Christmas in Cherry Creek

Part One: Love, Lattes, and Lies

“Ugh,” Andi said as she hung up the phone. She intended to say it quietly, but her frustration had more impact on her volume than she planned.

“Don’t let him do that to you,” her best friend, Nat, said.

“Do what?” Andi asked.

“You know what, Andi,” Nat said with an eyebrow raised.

Andi averted her eyes and tucked her phone back into her bag.

“All I’m saying is that I can’t believe you let him talk to you like that.”

The clacking of Nat's new boots on the sidewalk got faster as she picked up her pace, forcing Andi to a near-jog to keep up with her much taller friend.

The Christmas holiday was closing in on them, and Nat and Andi were finishing up their shopping. This meant very different things for each of them. Andi’s list had, for the most part, been completed weeks ago, while Nat still had most of her list left to buy for, even after a long afternoon of shopping. But to her credit, Nat had been able to find the perfect little shopping spot for them. It was nestled in a town called Cherry Creek and was the absolute last thing Andi had expected to find when her friend told her they were shopping in Wyoming for the day.

The downtown shopping center was as crowded with decorations for the upcoming holiday as it was with shoppers. Despite her usual aversion to crowds and people, Andi couldn’t help but enjoy herself. There was something about the hustle and bustle of the people, mixed with the cheery sounds of classic Christmas songs, and the scents of fresh popcorn and hot cocoa wafting from the street vendors that made her feel like she was in some sort of holiday movie. The air even had just the right amount of chill to it. Mostly because the sun was still up. And though snow was expected to start falling later in the evening, for now, the skies were bright and clear.

“This place is kind of perfect,” Andi said, looking up to marvel at the lights and other decorations.

“Don’t change the subject,” Nat ordered. But even she paused to look around at the brightly colored bulbs and fake snow that adorned the various shop windows.

“He doesn’t mean anything by it,” Andi said. She was trying to downplay the interaction she’d just had with Tim on the phone. Tim, who was Andi’s fiancé and Nat’s older brother—had a way of talking down to Andi that was as confusing as it was frustrating. Lately, Andi felt like she was having to shrug that type of behavior off more and more often in order to not let it ruin her favorite time of year and her mood in general. And like with many things in her relationship with Tim, it was getting more difficult each day.

Nat gave Andi a sideways glance. Her face was full of the same exasperation she always had when Andi tried to pretend like Tim wasn’t being a jerk. Which, he often was.

“He talks to you like you’re a child,” Nat said. Andi assumed it was Nat's frustration that caused her to start walking at an even faster pace than before, making it more difficult than usual for Andi to keep up with Nat’s long stride. When Nat was about ten steps ahead, she finally noticed Andi lagging and stopped to wait for her.

“And don’t try to say he wasn’t. Your phone’s speaker is louder than you think. And what is this—something like the fourth time he has broken a date with you this month?”

Andi shrugged and looked down at her feet. It was actually the sixth time. She and Tim had not gone out on a real date in at least two months. He was constantly going out of town for work at the last minute, or having to work late, or turning the date into a group outing at the last minute.

Andi stopped complaining a long time ago since all it seemed to do was lead to arguments, and all the arguments accomplished was making Andi question what she was doing with Tim in the first place.

“It’s not all his fault,” Andi said. She hated how weak her attempt to defend him sounded. “He’s busy. Start-ups take a lot of work, and a lot of time has to be invested,” she recited the words that Tim said to her on a regular basis. To be honest, she didn’t even know what his start-up was. For as much as he never stopped talking about it, he was always vague on the details.

In response, Nat stopped again to look at Andi. Her expression foretold each and every word she was about to say. Andi waited patiently for what she knew was coming.

“You deserve more,” she said, shaking her head.

Andi shrugged. She wasn’t so sure that was true. And really, what choice did she have? They were engaged. Even if she didn’t like the hours, it was too late to back out now. Things were finally lined up, and soon Andi hoped she would be so busy opening her bakery, that maybe she wouldn’t notice how much Tim was gone.

“Well,” Nat said, interrupting Andi’s thoughts, “If he won’t take you out on a date tonight, then I will.” Her face was alight, making the skin around her bright green eyes crinkle. Andi couldn’t help but return her friend’s smile.

“The good news is that we can keep shopping,” she told Nat. “No need for me to get home to change into anything fancy. And I get to stay comfortable.” Andi waved a hand up and down along her side, gesturing from head to toe to indicate the beanie, hooded sweatshirt, skinny jeans, and sneakers she was wearing.

“Why were you going to change, anyway? You look adorable.” They were walking again, but this time at a speed Andi could maintain without struggling.

“You know the answer to that,” Andi said without looking up. “Too casual. Not really in the right ‘league’. And it ‘makes a bad impression on his brand’,” Andi quoted the most obnoxious of Tim’s objections to her casual clothing choices.

Nat growled quietly.

“I know,” Andi said. “I know."

"But hey,” she added in an attempt to lighten things up a bit, “now we can hang out in this adorable little town some more.” She gestured around at all the shops. “We haven’t even gone into half of these yet. What did you say this place was called again?”

Nat gave a half-smile. It was a look that said she knew exactly what her friend was doing, but she was going to play along anyway.

“We are currently in a little gem of a town known as Cherry Creek, Wyoming. All of the reviews for this downtown shopping area said that it was like something out of a cheesy holiday movie...I can’t believe they were right.”

“I know,” Andi squealed. “Isn’t it great?”

“It is,” Nat agreed. “But I vote that before we continue our shopping, we should definitely find some coffee.”

“I wonder if they have any good holiday lattes?” Andi said.

“Only one way to find out,” Nat replied, pointing to a little sandwich board a few shops ahead of them that read, Come Try Our Christmas Flavors. Someone had skillfully decorated the board with holly berries and other festive designs, and there was even actual garland hung along the top of the board. Hanging from the awning above the sidewalk was a sign that said, The Cozy Cup.

“Yay!” Andi said. She sped up as they walked toward the little shop.

Andi could faintly smell The Cozy Cup before they even walked in. When she pulled the large wooden doors open, she was greeted fully with the rich aroma of the coffee, and the warm, welcoming ambiance of the little shop. Jazzy music played softly behind the whirring sounds of coffee grinders, milk steamers, and the soft clinking of utensils as drink after drink was prepared behind the coffee bar.

But, despite the promise of Christmas flavors, Andi was mildly disappointed to find not a single Christmas decoration adorning the space. It was a strange contrast to both the brightly designed sandwich board outside, and the over-the-top decorations found in and around every other shop in the little downtown.

“Good afternoon, ladies,” came the greeting from behind a very large, but nearly empty bakery case. Andi looked up from the pitiful selection of pastries to find a pair of honey-brown eyes staring at her. They belonged to a tall, broad-shouldered guy with a beaming smile. Dark shaggy curls covered his head. They were the perfect complement to his mischievous, yet cherubic face. She was staring at him. She needed to stop before it got weird.

Andi blinked. For a second, she felt a strange catch in her throat. She attempted to return his greeting, but it was like there was a disconnect between her brain and her mouth.

“Hi,” she finally managed. She shook her head and hoped the gesture implied that she just needed some coffee. Not that she was currently being rendered speechless by the smile of a total stranger. What was wrong with her? She was engaged. This was totally inappropriate. She had to stop staring at him.

Apparently sensing Andi’s need to be rescued, Nat jumped in between her and the coffee guy. “Ignore us,” she laughed. “We’re just in serious need of some caffeine.” She gave him one of her gorgeous, wide-mouthed smiles. He either returned Nat’s smile, or he was still smiling from before—Andi had no idea. Maybe she’d blacked out for a second. If a gorgeous person could render her speechless, maybe he could render her unconscious as well.

Andi turned back to the pitiful display case and tried to find something that looked good enough to accompany a sugary coffee drink. As she examined the old and dry-looking danish in front of her, she scrunched up her nose in disappointment.

“Our baker is on vacation,” the guy behind the counter said. “So, the offering isn’t great.”

Andi flushed a little—she hadn’t realized that anyone was watching her scrutinize the dusty pastries. It was something she did often—study the different types of baked goods whenever she went somewhere like a coffee shop or bakery. She wanted her bakery to be as successful as possible, so, every trip into a coffee shop or bakery felt like reconnaissance.

“Oh! That’s okay,” she said, waving a hand in front of her. “What’s the best Christmas flavor?” she asked. She wondered for a second if that came out sounding flirty. Surely not. Was she trying to flirt with him? No. Of course not.

“One of my favorites is the Cocoa Candy Cane,” he said. “It’s just a dark chocolate latte with peppermint, but it’s delicious.” His mouth turned upward in a smile. He was looking directly at her. Andi’s heart jumped a little. She tried to stop her face from forming yet another awkward smile. When that failed, she looked down and mumbled something about finding a table. She left Nat to finish the order. If she was lucky, maybe the guy would see so many people in a day that he wouldn’t remember her.

She looked around the shop. Though it was nearly full, it was also pretty small. She might not be so lucky.

A couple of minutes later, Andi was slumped into an oversized and well-worn leather chair, thawing her cold bones by an old brick fireplace. Nat walked over and plopped herself into the chair opposite Andi.

“The coffee guy is totally into you,” Nat said. She gave Andi her best jr. high girl squeal.

“He is not,” Andi said as she rolled her eyes. “And even if he was,” she added before Nat could interject, “there’s that whole fiancé thing. You know...your brother.” Andi laughed.

Nat exaggerated an eye roll of her own.

“Okay, but...” she trailed off.

“But, what?” Andi said, straightening in her chair.

“But,” she said again, “you’re engaged. You’re not dead. You can admit he’s cute. God knows Tim does it all the time right in front of you.”

Andi rolled her eyes again, but she couldn’t really argue when it had happened just last week while the three of them were out to dinner with Tim and Nat’s parents. Their server had apparently been too cute for Tim to not comment on. And lightly flirt with. Right in front of Andi.

“Okay,” Andi relented. “Fine. The coffee guy is cute. Are you happy?”

Nat sucked in both lips, and her eyebrows pulled together in a pained expression that Andi instantly understood.

“He’s standing right behind me, isn’t he?” Andi tried to ask quietly. She closed her eyes and exhaled as her stomach tightened. Now would be a great time to disappear. Or die.

“One Cocoa Candy Cane Latte,” the cute guy in question said as he walked around and placed Andi’s drink on the table between the two women. He was trying and failing to suppress a grin that made it clear he’d heard their exchange. Andi’s face felt suddenly warm.

“Not you,” Nat blurted out in an attempt to save her friend. “A different coffee guy.”

The grin on the guy's face widened, and Andi felt sure that her blush was now visible—even through her dark complexion.

Coffee guy put on a mask of mock severity. “Of course,” he said as he put Nat's drink down in front of her. He straightened up and gave Andi a wink as he walked off.

Andi leaned forward in the chair, not sure if he was out of earshot. “Oh my gosh, Natalie! You’re so embarrassing!”

Nat laughed loudly. “I really am sorry, Andi. I didn’t mean to embarrass you.”

Andi shook her head and tried her best to give a stern look while reaching for her cup. Unfortunately, Nat was impossible to stay mad at.

“The good news is that we’re heading back to Colorado soon, so you’ll probably never see him again,” Nat said. Andi looked around the quaint little coffee shop. Aside from the lack of holiday spirit, it was a nice little spot. Her eyes scanned out the large front windows at the bit of downtown that was visible—all decked out in bright reds and greens.

“Oh, I don’t know,” she said. “It’s a pretty nice little place. I wouldn’t mind coming back. If I don’t die of humiliation.”

The two of them sat in front of the fire for about fifteen minutes before Andi could finally feel her fingers and toes. She hadn’t realized how cold she was from walking around to all of the little kiosks set up downtown until the warmth of the coffee shop hit her. The sun was already hanging lower in the sky. They should probably stick to perusing inside the stores for the next leg of their shopping trip.

“So,” Nat said, stretching her long legs out in front of her. “Why did Tim say he wasn’t going to make it back today?”

“He didn’t really,” Andi said. “He just said he got held up longer than planned, and he had to cancel our date again. Said he’d make it up to me later.” Andi swirled the remaining coffee and syrup in the bottom of the paper cup.

“He’s got a lot of making up to do,” Nat mumbled. “Lucky for you, I’m a much better date.”

She stood up and reached a hand out for Andi’s almost empty cup. “Please don’t drink that sludge at the bottom,” she pleaded.

Ignoring her friend, Andi put the cup to her lips and tilted her head as far back as she could, slurping up as much of the thick, sugary goodness as possible. Things like this were why Nat was constantly telling Andi she had a problem.

Andi smiled wide and placed the cup in Nat’s hand.

“Thanks,” Andi said with exaggerated sweetness.

“You’re ridiculous,” Nat said. “I’m going to finish my shopping without you.”

“No, wait,” Andi said. She was laughing as she got up to follow her friend out.

Jackson returned the wave of the taller of the two women as they walked out of the shop. The friend—the one who apparently thought he was cute—was busy hiding her beautiful face behind her long braids.

“Thanks for coming in,” he said. “Hope you run into that other coffee guy soon.”

The tall friend laughed, and the beautiful one groaned as she hurried out of the shop’s door. He only enjoyed teasing because he’d been struck by how gorgeous she was from the moment she walked in the door. It was flattering to know he’d caught her eye as well, even if she seemed mortified to admit it.

If he was lucky, the two might return for some more holiday shopping. He should have told them about the Christmas Eve Festival. Though he definitely had bigger fish to fry, the thought did offer a welcome distraction. Even if only for a moment.

It worked out nicely since a moment was all he got to enjoy the reprieve from the real world and his real problems. Shortly after the two women left, Demetri Alexander came strolling through the door. Demetri was an old classmate of Jackson’s. He was a nice enough guy, but Jackson really had to take him in doses. And Jackson wasn’t in the mood for even a small dose of Demetri that day.

“Good morning,” Demetri called out as he approached the counter.

“Good morning,” Jackson said, trying to muster some enthusiasm. “The usual?” he asked.

“You know it, my man,” Demetri said. He was always trying to sound cool—a trait that annoyed Jackson to no end. Jackson found that people who were concerned with sounding or looking cool were usually a pain to be around. Years ago, he would have said his business partner was the exception to that, but time had taught him it wasn’t true.

“Okay, great. Three bucks,” Jackson said, holding out a hand. He could recite the next thing Demetri would say by heart. He’d hand him a five-dollar bill, tell Jackson to keep the change, and then laugh as he said, don’t spend it all in one place.

Demetri did not disappoint. Jackson took the five and placed the extra in the tip jar. “Listen,” Demetri started.

Jackson again knew exactly what was coming: Demetri’s offer to buy the business. The guy wanted this location since before Jackson and Zack ever moved into it.

There were still six months left on their lease. As long as things appeared to be going well, he had no reason to worry about losing his lease. But, if he started slipping, he knew the owner would sell it to Demetri in a heartbeat. Which was why he always made sure the rent got paid. Even if other things suffered.

The saving grace was that Demetri didn’t know this—not yet anyway. So, his current approach was to buy The Cozy Cup from Jackson in an effort to procure the space he wanted. Why it had to be this building, Jackson still had no idea. But Demetri was constantly making Jackson offers to buy the business or to buy in. One time, he just asked to rent the basement. It was strange, and even at his current level of desperation, there was just something about the guy that stopped Jackson from taking Demetri up on his various offers.

“Demetri,” Jackson said, cutting him off. “I am not selling you the coffee shop today. Try again tomorrow.” He handed Demetri his usual—a medium breve latte with four shots of espresso, sprinkled with cinnamon and vanilla bean powder.

“We could make magic,” Demetri said with a shake of his head. “Magic, Jackson.” Jackson laughed and shook his own head in response.

“I’m not one for magic, Demetri. Just a good cup of coffee.”

“One of these days you’re going to take me up on my offer,” Demetri said as he ran his free hand through his slicked blonde hair.

“When’s Zack coming back anyway?” he asked Jackson, looking around the shop as if to search for Jackson’s former business partner.

“Few more weeks,” Jackson lied. How long was he going to be able to keep up the story? So far, he’d done a good job of convincing everyone that it was a temporary absence—even when Zack started posting all over social media about his new “island life” and how he found his new forever home. What was he, some kind of stray dog? Jackson scoffed to himself the way he usually did when he thought too much about his former partner and friend.

“Well, when he gets back, we’ll all sit down and talk about being partners together,” Demetri said.

“Sounds good,” Jackson lied again. He refrained from rolling his eyes. Demetri threw a finger gun and a wink before leaving the shop.

“That man is strange,” Tess said as she approached the counter. Tess was the owner of the bookstore a few shops down, and while she normally had a nice thing to say about everyone, the town did hold a few exceptions. Demetri was one of them.

Jackson laughed. “He really is. What’s his obsession with this place?” he asked the older woman. She and her husband, Marcus, had lived in Cherry Creek since they were kids. They were the people to talk to if you wanted inside information on any of the small town’s residents. As a private person, he usually tried not to pry into other people’s lives, but once in a while, curiosity got the better of him, and he had to go to Tess or Marcus to get the scoop on someone. Up until now, he’d refrained from asking about Demetri. But, that day, Tess had appeared at just the right moment.

“You don’t know?” Tess asked him. “He thinks there’s gold buried in the basement. His grandpa told him that when he was six or seven, and ever since, he’s been obsessed with owning the building so he could go after the gold.”

Jackson laughed even harder. “You’re kidding, right?”

“Serious as a heart attack,” Tess said. She tucked a strand of her long grey hair behind her ear. “He’s convinced he’s going to be the one to find it.”

Jackson just looked at the woman. “Tess,” he finally said. “That’s the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard.”

“I know,” she said, laughter still present in her tone. “Marcus and I have both tried to set him straight. But he won’t hear it.”

Jackson handed the woman her usual order—two strong black coffees and two specialty cocoas. As much as she and Marcus loved their morning cups of coffee, they were like kids when the holidays came around, and they both wanted the sugary, festive flavored cocoas he made as well. Tess handed him way too much money and motioned for him to keep the change. He shook his head in an attempt to argue with her.

“No, Tess,” he said. “You overpaid last time, too.”

“Did I?” She feigned confusion. “I don’t remember. I’m old you, know.”

“Hardly,” he said, tilting his head to one side. “I’m fine. You really don’t have to do that.”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” she said. “Have a great day. Hope you’re busy getting ready for the festival,” she called as she walked toward the door.

Jackson hadn’t yet broken it to the other business owners that he wasn’t planning to do anything special for the Christmas Eve Festival. The businesses downtown always went all out for the occasion. It just wasn’t in the cards for him this year. He’d make his holiday drinks and have a tray of cookies out, but that was about it. He didn’t have the manpower or the time—or the money for that matter—to do much more than that.

Just one more reason to punch Zack in the face if he ever saw him again.