A Christmas Delight

2. Chapter Two

Chapter Two

O ne year later…

I lock the door to my new place behind me, the icy cold air slapping my face. A cloud of condensation plumes from my mouth, and my boots sink into the fresh snow as I make my way down Spring Road. I glance back at my house, a smile hanging on my lips. I can’t believe I live here. I thought I would have to live with Nina for a while, but I didn’t have to, not that it would have been bad. But I’m glad I could get my own place, even if it means I had to move in literally yesterday and that there are half-opened boxes all over my living room. I think there’s still one in my car, too.

Right now, I don’t even see my car. We got six inches of snow last night, and the world is covered with a white blanket. I will have to shovel all that snow off my car and my driveway as soon as I’m home. The sun isn’t out yet, and the streets are quiet. I’m glad I can walk to work. I press my steps, my stomach in knots.

In a matter of minutes, I reach Downtown Brindlewood, and a smile creeps over my face. It’s so pretty here. The cutest village I’ve ever seen, with green spaces, benches, and little shops made of red bricks. There’s even an ice-skating rink. I’m not a gifted ice skater, but it’s fun. I can’t wait to see the town wake up and discover what kind of people live here. See them spin over the ice-skating rink and drink hot chocolates. This place is the kind of place I’ve been longing for my entire life.

The donut shop sign’s color, a retro, flashy pink, pops against the bright white snow and the dark sky. The Donut Delight is like a beacon in the night. I smile wider when I see it. My very own donut shop. As I reach the door, I see there’s already light inside and I step in. I find Nina in the kitchen, apron already tied around her waist.

“You’re here early,” I say, grinning.

Her long, dark curls bounce as she whips her head toward me. “I couldn’t sleep. Could you?”

“Are you kidding me? I was too busy imagining all the ways this could go wrong.”

She pushes her glasses higher up her nose. “Why would it go wrong?”

“I don’t know, maybe because we’ve never done this? What if people here don’t like donuts? What if they hate outsiders? What if they hate us?”

“Maisie.” Nina plants herself in front of me, her deep blue eyes seemingly reaching into my soul. “What I’m going to say is very serious. Everyone, and I mean everyone likes donuts. Worst case scenario, we have cinnamon rolls. No one can resist those.”

“My mom would disagree.”

Nina makes a show of looking around the space. “Well, I don’t see her anywhere, so we’re good.”

“I can still hear her in my head. ‘You’re not mature enough, you don’t know what you’re getting into.’”

Nina puts her hands on my arms. “I believe in us. I believe in you. It’d be great if you started believing in yourself too. You are a great, like, I don’t know, human. With worth and stuff.”

“Thanks? I think?” Coming from Nina, who is closer in personality to a black cat than a human, it means a lot, I guess.

“We worked so hard for this.”

“We did.”

“We can do this, okay? We’re good enough. Better than good enough.”

I grin. “Now it sounds like you’re trying to convince yourself too.”

“‘Cause I’m scared as hell.”

“Fair. How about we get to work? We can make donuts while being scared, right?”

She nods. “I think that’s doable. If anything, it might give them extra flavor.”

She rolls her eyes at me as I turn on the radio and look for the Christmas songs, but she lets me do it. Christmas is in about five weeks, and for the first time ever, I am not going to spend it with my family. I will miss them a little, but I’ll be working, and if I’m being honest with myself, I’m glad I can spend Christmas by myself. For once, I will eat the foods I want, and I intend to decorate my house with every single decoration I bought on sale last year. This Christmas will be mine and mine alone. It will be enjoyable. The way I want it.

Just as the sun peeks over the snowy mountains, it’s time to open the shop to customers. My stomach is still in knots. I adjust my fluffy Christmas sweater and look at myself in the bathroom mirror to make sure I look presentable. My dark blonde, wavy hair is already a little disheveled despite being short, cut just above the shoulders.

Almost as soon as I flick the open sign, people start coming in. The next two hours are kind of a blur. The opening of the brand-new donut and coffee shop has attracted so many more people than we’d thought. Nina and I barely have time to say a word to each other.

Several times, my phone vibrates in my pocket, but I can’t answer. I’m dreading seeing Mom on the screen. I don’t have time for that. It vibrates three times, and eventually, it’s the curt buzz telling me I got a text that makes me look once I have a short second between customers. I have two texts waiting for me. The first one is from my childhood best friend, Andy.

Andy’s text makes me smile. Happy first day! Let me know how it went later!

“Andy wishes us a happy first day,” I tell Nina.

She smiles. “I know. He sent me a text too.”

Of course he did. Andy has had a huge crush on Nina since forever.

I answer him, telling him that it’s going good so far and that Nina and I will call him later. Nina, Andy, and I basically grew up together. None of us had siblings, but we had each other. We’d take turns having sleepovers in each other’s house. He has always felt like a brother to me.

The second text I got is from my mother. Can I have your new address, honey?

She forgot it was opening day, but at least she’s not texting me to tell me I’m making a mistake. She probably wants to send me her Christmas card, like she does every year. I quickly type my reply to give her my new address, then put my phone back in my pocket at the sight of a new swarm of customers.

Finally, around mid-morning, Nina and I catch a break.

“That was intense,” she says, her pretty blue eyes sparkling. “I’m loving it!”

“Me too. I’d enjoy it even more if I had gotten more sleep last night. I’m so tired.”

“I’ll make you a coffee. Gingerbread latte?”

“Yes. I love you.”

I lean over the counter, enjoying the peace and the Christmas songs while looking through the large windows. The street outside is busy with people going about their business.

Across the street from us is a café. Nina and I went once when we visited Brindlewood. We wanted to make sure our business was a good fit for the village. The café does serve coffee, of course, but very view pastries, and quite a lot of sandwiches for lunch, so we felt we wouldn’t really be competing.

Through the crowd of jovial faces, a man catches my attention as he walks past the café. He’s taller than pretty much everyone he passes by. He has brown hair and an untrimmed brown beard, and he’s wearing a thick, checkered, red and black jacket and washed-out jeans. Snow clings onto his heavy boots. He kind of looks like a lumberjack. He’s about to cross the street when a car suddenly turns and blocks his way, nearly running into him. The man jumps back, a look of surprise on his face.

I expect him to mutter something under his breath and be on his way, which is what I would have done, but instead he walks to the car that cut him off, which just parked in front of the café. A young, black-haired man gets out. The lumberjack gets right in his face, looking down on the driver, looming over him.

Their loud voices are heard from inside the shop, distracting the customers sitting at the tables.

“What’s that?” Nina asks, standing next to me.

“The dude with black hair almost ran over the lumberjack. Now Lumberjack is really angry.”

That’s an understatement. From here, I feel like Lumberjack will start hitting black-haired guy at any moment.

“What do we do if they start throwing punches?” Nina asks.

A woman in her mid-sixties sitting at a table close to us turns around. “Don’t worry, honey. He’s just the town’s grump. He’s scary, but harmless.”

“Oh.” I glance again at the men outside shouting at each other. “I didn’t know small towns had their very own grumps.”

“This one sure does,” the woman answers before turning her back to us again.

“He’s coming this way,” Nina whispers in my ear.

“Wait, what?”

I look back up just as Lumberjack pushes the door open. I don’t even have time to react when Nina has already left my side, pretending to get busy somewhere else, when in reality, I know she doesn’t want to deal with this man.

I steady myself and fix a smile on my face. Lumberjack approaches the counter, allowing me to see a few gray strands in his chocolate brown hair and beard. He has the build of a grizzly bear, and while the old woman told me not to worry about him, the shop has become quiet since he’s stepped in.

I force a “Hello” out of my throat, trying to sound natural. “What can I get you?”

“You serve coffee here?” he asks, his voice low.

“Yes, we do.”

“Black coffee. Large,” he says, looking around our new shop, then finally his brown eyes lock on me.

My feet are rooted to the floor for a second, but I quickly tear myself away from the counter and get to work. I try to go fast so he can be on his way as soon as possible. Who knows who he’s going to yell at next? Sure won’t be me.

I give him the coffee, and he pays for it. I keep avoiding eye-contact, but I can feel his gaze on me. I expect him to leave, but he stands there a moment longer, and I force myself to look up. His deep brown eyes are set on me, and it’s hard not to squirm.

“Anything else for you?” I ask.

“No.”

And yet, he’s still here, studying me.

“So, you’re the new owner?” he asks.

“That’s right.”

Nina clears her throat somewhere to my right, pretending to rearrange donuts.

“Me and my friend Nina,” I add.

His gaze on me is intense, bordering on crushing. He makes a sound at the back of his throat, something that could either be a hidden scoff or a discreet chuckle. It feels like he’s making fun of me, of us, but still, I keep smiling. I’m not gonna let an old grump dampen my spirits. Well, not old. He looks like he’s in his mid-thirties, maybe. So, older than me, but still young.

Nina stands next to me and saves my life. “Two donuts bought, the third one for free for our grand opening. See anything you like? We also have a donut and beverage combo.”

He glances at her briefly before his eyes find me again. I’d like to look away, but I can’t, caught between mesmerized and terrified by this stranger who either hates me or looks down on me.

“I’m good.” He finally leaves the shop, the little bell above the door signaling his departure.

A long exhale seeps out of my body. “He was kinda scary. I was scared.” I chuckle.

“You looked scared. I have second-hand embarrassment watching you.”

“You ran away and hid, you hypocrite.”

Nina chortles. “True.”

“There’s a coffee shop—an actual coffee shop right across the street, why did he have to come here?”

“He probably used to come here before.” Nina shrugs, a grin still clinging to her pretty face. “He might be a bit scary, but I think he’s good looking. In his gruffy, lumberjack sort of way.”

It’s not like I haven’t noticed, but that’s not enough to make me feel at ease. “Yeah, well, make sure you let him cross the street if you’re ever driving around here.”