Merrily in Love

by Melissa West

  Kylie thought back to her childhood, to all the small things Franny would do to make the shop special, and an idea occurred to her—what if she created events at the shop? Daily craft days or specials or—“Oh my God. Why didn’t I think of this before? You are a genius!”

  “That’s one name for me, but sure, I’ll take it,” Brady called.

  She rolled her eyes. “Again, not talking to you.”

  Ally laughed again. “Girl, you’re in trouble with that one.”

  “Don’t I know it. But anyway, ignore him. I try to.”

  “How’s that working out for you?”

  Kylie’s shoulders slumped. “Splendidly, as you can tell. Anyway, you gave me a great idea. So if people want a bit of magic, then maybe to help the shop get back to the level we need, we should give them a bit of holiday cheer. “

  “Give them magic?”

  “Yeah, in the form of holiday cheer and fun.” Kylie realized the customers that had come in before had stopped to listen to her. “So maybe we have daily events—holiday craft days, holiday shopping fun, Santa day! The kids can come see Santa. We can even do a special little photo that they can take home with them. And coffee and cookies and tea every day. Give people a place to come that feels separate from all the rigors of their life and all the commercialism of the season that drives you crazy. What do you think?” She eyed Ally, then the customers, before her gaze caught on Brady, who had stopped working to listen. “I just…maybe if I can make it like it used to be, then Franny can keep her shop. Maybe I can save it.”

  Brady swallowed hard, then looked away, and Kylie forced herself to focus back on Ally, her thoughts on remedying more than just the shop.

  “I love it,” Ally said.

  “Us, too,” the older women said, excitedly. “You can count us as regulars.”

  Kylie smiled and the women went back to shopping.

  Merrily was separated into villages, holiday decor, and then gift ideas. Franny had handmade candles brought in a few months ago, and they were very popular. The shop wasn’t huge, but there was a lot to see. “Okay, maybe we should create a schedule,” she said to Ally at the same time that Ally’s phone chirped.

  “Was that a bird ringtone?”

  Ally’s eyes went wide as she pulled her phone toward her face, typed away, then sighed loudly in aggravation. “Damn, already gone.”

  “What?”

  She shook her head. “I’m trying to score a Real N Feel doll for my daughter for Christmas.”

  “Real N Feel?”

  “You haven’t heard of these things? It’s like this robotic doll. They have boy and girl options, so little boys can get them, too. They’re the hottest toy this season and the stupid manufacturer didn’t anticipate the hype, so there aren’t enough of them. A few websites have gone up that will track when stores get them in stock and send you an alert to your phone. That was the chirping you heard, but the dang doll gets snatched up before I can get there.”

  Kylie walked around to stand beside Ally and peered down at the phone. Sure enough, a site showed every retailer imaginable—Walmart, Toys “R” Us, Target, etc.—all of them with SOLD OUT beside the store name. Then at the bottom of the screen, there was a list of the most recent available inventory, all showing available for less than a minute before someone else grabbed it.

  “Are they not available in store, too? Is it only online?”

  “Oh, they’re in store all right,” Ally said, again exasperated. “But there are lines around the store before they open, all for people to try to get one of, like, three that the store gets. And Walmart gets their inventory so randomly that it’s impossible to know when they will get theirs. My husband works long hours and leaves early in the morning. He’s with the electric company. So I can’t go wait at a Target two towns over for two or three hours, which is what it takes to get there early enough to grab one. And even then, you may not be lucky enough, because the store could have only gotten one. There’s no way to know.”

  “That’s horrible.”

  “It’s so frustrating, and of course, this doll is the only thing Rena wants from Santa. I’ve been tempted to go on eBay, because there are all these horrible people buying them for retail and then marking them way up.”

  “Ugh, no.”

  “Yes. And I can’t pay those prices.”

  More customers came in, and Ally pushed away from the counter. “So now you know my drama. Not as fun as yours, I’ll admit,” she said with a grin as she eyed Brady.

  Kylie watched her go to greet the customers and decided that she would need to help Ally get this present.

  She turned to find Brady setting up shelving along one of the walls on his side. He lifted his arms to put something on the top shelf, causing his T-shirt to lift and expose a sliver of plaid boxers.

  Forget fun. Kylie’s drama was downright painful.

  Chapter 5

  Brady pulled open the door to AJ&P bakery and held it for two older ladies to walk out. They smiled at him, and then went on their way, and Brady told himself that he was still a nice guy. That part hadn’t changed after Kylie left. He just became more…guarded.

  Or maybe he was just—

  He shook his head to stop himself. Ever since Kylie came back to town, he couldn’t stop thinking about all the things that had changed since she left. Namely with him. And in his search, it occurred to him that not a whole heck of a lot had. He wasn’t sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing.

  Needing to put it out of his mind, he stepped into the bakery/sandwich shop, the scent of fresh breads hitting him full on. Most people came to the shop to get a bowl of soup and a hot sandwich and ended up buying a plethora of baked goods instead. Especially his mother, which was why he’d asked to meet there for lunch.

  “You’re late,” she said as he neared, then kissed her cheek.

  “You sound surprised,” he said with a grin.

  Grace Littleton smiled back at her son. “Not surprised so much as forever hopeful that you’ll buy a watch and make a point to look at it once in a while.”

  Brady took a sip from the ice water she’d already ordered for him, because he wasn’t the only one who never changed. Likely the woman had already ordered food for the both of them and a to-go order of turnovers.

  Sure enough, a minute later, the waitress brought over a plate for each of them: broccoli cheddar soup for his mom, hot ham and cheese for him.

  He took a bite and groaned. “Either that’s the best sandwich I’ve ever had or I’m starving.”

  His mother shot him a worried look. “You barely eat dinner, you can’t also skip breakfast.”

  “I do breakfast,” he said around another bite that was less a bite and more inhaling the whole thing. He eyed the front, curious if he could get the waitress’s attention to order a second to go.

  “Coffee doesn’t count as breakfast. I’m worried about you. Your brothers said you’ve been working all hours of the day getting the shop’s extension worked out.” She kept her focus on him, waiting for his reaction, and he prayed he didn’t give one.

  It’d been a week since he’d moved things into the Christmas shop, and though a part of him spent time there because it was his job to make sure everything went perfectly, it was also because he didn’t feel whole unless he was there. Like a part of him was missing and once he walked into that building, the void went away. He could push aside questions from his brothers about it, but his mother wouldn’t be so easy to convince.

  “I’m fine, Mom. I eat, I sleep, I work. Rinse, repeat. It’s been that way for a long time now. Not sure it’s going to change any time s…”

  Brady trailed off as he caught the person passing by the bakery’s window, and then the door opening, and her walking in, and suddenly all the air in his lungs swept out.

  “Shit.” He jerked back and looked
over at his mom, because while he was a twenty-nine-year-old man, he still tried for decent language around her.

  But instead of lecturing him, she stared at Kylie and said, “I’ll say,” then patted his hand, which was now gripping the edge of the table.

  “I hadn’t seen her yet. She looks…”

  He focused back on the sandwich before him, but suddenly he was no longer hungry. “I know.”

  “And you’re around her every day.”

  “Most.”

  His mother tapped his hand again, and he looked up. “If it makes you feel any better, it’s probably hard for her, too.”

  “It’s not hard. It’s fine. I’m fine.”

  “Right.”

  Her eyes cut back to the register, and then a slow smile curled her lips, and he knew before she spoke that Kylie had spotted her.

  “Mrs. Littleton, how are you?”

  Brady sighed and turned to face the woman who’d single-handedly shattered his heart years ago and was now back in town to complete the job.

  She stopped a few feet away from them. “Brady…hey.”

  “Ky.”

  Her jaw ticked, and he wondered if she filed away all the things that reminded her of him like he had. Maybe even her nickname.

  “I thought you’d be at the shop,” she said.

  “Heading there later. You?”

  She tucked her hands into the back pockets of her jeans, then crossed her arms, then dropped them to her side and shrugged, all of it meant to look like she didn’t care, when really all it did was show that she was every bit as uncomfortable as him. “Ally’s there now, so I took a break to grab us some lunch.”

  “Ah. She seems to be working out well.”

  “She is.” Kylie eyed the register again. “I should probably.” She motioned away, then, seeming to remember why she walked over, smiled at his mom again. “It’s really good to see you, Mrs. Littleton.”

  Grace smiled in that way that said she understood far better than they did what was going on between them. “You too, dear. Don’t be a stranger, okay?”

  Kylie nodded. “Thank you, I won’t.” Then she shot Brady one more fleeting look before heading to the register, grabbing a bag waiting for her there, and taking off back out the door.

  His mom sat back in her chair and crossed her arms. “If that’s fine, then I’d hate to think what upset or confused or sad looks like on you these days.”

  Brady tracked Kylie as she walked down the sidewalk, her head down now. “Yeah…”

  * * * *

  Kylie couldn’t stop walking. She dropped Ally’s lunch at the shop, then told her she had something else to pick up, though she couldn’t for the life of her think of what. All she knew was that she needed to keep walking. She needed to put some distance between her and the disaster she’d just suffered at AJ&P.

  Of course, maybe it hadn’t been such a disaster on the outside. On the inside, though, the whole place had exploded in every thought she’d had. Her palms had gone clammy and her heart was racing.

  Seeing Mrs. Littleton was one thing. It was awkward, and she still felt guilty as all heck that she’d hurt her. That was the thing about a relationship like hers and Brady’s―it wasn’t just the two them that were involved. She loved the Littletons, even his brothers, so it had all but broken her all over again to leave without saying good-bye to them. But Brady had been clear back then.

  Still, she could have survived seeing Mrs. Littleton alone. Throw Brady into the mix, the two of them, the woman who had been every bit of the mother she’d always wanted and that her own mother would never be. And then the man she once thought she’d spend the rest of her life with. It was too much. She’d wanted to laugh it off or scream or, hell, cry, but she couldn’t do anything but stand there in misery, all the emotions pent up inside her.

  So now she was walking in hopes of working them off.

  The day was beautiful, a slight chill in the air like it might snow any second, even though it was only the middle of November. The trees had already lost most of their leaves, and the street posts were already decorated for Christmas with greenery and lights. It all made her wish for a do-over or a get out of jail free card or something that could free her from the guilt and the anger and the pain.

  Now, looking back, it seemed like they could have talked through it all, but then Brady had to go be Brady and she was too stubborn to forgive him and then the rest was history.

  Shaking her head to clear the thought, Kylie turned left down the next street and spotted a setup of Christmas trees, Fraser firs and Douglas firs, all bright green and full and calling to her. The shop already had three trees, but they were all artificial. What they needed was a real tree, with its amazing smell, to remind everyone who walked into the shop that it was Christmas.

  An older man was setting up another tree when she walked up.

  “Hi there, can you tell me how much these cost?”

  His thick gray brow furrowed and he ran a hand over his nearly bald head. “Well now that depends on the size and type you choose.”

  “Okay, how about that one,” Kylie said, pointing to the one he was holding. It was a little on the tall side, but she thought she could have him trim a little off the stem and then she could nix the star on top. It’d be fine.

  “This one?” He eyed the tree like he’d just remembered that he was holding it. “I’d say sixty would be fine.”

  Kylie unzipped her purse and rummaged through the pockets until she felt for the wad of cash she’d shoved in there the day before. She pulled it out and counted it out, then cringed. “I have fifty.”

  The man glanced around, then smiled at her. “It’ll be our little secret.”

  “Really? Thank you. Thank you so much.” She hugged him lightly, passed over the fifty dollars, then took the tree and started dragging it away.

  “Wait, miss. Don’t you want me to wrap it up? Help you get it to your car? Well, a tree that size, I hope you have a truck.”

  In all the excitement of choosing the tree, Kylie hadn’t considered actually getting it to the shop. She adjusted it in her grasp, tried to lift it a little, and yeah, that wasn’t happening.

  “Actually, you know, I’m pretty close to here. I think I can just figure it out.”

  The man’s eyebrows lifted. “If you’re sure.”

  “I’m good. Thank you again.” She smiled as she reached the end of the street and started toward Merrily Christmas, only the tree was four times as wide as she was and several feet taller than her five-two self.

  The tree swayed and she swayed with it, then widened her stance to steady it. “Woah boy.” Then her eyes locked with someone down the sidewalk, his arms crossed, a giant grin on his face.

  “Need some help?” Brady called.

  Kylie frowned. “No. I’m good.” She moved around to try to gain control of the tree again, only to lose her grip and then grab it before it hit the sidewalk. “Crap.”

  Several people peeked out from their store windows and Kylie waved to them that all was okay, until she realized that she needed both hands on the giant tree if she hoped to keep it from falling.

  She started to drag it again, when strong arms reached around her, pinning her between him and the tree.

  Brady’s hands locked on the tree. “I’ve got it.” He stood it up tall, then released one of his arms so she could step out.

  Kylie fought back the annoyance creeping up her neck. “I told you that I have it.”

  “Yet you were about to face death by tree limbs. Why are you being so stubborn?”

  “I…” The truth was she didn’t know. She just knew that Brady helping her felt a little like admitting she was wrong, and she couldn’t do that. Not then and not now. “Not stubborn. I just don’t want you to pull a muscle or anything. You know, hurt your chances of finishing your bui
ld.” She thought about it, pressed a finger to her lip and tapped slowly. “Come to think of it, maybe I do want you to pull a muscle. Here.” She released the tree, expecting it to sway as it would have with her if she were holding it by one hand, but it didn’t budge an inch.

  Brady flashed her a cocky grin and flexed his bicep. “This baby’s not going anywhere.”

  Stupid muscles. Kylie pursed her lips.

  “And I’m happy to use them to help you get it to the shop, so long as you ask me nicely.”

  There it was—the real reason Brady came over. Not to be nice, but to embarrass her. He wanted to show that she needed him so she would have to admit that she wasn’t as self-sufficient as she claimed.

  “I know what you’re doing.”

  His eyebrows rose. “I believe it’s called helping you.”

  “Helping me?”

  “Or you could call it saving your ass, whatever you like.”

  Anger pricked in her chest, rising up in that way it had her entire life. Her best friend back in South Carolina, Taryn, used to tell her that she was a tiny bomb ready to explode at a given notice. She always hated it when Taryn said that, but she couldn’t deny there was some accuracy there.

  “You’re trying to get me to admit that I can’t do it on my own, that I’m not self-sufficient, independent, whatever. That I need you.”

  “You do need me.”

  The anger sparked. “Are you insane? I bought this thing on my own, dragged it all the way here. I can get it to the shop. I don’t need you.”

  He sighed loudly. “You really are a piece of work, aren’t you? I came here to help you before you and the tree face-planted on the sidewalk, and you can’t even say thank you. You can’t even ask me to help you get it back to the shop, despite the fact that you know you need me to help you.” He shook his head. “Guess some things don’t change,” he muttered under his breath, and that did it. The paper-thin wall holding back Kylie’s anger exploded.

  “Yeah, I guess some things don’t change. Here I am trying to save Franny’s shop, and here you are thinking of yourself first and trying to take it. I told you that I didn’t need your help, but you refused to leave me alone. I don’t need a hero. I didn’t then and I don’t now.” The words were out too quickly for Kylie to think them through, and instantly she wished she could take them back.