Page 13 of Sweet Christmas Wish
William reached for his wallet and handed over his card to pay for the gingerbread loaf.
“Oh, it’s on the house,” she said quickly.
“No, no, I insist. I love supporting small businesses.”
Sarah smiled at him, running his card through the credit card scanner and then handing it back, along with the wrapped gingerbread loaf. “Well, thanks for your support,” she said.
“Any time. I’m sure I’ll be back,” he replied, taking the loaf and giving her one last smile. “See you later.”
“Later,” she called after him, biting back a groan as the door swung shut behind him.
CHAPTERSEVEN
William reached his hands toward the crackling fire, savoring the feeling of the warmth against his chilled fingers. He gave a sigh of pleasure, sinking more deeply into one of the leather armchairs that flanked the enormous stone fireplace in the ski resort coffee shop. He’d been skiing since eight in the morning and was only just now stopping to take a break—and it was well past noon. The slopes, as usual, had been perfect, and he’d enjoyed every minute of his time carving through the powdery snow that morning. No matter how many times he hit the slopes, skiing down a mountain was an experience that never got old for him.
When the barista called his name, he pulled his tired body up and out of the armchair, walking over to the old-fashioned counter to get his coffee. He’d decided to indulge himself and order something extravagant—a cinnamon dolce latte with whipped cream swirled on top. Some folks might make fun of a grown man drinking a fancy coffee order, but he didn’t care. Manliness had nothing to do with one’s coffee order, and he wasn’t going to miss out on the good things in life by caring what other people thought. He blew on his latte as he walked back to his armchair, inhaling the rich aromas wafting up from his mug.
This is the life, he thought, settling once more into the chair.A perfect coffee in a cozy coffee shop after a morning of skiing? Perfection. And you can’t beat the view.
It was true. The enormous picture windows throughout the cabin-like coffee shop offered stunning vistas of the pine-tree studded mountains and the achingly blue sky that arched over the white slopes. Yes, indeed, he decided. He could certainly get used to spending time in a place like this—and he wasn’t just thinking of the slopes.
He loved relaxing in this coffee shop. It took him back to his years of working jobs bartending and as a barista while working his way through school at UNH. There was something so soothing about concocting the perfect drinks for folks, whether at the bar or in a coffee shop. Crafting the perfect drink was both a science and an art, a delicate dance with delicious rhythms as all the components were added and mixed to perfection to create something to please the senses.
Not for the first time, he wondered what it would be like to run a place like this. He’d always enjoyed this kind of work, and he’d always thought that one day he would open his own business.
Why didn’t I do it, then?he wondered, but the answer came quickly, as it always did. When college had rolled around, he had thought accounting would be safer and more practical than studying entrepreneurship. He’d let fears about the time it took for small businesses to simply break even push him toward the safer route of accounting.
And he was good at it too. He excelled in school, taking enough classes to qualify to take the CPA exam, which he’d passed on the first try. As a CPA, he’d been able to land a job with his prestigious firm in New Jersey, which meant a stable work environment and a high salary. Still… despite the obvious benefits of the job, he often left work feeling a little empty. There had been more than one night he’d stayed awake late wondering about his career path and feeling that there had to be more to life than shuffling figures around in spreadsheets.
The sound of his phone buzzing in his pocket interrupted his musings, startling him.
How am I getting reception at the top of this mountain?
He set his latte aside, digging into his pocket and fishing out his phone. His brother’s name flashed across the screen and he smiled, shaking his head in mingled wonder and disbelief before answering.
“Tristan, hey,” he said, putting the phone to his ear. “I can’t believe your call got through—no one has ever been able to reach me when I’m skiing before. The reception just usually isn’t strong enough.”
Tristan’s rich laugh crackled through the phone. “Do you really think something as insignificant as high elevation could get in the way of me contacting my only brother?”
William leaned back in his chair, grinning. He and Tristan had always been close—they’d both majored in accounting and even worked at the same firm now. That was another reason he had chosen his path while at UNH. He looked up to Tristan and had enjoyed taking classes with him. Now, though, they worked in different departments at their firm, but it was still nice to see his brother randomly around the office.
“Hey, so I needed to run something by you about the Miller account,” Tristan was saying.
His brother quickly launched into an explanation about a tangle they’d run into with the account that had recently passed from William’s department over to Tristan’s. The two brothers worked through the snarl, examining the issue and problem-solving together. This was one of the more engaging aspects of the job, and William didn’t mind that his brother had called him about work while on vacation. Well, at least, not too much. Soon enough, they had come up with a solution and Tristan thanked him enthusiastically.
“See? This is why I called you. I knew you’d bring a fresh perspective.”
“Mmhmm, no problem,” William replied, then adopted a mock-stern tone. “Just remember that I’mon vacationnext time you have an issue at work, though.”
“Aye, aye, captain. Speaking of vacation, has Romeo managed to track down his Juliet?”
William rolled his eyes even though Tristan couldn’t see him. “It’s not like that.”
“Sure, sure, whatever you say. Come on, man, what’s the scoop?”
“There’s nothing to tell, at least not yet. And seriously, Tristan, I’m just here to reconnect with Michelle. Things may have changed over the years, you know? There may not be any chemistry left, but I thought it would be good to at least catch up on her life and see how she’s doing.”
“Sure…” Tristan’s voice was doubtful, but William chose to ignore it.
