“Why’d you come during the day then?”
“I…” My mouth opens and shuts while I try to come up with a good excuse. I eventually mutter, “Better lighting for photos.”
This makes Nate laugh and I instantly feel better. He can see straight through my lie and he’s not making me feel bad about it. This is why I love him.
Like him.
Have a mild crush.
My cheeks start to burn, and I step away from him, hoping to sound casual as I draw a circle in the dust on the kitchen counter. “How’d you even know I was here anyway?”
“I followed you.”
I whip around to mock-glare at him. “Stalker.”
He grins and my heart gets all squishy in my chest. “I didn’t want you doing this alone, and I knew if I asked to come with you, you’d say no. So, I kept an eye on your mom’s store and as soon as I saw you leave, I tailed you up here.”
Oh my gosh.
He’s the sweetest thing ever.
He did that for me?
His face right now. It’s beautiful. It’s telling me—
Holy crap. Am I not alone on the whole crushing thing?
Did he actually want to kiss me before?
That would be so freaking amazing, but I’m… I’m scared.
This is Nate. I can’t screw up with this guy. He’s my friend!
“Come on, let’s head back.” Nate tips his head toward the back door.
I follow him, glancing around as I jump off the back step. The cellar doors catch my eye and I’m swamped by curiosity again. Plus, as soon as we leave this place Nate will get into his car and I’ll get into mine. We’ll drive back to Harborton and this afternoon will turn to vapor. No more just me and Nate. Because someone is always around—Maya, Luke, the basketball team. And even though this whole haunted-house-trespassing thing has been kind of awkward and confusing, I don’t want this afternoon to end. Because what if I’m right about that look in Nate’s eyes upstairs and in the kitchen just now?
“Want to check that out first?” I point at the cellar doors.
“Are you crazy?” Nate’s dubious expression makes me giggle.
“Come on, it might help us figure out the mystery of who the Barrett boys really were.”
“What are you hoping to find? Body parts? A bloodied axe? No thank you.”
I giggle again. “Of course not. But there might be… I don’t know, boxes of pictures or something down there. Come on, be brave with me.”
Chapter 12
Cellar Lockdown
NATE
She reaches out her hand, making it nearly impossible to refuse her. Those short digits are calling to me—hold me, wrap your fingers around mine.
I glance up at the sky, the icy wind proving that the weather report was probably pretty accurate.
“It’s gonna be dark soon, and snow’s comin’.” I try to persuade her, hoping that when I slip my hand into hers, I can pull her in the opposite direction. “It’s only gonna get colder.”
“We’ll be quick. I promise.” She winks at me and I swear I have to make my move today.
Maybe when we’re walking to our cars I’ll swing my arm around her shoulders and, I don’t know… ask her on a date.
Yeah. Yeah, that could work.
I imagine how I’m gonna say it. “Wanna share a hot chocolate with me at Amoretto? It’d be the perfect way to spend Christmas Eve.”
She’d look up at me, her brown eyes rounding. Amoretto is the place all the couples go.
“You asking me out on a date, Nathan Parker?”
“Yeah.” I’d say it all smooth and casual like it was no big deal.
“What are you smiling about?” Shay’s voice pulls me out of dreamland, and I blink, reaching for her hand and giving her arm a tug in the opposite direction.
But she fights me on it.
Of course she does.
“Come on.” She pulls me toward the cellar.
I resist her. “You’re not going the extra mile because of Krissy, are you? Because I’m pretty sure we have enough photos to satisfy that cow.”
Her eyes bulge like it hadn’t even occurred to her. “No. I just figure we’re not coming back here anytime soon, and I want to see what’s in the cellar.”
I eye her warily, watching her cheeks blush and knowing it’s got nothing to do with the cold air biting her skin.
“Call me curious.” She lets go of my hand and walks to the cellar, adjusting the beanie on her head before kneeling down and wrestling with the massive bolt locking the doors shut.
After a few grunts of frustration, she swivels back with a pointed glare. “Are you going to help me or not?”
I sigh. She’s on a mission and it’ll be over a lot faster if I just give in. Gently nudging her out of the way, I grip the bolt and give it a good yank. It screeches in protest but loosens enough for me to wriggle it out the rest of the way.
The door groans when I pull one side open, and the first thing to hit me is the musty smell. The air down there smells like old farts.
“Gross,” I mutter, holding my nose. “You sure about this?”
We both peer down at the narrow stairs descending into darkness.
“Yeah.” Shay’s voice has a shaky edge to it.
Pulling out my phone, I turn on the flashlight and hold it up for her.
“Thanks,” she murmurs, leading the way.
I follow closely behind, ready to catch her if she slips or falls. Who knows how old these stairs are? They could break at any second. Glancing up, I make sure the door is holding steady. We need the extra light—not that the sky is giving out much. The sun will set before we know it. I guarantee we’ll be walking down to our cars in the dark. But mostly, I want a quick escape if my dead bodies theory is right.
I’m almost expecting to see skeletons as I run my light across the dark space.
But all I see are a couple of barrels, some mud-encrusted spades and a rake in the corner, a lawn mower that looks like it belongs to the Amish, and stacks of plastic crates. They look out of place in a weird way. Modern plastic boxes don’t fit the vibe.
“Bingo,” Shay singsongs, her grin adorable as she skips over the hard-packed floor toward the storage containers.
“This feels weird,” I caution her. This place is dank and cold. An iciness creeps over me. “We’re absolutely trespassing, and those noises we heard before could have been—”
The door slams shut above us.
“Hey!” I run back up the stairs and try to push it back open, but it won’t budge. Someone must be sitting on it. I start banging on the wood. “Let us out!”
There’s a giggle and then the screech of the bolt sliding shut.
“Who is that?” Shay frowns, rushing up the stairs behind me.
“Let. Us. Out!” I shout, smacking the door with each word.
“Not likely! You think I’m the Baroness of Bitchville, well here it is in full measure, Shanae Landers!”
“Krissy?” Shay grips my jacket, going on her tiptoes to yell past my arm. “What the hell are you doing? Unlock that door! This isn’t funny!”
“You don’t think so? I’m finding it hilarious! Almost as hilarious as the fact you made my boyfriend yell at me last night. He thinks I’m mean, and I deserve the title you gave me. Well, if that’s how everyone feels, then I may as well start acting like it. Be grateful you’ve got that dopey B-ball player for company. Maybe he can keep you warm while you wait for me to get back.”
“Don’t be insane!” I shout, panic ripping through me. “It’s freezing down here! Open this door!”
“I think a couple of hours in this fridge should bring you to your senses.”
“It’s not my sense I’m worried about! You’re the crazy one!” Shay barks.
“Now, now, don’t be nasty. I’m the queen of that, remember?”
“Krissy, come—”
“Merry Christmas!” she sings, her laughter fading into the distance.
&
nbsp; “Krissy!” I holler again, banging on the door with the side of my fist.
This is bad. Panic is dicing up my insides as the cold, dank air smothers me.
We have to get out of here.
“Stop it. You’re gonna hurt your hand.” Shay lightly tugs on my jacket, but I flick her off.
Does she not get it?
“We have to get out of here! We’ll freeze to death!”
“She said she’d be back in a couple of hours.”
“Why do you give in to her so easily? Huh?” I snap. “It’s like you just roll over.”
Shay’s eyebrows shoot high as I shine my phone’s light near her face. “What are we supposed to do? Oh!” She pulls out her own phone. “Maybe we could call… someone.” Her shoulders slump. “No reception.”
“Of course there isn’t any! We’re locked in a cellar on an isolated, abandoned ranch! And the only person who knows we’re here right now is Krissy!”
“Why are you yelling at me?”
“Because I’m pissed off!” I thump down the stairs, hating the feeling in my stomach. Hating that I’m not strong enough to bust the door open and get us out of here. “We shouldn’t even be in this situation! It was a stupid dare and you should have gotten up in her face and told her to shove it.”
Shay’s nostrils flare, her eyes sparking as she shines her own phone light in my face. “I can’t do that.”
“Oh, that’s right, because of the photo.” My arm flicks up in the air. “Whatever the hell the photo is, it’s not worth dying over!”
“We’re not going to die!” She pronounces each word like I’m an idiot.
I bite back the curse in my head and grit out the truth. “No, we’re just gonna get freaking cold. You, the girl who can barely handle the lake in the middle of summer, are going to turn into an ice cube. And all because some stupid baroness is threatened by you.”
“Why would she be threatened by me? She got the guy! I think she just gets this sick pleasure out of torturing me.”
“And you’re letting her!” My voice rises. I can’t hide this anymore. I hate the way Krissy is holding this over Shay. Beautiful, strong Shay who’s not afraid of anything is being blackmailed.
“What else am I supposed to do?”
“Let her show the picture to everyone! It can’t be that bad! Unless… you know… you’re naked in it or something?” My skin gets hot with this weird combination of fury at Alex for having an image like that and this rush of curious excitement at what Shay looks like under all those layers.
“No!” Her cheeks flare red. “Alex and I never went all the way. Not that that’s any of your business. Can’t you just trust me that the photo is beyond humiliating and I’d rather die than let it see the light of day.”
“That’s ridiculous.”
“Oh, it’s easy for you to say, because you’re like a freaking king. Nothing can touch you. You could literally walk into class buck naked, puke all over the girl in the front row and get applauded for it!”
I snicker at the absurdity of that scenario, but she shuts me up with a heated look.
“It doesn’t work like that for everybody, okay? And my family does not need more people gossiping behind our backs or snickering at their ridiculous daughter!”
The hurt in her eyes gives it all away and I know she’s thinking about Spence and the gossip that dogged her family in the wake of his sudden departure.
I sigh, wishing I hadn’t started this fight. “I’m not—”
“I don’t want to talk to you right now.” She turns her back on me and shuffles into the corner.
I know Shay well enough that you don’t prod her when she’s in a corner. We’re currently locked in a smelly ice box together and I don’t want the next two hours to turn into some kind of screaming match.
Pressing my lips together, I slump onto the bottom step, my rustling jacket sounding loud in the dense silence between us.
Great.
So much for making my move.
Chapter 13
Photos from the Past
SHAY
I hate this silence. It’s a killer.
Almost as bad as this numb kind of cold that’s creeping through me, making my teeth chatter. I try to hide it by clenching my jaw, but it’s not really helping.
Nate’s mad at me. I hate that he yelled and got so pissed off. It’s not my fault Krissy’s a psycho!
But maybe he’s right a little bit. I have just rolled over and let her pummel me. Getting rejected by Alex hurt big time. Knowing she swooped in and stole him from me… I don’t know, maybe it put me on the back foot or something. Made me feel like she was better than me. Put her in the power position and I didn’t know how to handle it.
But that photo. Ugh!
Maybe I should just tell Nate about it.
No!
My gut clenches at the idea. If Nate knows what I did he’ll never look at me the same again. He most definitely will not look at me the way he did upstairs. Like maybe he wanted to kiss me.
Where did that moment go?
How’d things change so swiftly? I persuaded him to check out the cellar so we could spend extra time together and all we’re doing is sitting here, freezing our butts off and not talking.
I sniff, smashing my teeth together and fighting the burn of tears in my eyes.
It smells gross down here.
Two hours.
It’s feeling more like two years!
I can’t just sit in this corner slowly becoming an ice cube. I need to do something, or my brain will explode.
Jumping up, I use the pale light emanating from Nate’s phone to guide me to those plastic storage containers. Running my hands along them, I reach for the top one and try to wrestle it down. They’re kind of stacked securely, like they lock into one another, and it’s turning this into a big mission.
I grunt and go a little higher on my tiptoes, but then feel the entire stack start to shift and sway. They’re seconds away from tumbling down on me, when a strong hand pushes them back against the wall.
Nate’s right behind me.
I can feel his breath whisper past my ear as he steadies the boxes and softly whispers, “I’m sorry I yelled at you. I’m mad at Krissy, and I shouldn’t have taken it out on you.”
I glance up at him, wishing the light was better so I could see the intricate details of his handsome face.
“It’s okay,” I murmur.
He nods and pulls the top box off the stack for me.
“Thanks.” I take it from him, surprised by the weight of it.
“Here.” Nate grabs an old canvas sheet folded on top of some paint cans and flicks it out. Dust billows everywhere, and I cough and splutter as he smoothes it onto the floor. “Sorry.” His grin is sheepish as he takes the box back so I can sit down.
He plunks down right beside me and I can feel his warmth immediately. Without even thinking about it, I shuffle a little closer to the human heater. Thankfully, it doesn’t seem to bother him, because he stays put, even when our legs touch.
Nerves topple through me like someone’s just poured a barrel of apples into my stomach. I can feel them bouncing against each other and making me sick with giddiness.
Nate smells good.
The hug from upstairs wraps around me, making my head light and fuzzy. He’s tall and broad, and I fit so perfectly against his chest.
“Are you going to open it?”
Nate’s question jolts me back to earth and I pull down the clasps, lifting the lid with an almost reverence. It feels like we’re unlocking a treasure box or something.
We both lean in and spot a stack of books.
“Photo albums.” I lift out the first one and smooth my hand over the old, brown cover.
“Let me get my phone.” Nate jumps up to grab the phone off the workbench and sits right back down beside me again. Yay! Just as close as before.
Resting his arm behind my back, he creates a wall of warmth as he holds up
his phone and leans over my shoulder.
The beam lights up the images on the first page.
“That must be Ray and Edie when they first got married.” I grin. “Look at how happy they are.”
The page creaks when I turn it, like I’m waking it up for the first time in years. It’s fun looking at the old photos. As we slowly work our way through the first album, we see the small ranch cottage get rebuilt into the awesome house it is now. We watch Ray and Edie grow older, and then finally add a daughter into the mix.
Lily Jane Barrett
I trace the letters of her name with my finger. She grows up slowly at first, with pages of baby and toddler photos, then her growth gets rapid as the school years hit and one page of photos covers a year of her life.
By the time we reach the end of the album, she’s standing in her high school graduation robes.
“That’ll be us soon enough,” Nate murmurs.
“I know.” I let out a shaky breath. “Scary.”
“And exciting.” Nate softly nudges me with his shoulder. I nearly tip my head and press it into his cheek, but that’s like way intimate and even though we’re sitting close enough to be boyfriend and girlfriend, we’re actually not.
I wrestle my dreamy brain back into submission and grab the next album out.
This one seems devoid of Lily Jane photos. In fact, there aren’t many photos at all. Just the obligatory birthday poses and one for a wedding anniversary spread out glumly across the black pages.
“They look sad,” I whisper.
“Where’s their daughter gone?” Nate leans over me to take a closer look at one image. I glance at his face. It’s close enough to kiss and whatever cologne he’s wearing goes right up my nostrils. So delicious.
“Left home. Remember? Bad blood.”
“Oh yeah,” he whispers, completely unaware of the effect his close proximity is having on me.
I swallow and force my eyes back to the album, force my hand to move and turn the next page. Suddenly the album comes to life with pictures of a baby grandson. Edie’s face is pure sunlight, her smile broad and euphoric. The baby boy on her knee is grinning up at her, and there’s a toddler holding onto her skirt, looking a little more serious as he gazes at the camera.
'Tis the Season for Love: A Charity Box Set Page 13
