Page 3 of Christmas Replay
Then his head dipped, I tilted my face up, and our lips touched. It was soft, almost chaste, but the kiss had my heart thundering in my chest. As far as first kisses went, it was pretty stellar.
“Merry Christmas, Alissa.” Cliff stepped back, grabbed his coat from his seat then walked out the door.
“Merry Christmas,” I whispered after him.
That Christmas Eve, I’d spent hours cleaning the store and stocking the shelves. I’d told myself it was just so I’d be prepared to reopen, but deep down, I knew it was because I wished Cliff would change his mind and come back.
But he never did.
Julia was right. It had taken me months to recover from Cliffgate as she’d dubbed it. And now, a year later, tomorrow was Christmas Eve. Everything I’d felt that night in Cliff’s arms had rushed back. I knew it was ridiculous to hope he’d show up again, but I’d made sure I was the only one on the schedule to close.
Just in case.
Two
Cliff
Alissa… She hadn’t been far from my thoughts all year, but she’d never believe me if I told her that. My obsession made no sense. In the whole scheme of things, we’d had an interlude that amounted to a blink of time. Yet, she’d made an impression on me.
So here I was, driving north again in a replay of last year, but this time, I hoped the ending would be different. It was Christmas Eve, and I had zero reason to be on this rural highway, heading toward Majestic Falls. Just after Christmas last year, my parents had retired to Florida. This year, I wasn’t celebrating the holiday with them because they were vacationing in Europe.
Which was a shame. As I drove into the outskirts of Majestic Falls, the snow swirling gently around me, it was clear that Majestic Falls wasChristmaspersonified. Like I wouldn’t have been surprised to see Santa’s reindeer roaming about under the twinkle lights threaded along the sidewalks.
No reindeer, but my eyes widened when I saw a moose. At first I thought it was a large decoration, but then it turned it’s head and stared at me. Nothing animatronic about that, either. It wasn’t a fake animal as part of an holiday display.
After a long stare while I slowed my car to a crawl, it seemed to dismiss me and amble off in the other directions. I sucked in a deep breath then released it in a slow exhale. I’d heard of moose charging and despite me driving an SUV, an animal that size could do some damage.
But all in all, my first run in with local wildlife? A success. It was the first in recent years anyway. Since I’d grown up here, I’d seen bear, deer and of course some moose, as well as a lot of smaller critters, over the years. Living in New York City as I had for the past years had admittedly softened me some.
Ah, the big city. Since my parents were out of town, I could be back there working. Since I was planning my move to my new city after the new year, once the last bits of my old job were tied up or handed over, I had more to do than ever. By the end of January, I would be a citizen of Majestic Falls again and the Big Apple would be in my rear view.
I looked forward to the slower pace here, the nostalgia of returning to my childhood home. Yet…all I could think of was Alissa, a woman from a random coffee shop. A woman who hadn’t grown up in Majestic Falls—at least I didn’t think she did. Though the town had a small-town feel, in actuality, it was a city that was large enough for a couple school districts. Even that small question—was she from here or not—niggled at me and I wanted to find out all there was to know about her. In the whole scheme of the mountain of tasks ahead of me, Alissa was a small detail, but for some reason, she also seemed like the most important.
Crazy, since I doubted she’d even remember me.
Not only did I doubt I’d been all that memorable, but she might not even be atMidnight Java.
My car slowed as I approached the turn that would take me to her business. I glanced at my dash.
God, please let her be open ‘til eight again tonight.
My heartbeat sped up as I approached the shop and spied the Christmas lights in the window. They were what had attracted me last year. Yes, I’d wanted coffee, but there was a gas station down the road. Her place had called to me.
Tonight, the lot was empty, except for a single car. I pulled into a parking spot and stared through the store’s front window again. My breath caught when I caught a glimpse of Alissa through the glass. She was here. There was no way I’d leaving tonight without her number in my phone. Hell, if I had my way, I wouldn’t leave alone at all.
Full of determination, I bolted from my car and strode toward the coffee shop before I could convince myself this was a bad idea and change my mind. If I turned around right now, I could still head up to the house on the mountain. My parents had moved, but I’d bought the place from them. I knew without a doubt, leaving was a bad idea and I’d regret it for a long time. If I didn’t go inside to see Alissa, I’d forever wonder what could have been.
As a rule, I didn’t live by could-have-beens or if onlys. If I wanted something, I went for it. With Alissa… Well, this was a first for me in so many ways.
I should have come back sooner.
Thing was, I just couldn’t. Not with everything that had gone on this year—my final case had been a murder trial that had taken nearly a year. Along with my less-high profile work, I’d barely had time to do anything but sleep and do minimal self-maintenance. A drive up to Majestic Falls, even for the weekend, had been out.
But I was there now.
I grasped the entry’s door handle.
Here goes nothing.
