Stuck Together For Christmas by Layla Valentine

Author:Layla Valentine [Valentine, Layla]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2021-09-28T16:00:00+00:00

The phrase ‘Christmas market’ made Alex think of children selling craft in a high school gym. She hadn’t imagined that a whole building in downtown Honolulu would be transformed into a winter wonderland.

“This is amazing,” she breathed. Stepping through the door was like stepping into another world entirely—between the lights and the ornaments and the cool temperatures needed to maintain the rink, it felt as if they’d left the island behind and teleported straight to the North Pole.

Jaime would love this, she thought, remembering her young patient’s singular ability to enjoy even small moments of wonder. At the moment, Alex was feeling a bit of childlike awe herself.

“Hey, they offer wine flights,” said Ryan, pointing off to the side.

Alex shuddered. “I think I’m going to stay away from alcohol today. I’ve already paid the price for my misdeeds.”

They each rented a pair of skates, then stashed their sneakers in the sitting area and waddled out onto the ice. Alex didn’t have much experience with skating, but she’d had a roller-blading phase as a teenager, and after only a few slips, she found that the movements came back to her. Determined not to be shown up for once, she skated away from Ryan, letting her eyes wander over the ornaments and decorations all around them.

I used to love the holidays, she thought. That’s why I avoid them now—this time of year used to mean something to me.

It was a depressing realization, the discovery that she loved something now that it was gone from her life in any meaningful sense. These days, the slow approach of Christmas, heralded months in advance by the appearance of Christmas trees well before the seasons changed, filled her with an impending sense of dread. Christmas meant social obligations to her family—it meant that she was expected to smile politely while the people she loved criticized her appearance, her habits, and her choices.

The truth was, Alex missed the way things used to be, when she and Peter had been little and she hadn’t yet learned to worry about what people thought of her. It had been one thing to encourage Ryan not to care what people thought. In reality, Alex did care, she just didn’t let it stop her from following her dreams. That was close enough, right?

She circled the rink, only to find Ryan clinging to the rail less than four feet from where she’d left him.

“How’s it going?” she asked.

Ryan twisted around to look at her. “Oh, it’s fine, I’m just trying to—ah!” His feet shot out from under him, and he fell backwards, knocking the breath out of him. He blinked rapidly, his mouth agape. “Ow.”

“Oh my God, Ryan, are you okay?” Alex skated over and knelt down next to him. “Did you hit your head?”

Ryan moaned, struggling to sit up. “If I concuss myself on a kiddie rink, just let me lie here and die of embarrassment.”

Alex put her hand over her mouth to smother her laughter.

“Hey.” Ryan tried to glare at her

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.