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  Home For Christmas

  Alexa Riley

  Copyright © 2017 by Author Alexa Riley LLC. All rights reserved.

  No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. For permission requests, email to [email protected]

  http://alexariley.com/

  Publisher’s Note: This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are a product of the author’s imagination. Locales and public names are sometimes used for atmospheric purposes. Any resemblance to actual people, living or dead, or to businesses, companies, events, institutions, or locales is completely coincidental.

  Edited by Aquila Editing

  Contents

  Home For Christmas

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Epilogue

  Bonus Chapter

  Epilogue

  Stealing Christmas

  Chapter 1

  Also by Alexa Riley

  Stalk the Author

  Home For Christmas

  by Alexa Riley

  Holly found the love of her life. Sure, it was a whirlwind romance and crazy fast, but she knew in her soul he was it for her. But one night he didn't show up and then she never heard from him again.

  Vance Danvers had one last stop to make before he went to see Holly. It was about to be the best night of his life, but everything changed. He’s spent years trying to get back home to her...but will she still be waiting?

  Warning: This Christmas spectacular is sprinkled with cheer! Cuddle up with your hot chocolate and find out if this book is naughty or nice! PS There might even be a little bonus story on the mom and dad at the end...but no peeking!

  To everyone who read Thankful for Her and screamed at us for more….

  Chapter 1

  Holly

  Christmas 2017…

  As I look around the cafeteria hall a pang of sadness hits me. The room hasn’t changed much. The familiarities are nice, but it also reminds me of how different I am now. I’ve volunteered here since I was fifteen. I’ll miss this place, but I’m sure I’ll visit from time to time. It’s a second home to me.

  “You’re really going to leave all this behind?” Paul wraps his arm around me, pulling me into him. I rest my head against his shoulder. Paul has been a rock for me over the past few years. Like a grandpa that I never had. Someone for me to lean on when I needed it or to give me advice when my grandmother couldn't. I look up into his warm, dark eyes and I can see the worry lines on his face for me. He doesn’t want me to go. I’m not one hundred percent sure I should go either, but I think it’s the right thing for me. At least for now.

  “It’s time,” I tell him on a deep sigh. “My car is already packed up and I checked out of my hotel room.” I made sure before I came here there was no way I could change my mind, because if anyone could get me to do it, it’s Paul. I know he doesn't want me to go. I don’t think he really thought I was going to do it, but I had to. I was starting to feel like I couldn’t breathe here anymore. The walls were closing in on me and I had to escape before I crumbled. I needed a change. Something to put a little light back into my life. Or at least that’s what I’m hoping I’ll find when I leave.

  “I still can’t believe you chose to stay in a hotel room over coming and staying with me and Margie.” He shakes his head. I only stayed there for a few weeks. It really wasn't a big deal and I didn't want to be a burden on Paul and his wife. The hotel wasn't terrible. After I graduated I had to leave the dorms and I didn't want to get myself into a lease. The idea of leaving had already been floating around in my head.

  I shrug. I don’t want to get into that fight with him again. Besides, it doesn't matter. I’m leaving now.

  “You don’t even know where you’re going,” Paul adds when he realizes I’m not playing into his bait about coming and staying with him and his wife.

  “No, but I’ll figure it out. I always do.” His eyes drop back down to mine. “It’s too hard. I can’t stay. I have to get away for a while. I need to breathe and not be smothered by memories,” I admit to him. The memories are suffocating. Even the good ones. All of them pulled me down into a place I didn't want to be and made my loneliness bone deep.

  I push the thoughts away like I’m trying to do with everything else. Maybe it won’t work, but I have to try something. Spending Christmas alone isn't helping. Waking up in a hotel room on Christmas was heartbreaking. So when I woke up I knew after my shift at the shelter I was gone. I’m going to outrun this holiday. When the New Year comes around I’ll be in a new city. I’m starting a new life that won’t hurt so damn much.

  This shelter is a second home to me. I love the people here and I love helping others. It’s why I got a degree in social services. But this place holds too many memories. This whole city does. It reminds me of all the things I’ve lost. First my dad, then Vance, and now my grandma. She was the only thing that was still holding me here.

  She passed two weeks ago, the day before I graduated college. Not that she could have come and watched me walk across the stage anyway. She’d been in a nursing home, and toward the end she didn't even know who I was most days. Always asking for her husband and my dad. At first I’d tell her the truth, but when I told her they’d already passed, she’d get sad and cry. Then I learned to lie. Telling her little things like they were out fishing or ran to the store.

  Even with the loss of my grandma and dad who raised me, the loss of Vance hurt the most. It cut me to my soul and when I look around this shelter I see him everywhere. Even after his death he’s so ingrained in every part of my life that there’s no forgetting him or letting time heal my wounds.

  I’ll never forget the day we met. I was fifteen and had just started volunteering at the shelter. I’d heard about him, but he was nothing like I thought he’d be. I was sure he’d show up in some fancy suit and just give out checks. I assumed this was a tax write-off for him. They said he funded the whole place, and I was shocked when I watched him take off his suit jacket and roll up his sleeves. He worked just as hard as everyone else and I felt guilty that I had him pegged all wrong.

  He was the most handsome man I’d ever seen. He stood well over six feet tall with jet-black hair and dark eyes. If it wasn't for his easy smile he would have been intimidating. Even more so with his size. He was broad and big. He was unlike any man I’d ever met and for the first time in my life, I found myself wanting to know what someone looked like under their clothes. Every time that thought would enter my mind and he was close, I would blush like crazy. I don’t know why, but I imagined he could hear my inner thoughts or something.

  He came to the shelter almost every night, and somehow my young heart had fallen in love with him. I knew nothing would ever come of it because I was way too young, but something about him called to me.

  We never spoke much until the day I lost my dad. Vance was actually the one to give me the news. I was working in the back stockroom when he walked in. He told me my dad had had a massive heart attack and he died instantly. He held me while I cried. I don’t know how he found out first, or why he was the one to tell me, and I don’t know how long I lay in his lap sobbing. But Vance just held me, then picked me up and took me home. He kissed my cheek and wiped my tears away. Looking back I know it wasn’t anything romantic, nothing but a friend offering comfort when I needed it most
.

  Then, to my surprise, Vance paid for his funeral. At the time, I was only sixteen, but my crush for him only grew after that. He still only spoke a few words to me, only ever asking how I was doing and if I needed anything. But his eyes were on me whenever we were in the same room.

  I felt like he was waiting for something. The way his eyes followed me made me think he wanted me. On my eighteenth birthday the shelter staff threw a little party for me. I hadn't wanted to go because I had to put my grandma into a nursing home a few weeks earlier. I didn't feel much like celebrating, but a small part of me wondered if this was it. Maybe he’d been waiting this whole time for me to turn eighteen.

  He didn’t show that night. My eyes kept going to the door, but as the minutes ticked by the sadder I became and the lonelier I felt. When everyone left I went into the back and sat on the floor in the office to get myself together. I knew I was going home to an empty house and I didn’t want to face it.

  The tears started to flow and just like the time before, Vance walked in and pulled me onto his lap. Only this time when I looked up at him, he didn’t kiss me on the cheek. He brushed away my tears and pressed his lips to mine. It was soft and sweet, and in that moment everything melted away. The weight of life lifted and I felt like I’d come home. That it was all going to be okay.

  If only I’d known that was going to be our only night together. I wouldn't have let him go. I would have made him stay with me instead of dropping me off at my house.

  The final words he said to me still play on repeat in my head.

  I’m going to take care of everything, my sweet girl. Tonight is only the beginning of us. You belong to me.

  He was wrong. That night was all we ever had. It was the beginning and the end for us. But even in death he didn’t lie; he’d taken care of everything. My grandma was moved to one of the best nursing homes in the city. Then I found out he’d left a trust fund for me to go to college. It covered everything I needed. From room and board, to food and books. I even got some extra spending money each month.

  I couldn’t believe he did all of it, so I made sure I put it all to good use. I worked as hard as I could to get the best grades I could, and even graduated a little early. Not having to have a full-time job let me enjoy more time with my grandma. I was able to savor the time I had left with the woman who had a big hand in raising me. She wasn't just my grandma, she was more like a mother to me than anything. She and my father were all the family I had.

  I feel a tear slip free as I look around the room at people eat their Christmas dinner while trying to stay out of the cold.

  “Are you going to say goodbye?” Paul asks me.

  “I can’t. I’ve said too many goodbyes in my life already.” Maybe it’s selfish that I’m just going to slip out, but saying goodbye to everyone here will hurt more than I can bear. I still have to go to the graveyard and say my goodbyes to my grandma and dad.

  Paul leans down and kisses the top of my head.

  “Why not wait until tomorrow? The snow is really coming down out there.” I glance over at one of the giant windows where the Christmas lights are twinkling and see the snow starting to pick up.

  “I’ll be careful. I promise.” I try to reassure Paul. He reluctantly lets me go and reaches into his pocket, pulling out his wallet to give me money.

  “Paul, I’m fine, really. People here need that more than I do.” I push the money back at him. I don’t have a ton of money, but I still have some left over from Grandma’s estate that I never had to spend because of Vance.

  It’s been years since I lost him, and it still hurts. I can’t find the will to move on. It might have been quick, and it may be my own memory clouding my heart, but it felt like my soul connected to his. That’s why I’m forcing myself to leave. Maybe a change will help me take the next step in my life. Whatever that step might be.

  He pulls me back in for one more hug before letting me go. “You can call anytime. We’ll be here.”

  I smile at him before I turn and walk out into the snow. It’s coming down a lot heavier than it was forecast. I hop into my little car and the cold air cuts through my skin. I pull my coat even tighter around me.

  I crank my car up and pray for the heat to kick on. When it finally does, I take one last look at the shelter. I close my eyes and for a moment I think about my first kiss there, with Vance. I remember it one final time before I make myself pull away from the curb.

  I hate going to the graveyard. It always makes me feel so lonely. It’s worse now that Grandma is gone. I really have no one anymore. As I get close to the cemetery my tears start to flow for everything I’ve lost and am leaving behind. My tears turn to sobs as I think of Vance. I try to slow down, but my tears are coming too fast and I can’t breathe.

  The snow is coming down too hard and I think I see something in the road, so I hit the brakes. But the road is slick, so my car starts to slide. I try to steer, but I have no control. Panic rushes through me and I know I’m headed for the ditch. I’m not on a busy road, and the snow will cover my car quick. I scream as I go off the road and a loud metal crunch fills my ears before everything goes dark.

  Chapter 2

  Vance

  The sight of my father and brother in front of me is indescribable. I hoped for so long that this day would come and now that it’s here, I’m so full of emotions that I can’t speak. Relief and love flood me as I drop my bag and run to my brother. I wrap him in my arms and he does the same, embracing for the first time in years.

  “I thought you were dead,” he sobs, and I just hold him tighter. There’s so much to say, so much to talk about, but right now I just need to hold everyone.

  I look down at my father on his knees with his eyes glued to my mother. He’s looking at her as if she’s a ghost. His face is white and his mouth is open. I let go of Hunter and reach down, pulling him up. I wrap my arms around him, and feel some of his strength return.

  “She’s real, Dad. You’re not dreaming,” I say to him because I think he might be in shock.

  I look over as Hunter lunges for our mom and wraps her in his arms so tight he lifts her off the floor. She’s crying now, too, and so is Hunter.

  “I knew it,” my dad finally whispers. “I always knew she was still alive.”

  He hasn’t taken his eyes off her, but he hasn’t made a step toward her yet. I watch him, a single tear rolling down his cheek as he takes in Hunter hugging her. It’s an emotional moment and I knew it would be. This has been a long time coming, and Mom and I are glad to finally be home.

  “Mom, this is my wife, Autumn,” Hunter says. “We have two kids. We live next door.” He runs his hands through his hair as the words tumble out. “Charlie is sleeping, our daughter Ariel is somewhere. We named her after you. Oh god, so much has happened.” Hunter puts both hands to his head now like it’s spinning. I can only imagine what they’ve been through since we’ve been gone.

  “We’ll explain everything,” my mom says as she looks to my dad.

  Silence falls, and as much as I hate what I’m about to do, I’m going to do it.

  “I have to go,” I say, and all eyes are on me. “I know you don’t understand what’s happened or where we’ve been. And as much as I want to stay, I have to go. But I swear to you that I’ll be back.”

  “No,” my dad says, finally taking his eyes off my mom and looking at me. “You just walked in the door after five years of us thinking you were dead. You think I’m going to let you leave us again? We had a goddamn funeral, Vance!” he shouts, and I know he’s hurt and confused. But he has to understand. I have to make him understand.

  I hug him close and feel some of the anger leave him. I kiss him on the cheek and then pull back to look at him. “I love you, Dad. But I’ve been away from my girl for five years, too.”

  It takes him a second, but after a moment something like understanding passes between us.

  “All right. But I want you back here tonight.” He brings his hand up to my
cheek. “I want everyone in this house tonight. Together.” He looks over my shoulder and to my mom. “I’m going to have a long talk with your mother.”

  I nod in agreement and then walk over to Hunter. I give him another hug and then walk over and pat Autumn on the arm. She hasn’t said a word the whole time. She’s stood frozen like a statue with her mouth wide open. Hunter walks over and wraps his arms around her, and still she doesn’t move. It’s actually kind of funny.

  Before I go, I approach my mom and give her a kiss on the cheek. She gives me a soft, sad look and I nod. There’s a lot we’ve shared over the past five years that we now have to explain to everyone. I don’t want to leave her with this, but she knows I need to go find Holly. She’s the one who told me to take her home, to give everyone a hug, and then go find her. I needed to make sure Mom got home safe before I went in search, and I hope that I can do it and still make it home tonight.

  I walk out of the front door and head to the garage. I smile with relief when at the end of the long row of cars I see my old Jeep. The keys are still hanging up where I left them and I snag them off the hook and get in. I used to leave this here for my dad in the winter time in case the roads got bad. When I put the key in the ignition I smile. He’s kept it up for me while I was gone. Maybe he did truly know we’d be back some day.

  Now comes the hard part. It’s been five years since I laid eyes on Holly, and she’s all I’ve thought about since I left. I just pray that when I find her, she’s still mine.