big trouble,” she said sweetly. She glanced out the window again as the car sped along the interstate heading further north.
Chapter 2
Eric laughed at Alice’s joke. God, why was it so easy and hard at the same time to be around her?
She was the only woman he’d ever felt comfortable talking to, but also the only one who made his palms sweat and his heart race.
He’d been avoiding her since she hit fifth grade, when he’d noticed just how long her legs were and how she’d filled out her swimsuit at Chris’s birthday party at the water park. She was two years younger than him and he’d been infatuated with her ever since that summer. When Chris had caught him flirting with her, he’d promised his friend that it was just harmless and that there was nothing behind it. He’d steered clear of her ever since, even though his infatuation had grown over the years.
He’d known she had a thing for him back in high school. It had been easy to tell since she’d blushed every time she was around him. But one day he’d caught her making out with Roger Linsey, and their relationship had changed to what it was now.
“What?” she said after a long silence.
“Hm?” He glanced over at her. She looked even better than the last time he’d seen her. Her hair was longer and a shade of caramel brown that made her brown eyes look larger somehow. Even though it was all piled on her head in a loose bun, he still had an urge to reach over and touch it. The yoga pants she was wearing forced his mind to wander to all the other places he’d like to touch as well.
“What? You’re obviously upset,” she said, crossing her arms over her chest. Which made him think about her breasts. His eyes jerked back to the road when an impatient driver honked at him for not going ten over the speed limit.
“No,” he replied. “Not upset.”
He heard her sigh and could just tell that she had rolled her eyes.
“What was that for?” he asked.
“I call tell you’re lying. Seriously, we’ve known each other since we were five.”
“You were five,” he corrected. “I was seven.”
“Whatever.” She sighed again. “We’ve known each other long enough to know when the other one is hiding something.”
“I’m not upset,” he reaffirmed. “Just… deep in thought.”
“About?” When he didn’t answer, she groaned. “It’s a very long trip. Very long and I bore easily.”
He chuckled. “I was thinking about Roger Linsey.”
“Who?”
His eyebrows shot up. “High school… Junior Prom?”
She surprised him by laughing. “I’d forgotten about that.” She scooted further down in the seat. “Fun times.”
“What ever happened between you two?” he asked.
“Why do you ask?” She looked at him and waited.
“I…” He had nothing. “Just curious.”
She rolled her eyes. This time he saw it. “We dated for about a week, that was all. What happened to Julie Hawthorn?”
He didn’t remember who Alice was talking about but figured it was one of the many girls he’d dated in school.
“Same,” he said easily.
They were silent for a while. “How’s school treating you?”
“Good,” she said too quickly. “You?”
He shrugged, realizing he shouldn’t have started the conversation if he didn’t want to talk about it himself.
“Hanging in there,” he admitted.
“That doesn’t sound good.”
“Only a year left.” He groaned.
“What will you do then?” she asked.
“Not sure.” He glanced over at her. “You?”
“I still have a few years left to decide.” She actually sounded eager and excited, and he realized that there were more differences between them than just age.
“You’re taking classes for…” he asked.
“Physical sciences,” she answered enthusiastically. “Chemistry, geology…”
He remembered she’d always been great at the sciences. “So, any particular field you’re interested in?”
“There are so many options. Too many, that’s the problem.” She tucked her feet up on his dash and rested her arms on her knees as she glanced out the window.
The snow continued to fall and had slowed down the traffic to the point that it was going to add an extra hour to their trip.
“At least you have options,” he hinted.
“True.” She smiled. “You’ll have plenty of options as well with your degree in engineering.”
“Yeah.” He swallowed the knot in his throat. “Sure.”
“What?” she asked. He glanced over at her. “You had a tone.”
“No tone,” he replied.
“Oh please.” She chuckled.
“Can you believe Chris wants to sign up for more school?” He tried to change the subject.
“He wants to go for his bachelor’s in health,” Alice answered.
“Yeah, crazy.” He shook his head thinking about his best friend, how they differed. Chris had always been great at school, just like Alice.
“He’s always loved school.”
“The two of you were always too smart for the rest of us,” he admitted.
She chuckled. “If I remember correctly, you and Chris were always neck and neck in school.”
“Not always,” he admitted begrudgingly.
“How about lunch?” she asked when the traffic came to a stop. “If we get off the highway now and grab some food, maybe this will clear up by the time we’re done.”
“Great idea.” He started moving across the highway towards the exit. “I’m sure there’s a place around here.”
They found a little diner near the highway and had soup and sandwiches while the traffic continued to crawl by the windows.
When they got back in the car, the traffic was moving more swiftly, and the conversation turned to their families.
His sister and two brothers were all married and living their own lives. His older brother Nathan had his first child on the way. Sarah and Mike had their son Joshua, while Joe, who was only a year and a half older than Eric, had two kids, Aiden and Evan.
Being the youngest of the group had always meant that he lagged behind everyone else.
Just before nightfall, they hit Sacramento and he pulled over once more to fill his car while she rushed into the gas station to use the restroom and grab some snacks.
After filling up, he walked in and grabbed some chips and a bottled water.
“Won’t you need more than that to stay awake?” she asked, nodding to the water.
“Nope,” he answered. “I was hoping you would take the wheel for a while.”
“Sure.” She motioned to the large soda in her hands. “I slept for a few hours, so I should be good to go.”
Chapter 3
Alice couldn’t help but sneak peeks at Eric while he slept. Sure enough, he was even sexier asleep than when he was awake. She kept her mind busy as she drove towards home, thinking of her parents and being home for her first holiday si
nce she’d moved out. She’d spent Thanksgiving with a few of her new friends. A large group of them had gone to a little lounge in downtown Santa Monica and then had wandered over to the beach and ended up at Pacific Park.
It hadn’t really felt like Thanksgiving, since it had been in the seventies and they had eaten at a little fish lounge that specialized in tourist food. Even with all the festive decorations and music pumping through the speakers, she’d missed Oregon and her family. Which was why she’d asked her brother to drive her home this year for the two weeks’ vacation she needed.
Where was Chris anyway? Was he on his way home? She’d texted him, but, so far, he hadn’t responded.
She glanced over at Eric again. He would know. When he woke up, she’d have to pump him for information about her brother.
The last time she’d seen Chris, he’d been dating someone named Dawn and had hinted that it was getting serious. Was he still dating her? Oh god! Was he bringing her home for Christmas so the folks could meet her? If so, why wouldn’t he have wanted her along for the trip? Something wasn’t sitting right with her and the sooner Eric woke up, the sooner she could get answers.
Seeing that the gas had reached a quarter of a tank, she decided to pull off at the next exit and hit the gas station.
When she finally pulled in under the bright lights of a gas station, she’d been driving a little more than four hours.
Before she could jump out, however, a gas attendant knocked on her window, waking Eric up.
“Where are we?” he asked instantly.
“Just outside of Roseburg.” She rolled down the window and told the attendant. “Fill it up.” He nodded and disappeared.
“Right.” Eric stretched and rolled his shoulders.