by Sadie Sears
At Spruce Bar, colloquially known as Sprucie’s, we would hang out with the local wolf shifters. Gretta’s panther shifter friend, Justin, would join us occasionally and it got a little crazy. He was a party animal and would hit on anything male and moving.
Across the park sat Lila and Sophie’s building. It was dark, but I’d helped get the place ready for their opening. I knew where the rooms were, how it was laid out, where Sophie kept her many decks of tarot cards. It didn’t seem like much, but I’d helped them build it.
I hadn’t been there long, but I had so much of myself invested there. It would hurt my heart to leave. The town had a magic about it, and more than just the protection spells that Sophie and her witchy friend had laid down over it. Spruce had wormed its way into my heart, but I would do anything for Damini. If it meant moving to Boston, I would.
I just hoped it wouldn’t come down to having to make that choice.
“Why are you sulking outside my house?” Sophie’s voice interrupted my pity party.
I huffed. I should’ve known one of them would still feel me so close to the house. Shifting down, well, within the trees so passersby wouldn’t get an eyeful, I kept my back to Sophie. We weren’t shy about nudity exactly, but it wasn’t exactly a great look.
“Just came out to think.”
It wasn’t entirely a lie. There was some soul searching to do, some convincing myself that I could leave if she really wanted me to. She threw a large jacket at my back and I caught it, covering myself gratefully.
“You couldn’t think in bed with your destined mate?” she asked. She shoved her hands in her jacket pockets.
“She’s the reason I needed to think,” I admitted. “Sophie, what would you say if Cameron wanted you to move away from Spruce? Like, just pick up your whole life and everything that you’ve built here to start over somewhere new, where you don’t know anyone but him.”
Sophie smiled softly and tilted her head, her blonde curls sliding over her shoulder. “Is that what this is about?”
“Her parents live in Boston, and it sounds like they want her to go home.” I started pacing in front of her. “She loves it here, but she’s asked me if I would go with her. I would do anything for her, she’s my destined mate, but Spruce is… Spruce.”
“It’s your home,” she said. “It’s where your family lives. I don’t think the decision should be about who leaves their family behind, but about what your families mean to each of you.”
I curled my lip. “Hers are lying, deceitful, manipulative scum who pried us apart from each other for nine years based on those lies.”
“And yours are shifters, who can be quite terrifying at first sight to people who don’t know you or have differing lore. She’s of Middle Eastern descent, yes?”
I nodded, unsure of where she was going. “Her mother is from Pakistan.”
“Have you ever looked up dragon lore from her country?” She raised her hands before I could interrupt. “I’m not saying she hasn’t had a chance to do research of her own but meeting them halfway might not be a bad idea. Or perhaps the dragon lore isn’t the issue so much as how most of the women are raised there.”
“I tried talking to her mother once. I was going to propose to Damini in college, and I had a long discussion with the woman about it then. She tried to tell me that Damini was breaking up with me, and when I didn’t fall for it, she tried to bribe me to stay away. Then after that, she threatened my life, my livelihood, my freedom. She flat-out told me she’d have me framed and sent to jail if I didn’t leave Damini alone.” I glared at the ground because Sophie was too sweet to glare at. “I don’t see a way forward through that.”
Sophie raised her eyebrows. “Wow. She sounds… stubborn. But still, it’s something to think about. Either way, you don’t want to cut Damini off from a family that she obviously still cares about, regardless of how one-sided it may seem to you. But don’t give up when it seems hopeless, either.”
She turned and started walking away. I threw the coat on her head as I shifted and flew over, flying lazily back toward the house. I wouldn’t give up this time. Waiting for the next bone that destiny threw at me couldn’t be an option. If I couldn’t convince her to stay, I’d have to tough it out somewhere else.
I landed in the driveway and snuck back into the house. Knowing how cold my skin would be after that flight, I hopped in the shower to warm up before climbing into bed with Damini. I curled up along her back, cuddling her. No matter what, I didn’t want to lose her again.
I just needed to enjoy the now and worry about the future when it happened.
11
Damini
Screaming in frustration—internally—I pushed the laptop across the coffee table and sighed. I hadn’t been able to make heads or tails of the merger paperwork. It all looked perfect. All the t’s were crossed, and i’s were dotted.
With a sigh, I leaned forward and pulled the laptop close again, then scrolled to the top of the PDF and started reading through the legalese again. My father hadn’t responded to any of my emails asking for clarification over the last two days.
Apparently, if I wasn’t willing to come back to Boston, I was being frozen out. I contacted the legal department to no avail. They sent me more legalese and the runaround. I was beginning to think they were doing it on purpose to lure me back to Boston to get help.
Whatever the reason, dealing with this only proved that I was too stupid and incompetent to do the job they wanted and expected me to be capable of doing. Not without major help, anyway.
“Here you go,” Vince whispered as he set yet another mug of hot cocoa beside my laptop. He was trying so hard to be sweet, but it just rattled at my nerves. Concentration was damn near impossible.
“Come on,” he said, bumping into me as he sat down. “Let’s go get a Christmas tree. The room looks naked without one.”
Looking from Vince to the laptop and back again, I released a long, tense breath.
And I let it go. “Okay. Forget this mess for today. Let’s go pick out a tree.”
Vince jumped up with a high-pitched squeal. “Yay!” he shouted as he ran from the room. “Scarves for everyone!”
Giggling, I followed him upstairs where we put on a few layers. He chattered excitedly about the tree farm. “Want to invite Cam and Sophie?” I suggested as he handed me a thick, soft scarf to put on.
He froze and looked at me. “I love you. Just so you know. I’d love to invite them.”
Grabbing me and pulling me close, he pressed a fast kiss to my lips, then was gone again, pulling out his phone to text them.
“I love you, too,” I whispered as he walked downstairs ahead of me with his attention on his phone.
“Hey,” he said absently. “You should invite Jessica.”
That was a great idea. I pulled my phone out and shot off a quick text. Do you wanna go pick out a Christmas tree with me and Vince?
She didn’t reply until we were already in Vince’s truck and he was turning around in the driveway. Now?
Yep. We can pick you up if you’d like.
Her reply put a smile on my face. I’m already putting on my coat! Bring it.
“Go get Jessica,” I said. “She’s game.”
He handed me his phone and asked me to put her address in his Maps’ GPS program. I pulled it out of my phone contact list and typed it in. “She lives close.”
Vince honked the horn when we pulled up in front of Jessica’s small bungalow, and she came bounding out of the house, then wobbled when she hit a patch of ice on her front path.
I gasped, but she righted herself and continued her exuberant run to the truck. “I’m so excited,” she squealed as she squeezed into the cab of the truck with me. “I’ve never done a live tree before.”
Vince gaped at her. “Never?”
Jessica shook her head. “No, it’s just always been more convenient to have a fake tree. Well, I guess it started in our dorm,” she said, looking at me. “We weren
’t allowed to have real trees there because of a fire hazard.”
Vince snorted. “Well, you’re in for a treat. They smell amazing. And the fire hazard is minimal as long as you keep them watered and don’t use antique lights.”
He drove us out of town, chattering about the benefits of a live tree versus a fake one. I’d never had one, either. I didn’t want to tell them that, though, because it was another stupid rule of my parents’. They’d always had to have the biggest, fanciest artificial tree money could buy.
Another way they’d controlled me. I’d never decorated a tree in my life.
We arrived at the tree farm, where Cam, Sophie, and Shae had just pulled up. We joined them to walk through the rows of trees, and I was too overwhelmed to choose. “They all look the same,” I said.
Vince and Shae gaped at me. “Is she for real?” Shae whispered.
Shaking his head, Vince slung his arm over Shae’s shoulders. “Don’t ask me. I didn’t bring her.” He tossed his head and walked past me with his nose in the air as I giggled.
“I’ll claim you,” Sophie said.
“Me, too.” Jessica linked her arm through mine. “They look the same to me, as well. A tree’s a tree, right?”
Vince scoffed and turned to glare at us. “No, ma’am. They smell different. Their needles feel different. They last different lengths of time. Do you know how big of a tree you need? The questions are endless.”
“I have a five-foot tree right now, and I like that size,” Jessica said. “It’s good for my living room without me having to rearrange anything.”
Vince nodded. “Well, that’s a start.”
Between Shae and Vince, and surprisingly Cam, who was very into this whole tree thing, we managed to pick out five trees. Cam and Sophie were putting up three in their large house.
“Seems excessive,” Jessica muttered.
Sophie gave her a look. “Listen, sister. If it were up to the two of them,” she pointed to Cam and Shae, who were discussing the merits of a certain type of liquid the tree farm had for sale to add to the tree’s water to extend its viability, “we’d have eight or ten. I’m lucky I got them down to three.”
We dissolved into giggles as Cam paid for the trees. Vince and Jessica tried to hand over their credit cards to pay for their own trees, but Cam wouldn’t hear of it. “I just made a killing on the stock market, let me flex a little.”
Jessica snorted and put her card up as Vince rolled his eyes.
Sophie touched Jessica on the arm. “Let him do it. It makes him happy to buy things for his friends.”
“Hey, I like having things bought for me, so I’m not complaining,” she replied.
Vince winked at her. “Same.”
After the trees were loaded into Cam’s and Vince’s big truck beds, Jessica walked around the truck texting someone, and I found myself alone with Vince at the back of his truck. “Hey,” I said softly.
He turned and smiled at me. “Hey back.”
“I love you.”
Vince’s face dissolved into happiness. “I love you, too. What brought that on?”
“I just realized I haven’t thought about that merger in a couple of hours, and it’s thanks to you.” I also hadn’t worried about my parents or the future, which was nice. Nobody had ever been able to make me forget my worries and cares and just enjoy myself. Not since Vince and I were together before in North Carolina.
Even when I took hiking trips or vacations, my mind constantly spun with fears and worries. Not with Vince. I was able to relax and focus entirely on the moment. I was so happy with him; I didn’t know what to do. My family was going to ruin this, and probably soon. They’d insist I return home or come up with some excuse to get me there.
I wanted to make it work so badly, but I knew I was on borrowed time.
“Okay,” Vince said. “We need decorations. This is my first year not having a roommate and I have zero holiday decorations at home.”
“Craft store,” Jessica crowed. “They have everything half off, all the time, and we actually have one here in Spruce!”
Vince pulled the truck to a stop in the tree farm’s parking lot. “Uh, I know. It’s my favorite place.”
Shaking my head, I sat back and enjoyed listening to my best friend and my boyfriend chatter about crafts. I hadn’t done a craft project since I was a little girl.
It looked like that would change in my near future if I wasn’t careful.
My amused derision for their excitement evaporated when we walked in. “How do you want your tree to look?” I asked as I stared at row after row of holiday decor. They had sections for everything, from popular movie franchises to themed trees by color or profession.
“Up to you,” Vince said. “I was hoping you’d decorate it.”
How had he known? I’d never done this before, and now that I was faced with all these choices, I knew exactly what I wanted. But I never would’ve asked him to decorate it my way.
“I want a tree that’s a hodgepodge,” I said. “A mixture of things we love.”
His face split into a wide grin. “That’s my favorite. You pick out ornaments.” He handed me a basket. “I’m going to get lights and some stuff for decorating outside.” He rolled a cart away from me. Jessica had already disappeared, seconds after we walked into the store.
After saluting him, I wandered through the aisles, carefully scrutinizing every ornament. He zoomed by with his cart nearly full of red and green boxes. “Get a bunch,” he said. “We have a whole tree to fill up.”
I hummed and ignored him. I wasn’t getting a bunch, as he said. I was getting ornaments that fit.
It was sentimental of me, but I wanted to pick out ornaments a little at a time as we grew together. We didn’t have to fill up our tree all in one year.
After several more minutes, both Jessica and Vince joined me. I was almost finished browsing the last of the ornaments in the last aisle.
“Okay,” I said. “I’ve got them.”
Vince looked down in my basket. “You only have four.”
“Yep.” I reached behind him for a box of mixed, multi-colored bulbs. “These will fill out the missing spots,” I explained.
“What did you pick out?” Jessica asked.
“I want to buy our ornaments as we find them and they speak to us,” I explained.
She nodded understandingly. “They mean more that way.”
“Exactly,” I exclaimed. “Maybe eventually we’ll do more than one tree like Cam and Sophie, and we can do a themed tree but until that day, our tree should be meaningful.”
“So, what’s in the basket?”
I pulled out the first ornament. “This one is for me.” It was a tiny, shiny blue dragon. “Vince’s favorite color and will always make me think of him.”
Vince stared at me with big, vulnerable eyes. “I thought you picked that out for me,” he whispered.
“Nope, it’s mine,” I said and set it gently back into the basket. “The rest of them are for both of us, but I didn’t figure you needed a dragon on your tree, so the dragon is mine.”
He knew I was teasing but hugged me close anyway. “Okay, so I totally get the cup of coffee.”
The second ornament I pulled out was a small mug of glass coffee. “Why?” I asked and squinted at him.
“Our first date was coffee at the bookstore,” he said. “Plus, it could be hot cocoa, which I made for you at the cabin.”
I beamed at him. “And this one is self-explanatory.” I’d found a tiny cabin ornament. It didn’t really look like the one we’d camped out in, but it was wooden and served the purpose.
“Explain the last one,” Jessica said, peering into the basket.
I pulled out an armadillo. “It’s the Holiday Armadillo,” I explained.
Jessica burst out laughing and slapped her hand to her face. “Genius. I’m guessing you both love that TV show.”
I nodded. “It’s our favorite.” One of the holiday episodes of the show
in question featured a holiday armadillo.
Jessica showed us the decorations she’d picked out. She already had a good start on her holiday decor, so she’d just gotten a few things to add to it.
I watched Vince pile his outdoor choices up on the belt and giggled. He’d grabbed everything from a blinking reindeer to a Santa inflatable. “Nobody can see our yard from the road.”
He paused and stared at me. “You said our yard,” he whispered.
I had, indeed. Wow. That was telling about what I really wanted.
“Besides,” Vince continued. “We’ll see it. And Shae and Zoe.”
I smiled. “Honey, even if it was only you that would see it, if it makes you happy, go for it.”
He grinned and continued unloading the cart. “Exactly.”
As we walked out the front door, me carrying my bag with the ornaments I’d picked out and Vince pushing the loaded down cart, I spotted something that made my heart freeze.
A limo.
It was the first one I’d seen in Spruce, and somehow, someway, I knew exactly who was inside.
I couldn’t take my eyes off of it. And sure enough, as Vince began fitting bags and boxes in around the tree in the bed of the truck, the back door opened… and my mother stepped out.
Son of a bitch.
“Guys,” I whispered. “Look.”
Vince and Jessica looked around and both of their gazes landed on my mother. She stood with her hands folded in front of her, staring at me. “I’ll be right back.”
“No,” Jessica said. “You don’t have to go. Just get in the truck.”
“I agree,” Vince said in a deep, dark voice. “Ignore her. She doesn’t control you.”
“She’s my mother and she’s here in Spruce. What choice do I have?”
I didn’t wait for them to argue any more, just crossed the parking lot. “How did you know I was here?” I asked.
Mother sighed. “Your phone, Damini, of course. I thought you said the snow was too bad to make it to the airport?” She gestured around the parking lot. “It’s cleared.”