Christmas Inn Maine Read online

  She ate the rest of the cookie and dabbed her mouth with a napkin.

  “See?”

  “Badass,” I said, clapping for her.

  “Shut up. Don’t make fun of me or I’ll squirt you.” She held up the bag of frosting in one hand like a weapon.

  I gasped.

  “You wouldn't dare.”

  “Oh, I would. I love dares.” I saw a devious sparkle in her eyes just before she squeezed the frosting bag and a stream of it hit me right in the face.

  “You did not!” I picked up a bag and got her back and we both screamed as we emptied both bags on each other. She reached out and smeared my entire face and both laughed so hard that both of us were having trouble breathing. I could barely see. There was even frosting in my eyelashes.

  “What is going on over here?” a voice asked, and I turned to see Laina.

  “She did it,” Laura and I said at the exact same time, pointing at each other.

  Laina shook her head, but she was hiding a smile.

  “Aren’t you both adults?” she asked, as I blinked through the frosting. Laina handed me and Laura napkins to wipe ourselves off, but it was going to take something more than that. I needed a pressure hose to get this off.

  I wiped my eyes so I could see and Laura giggled as she tried to clean her face.

  “Come on,” she said, taking my arm and leading me to the back and the employee bathroom. It was big enough to have a long sink that we stood at as she passed me a hand towel soaked in warm water.

  “I’m a mess,” she said, looking in the mirror.

  I almost said that she was a beautiful mess, but I stopped myself just in time. I licked frosting from my lips and tried to get it out of my hair.

  “I think I need a shower.” That was the only way I was going to get clean.

  “Same,” she said, looking at me. For a moment, we stared at each other and then she slowly reached out and wiped some frosting from my nose and as if she wasn’t aware that she was doing it, licked her finger.

  I stopped breathing.

  What was happening? I was in a bathroom with my work nemesis and all I could think about was the way she’d licked the frosting off her finger. It was like when she played the piano. I was caught in her spell again.

  “We should go. Back,” she said, her voice catching. I found myself leaning toward her. I couldn’t help it. She inhaled sharply through her nose and threw the washcloth in the hamper near the door.

  “I’ll be there in a second,” I said, but she was already gone. I looked at myself in the mirror.

  “What the fuck?” I said to my reflection. She didn’t answer back.

  Four

  I went back to my room soon after that because I couldn’t deal with making small talk while there were so many thoughts running through my head. Nearly all of them centered on Laura.

  How much had she seen earlier? I’d covered up quickly, but had she seen me? What did she think? Did she like what she had seen? What did she think about when she played the piano?

  I got in the shower and scrubbed the frosting from my skin and hair. My clothes were a lost cause and I wondered if they’d let me do some laundry here before I left.

  After my shower I tried to read, but it wasn’t taking, no matter what book I tried. I couldn’t stop thinking about Laura. Even though I’d eaten my weight in cookies, I was still hungry and considered getting room service, knowing who would probably deliver it.

  I paced around the sitting area for almost a half an hour before I picked the phone and talked to Michelle.

  “Hey, can I order some tea and some chips and salsa?” They made fresh salsa on the premises from local tomatoes, peppers, and onions. I’d had some already and it was the shit.

  “Yeah, sure. It’ll be up in a few minutes.”

  I waited right by the door and listened for footsteps. At last there was a knock at the door, but when I opened it, I found Griffin instead of Laura.

  “Oh,” I said, unable to hide being disappointed.

  “Room service,” he said in a bored voice, shoving the tray at me.

  “Thanks,” I said, taking it from him. “I’m sorry, I don't have any more cash to give you.” He huffed and shuffled down the hall toward the stairs without another word. Ah, to be young and surly.

  I didn’t know why I wanted to see Laura so much. I’d gone from being so glad I wasn’t going to see her in two weeks to ordering something on the off chance she’d bring it to my room.

  This was a serious problem.

  I munched at my chips and salsa and almost scalded my mouth trying to drink my too-hot tea and flipped through the channels until I moved to the bed. Tomorrow my car would get towed and I’d find out if I could get out of this holiday hellhole or if I was going to be surrounded by the love and joy of the Sterlings.

  “It’s going to cost how much?” I screeched into the phone. “Sorry Craig.”

  “No, I'm sorry. I know it’s a lot. I won’t do anything unless you give me the green light.” It wasn’t even the amount. It was that I literally could not pay for it right now. Not until the refund for the imaginary cottage came in, which was taking its sweet time.

  “Um, okay,” I said, on the verge of tears. I’d been pacing my room since lunch, waiting for him to call. All I’d wanted was for him to tell me that it was going to be twenty bucks and the car was fine, but that wasn’t what was happening. No, I’d been dealt yet another shitty hand, and I didn’t have anyone to bail me out. Nope, I was on my own with this mess.

  I closed my eyes and breathed for a second, and tried not to think about Dad, and what he would have said to me if he was here. That just made it worse.

  Craig was still talking about car things, but it was going in one ear and out the other. All I’d heard was the insurmountable amount it would cost to fix my car.

  “I’m going to have to think about this and call you back,” I said, so I could get off the phone and cry in peace. He apologized again and hung up and I collapsed on one of the chairs in the little reading nook in my suite.

  I couldn’t stop myself from crying. Most of the time I was able to be strong, but when my plans had fallen apart, it was like I’d fallen apart and my normal ability to “keep calm and carry on” was shattered.

  “What am I going to do?” I said, wiping the hot tears from my eyes and trying to keep from hyperventilating.

  There was a knock at my door and I sniffed, trying to be quiet so whomever it was would go away. I waited a few moments and they knocked again.

  “Colden?” a muffled voice said. “Are you in there?”

  I didn’t answer. I knew Laura’s voice.

  “You know I have a master key I can use if I want.”

  “Don’t you dare!” I called out.

  “I knew you were in there. Can I come in?”

  “No.” I didn’t want her to see me like this. I was pretty proud of myself for never having cried at work in front of her. I wanted to keep that streak going. Her mom had seen me cry, but that was different.

  “I’m going to unlock the door if you don’t let me innnnn,” she said, drawing the last word out.

  “Oh my god, what is wrong with you?”

  Laura had reached a whole new level of annoyance. I got up and swung the door open.

  “What? Did you want to see me crying and looking like shit, because here you go. Might want to take a pic so you can share it with the internet.” I wasn’t feeling very nice at the moment.

  Laura looked at me and that was when I noticed Minnie by her feet, wagging her little tail and looking up at me. I didn’t know if pigs could smile, but it looked like Minnie was smiling at me and happy to see me. She skipped into the room and started snuffling around.

  “She’s obsessed with you,” Laura said, following the pig into the room.

  “Why don’t you both come in?” I said, closing the door.

  “Are you okay? Craig was talking to my mom and I overheard.”

  “No
t really,” I said, wrapping my arms around myself. “Why do you care?”

  She opened her mouth to say something and then changed her mind. “You hate me.”

  Laura sat down on one of the chairs.

  “I don’t hate you, Colden. You know that.”

  “Do I?” I said, leaning down and petting Minnie. The pig was a nice distraction, I had to admit.

  “Did you really think that I hated you?” I stared at her as if she’d grown an extra head.

  “I can’t imagine why,” I said, holding up one finger, “You sneak all the good submissions away from me, you’re always trying to push all my buttons, you’re passive aggressive in emails, somehow you’re always getting me to do the projects that you get assigned, and you always have this look on your face like you know something that I don’t, or you think you’re better than me. It’s a lot, Laura. A lot.” My chest heaved as I finished. I’d been holding that in for a long time. I didn’t really have a whole lot of people to talk to about anything. Dad had been my sounding board for so long and I hadn’t found anyone else in my life who could fill that void. I’d either talk to random people on the internet or to no one.

  Laura stared at me for a second.

  “Is that what you think I do?” She seemed horrified. What was even happening?

  “It is, though. That’s what you do. You don’t like me and I don’t like you.” Why was she acting this way?

  “Oh,” she said, looking down at her hands in her lap. “Oh.”

  “I’m lost,” I said.

  “So am I,” she said, her voice thick with emotion. “I didn’t know that’s what you thought of me.” She was quiet for a long time. I didn’t know what to say to her. I was completely puzzled.

  “Don’t you hate me?” I asked. I thought this was a known fact.

  “No, Colden. I don’t hate you. I mean, yes, I have done those things, but I didn’t do them against you. I did them because I’m scared that I’m not going to make it. I have to prove myself. I have to prove that it wasn’t a waste to go to school and try to make a go of it in publishing. That it wasn’t a waste leaving my family and this.” She gestured at the room, meaning the entire inn.

  I had to sit down. There was too much to think about for me to concentrate on standing. I took the chair next to hers.

  “You weren’t fucking with me?”

  “No. I was trying to get ahead. I guess you were sort of in the way. I mean, sure, I do feel competitive with you. I’m sure you do too. I’m not the only one who’s snuck submissions and done sneaky things.” She stared at me and I sputtered.

  “Okay, fine. I’ve done it a few times. But not as many as you.” I definitely didn’t try to fuck her over as many times as she had to me. “And you’re going to be fine. You’re smart and you’ll make it. You don't have to prove yourself to anyone.” She shook her head.

  “That’s what you think. That family down there? They seem sweet and fun and goofy on the surface, but under that is a lot of expectation. A lot of history. You don’t know what it’s like to live and grow up knowing exactly what you’re supposed to do and who you’re supposed to be. And when you don't turn out to be that?” She sighed and looked out the window.

  Minnie ran from me to Laura and back, as if she wanted to comfort both of us and couldn't decide who to focus on first.

  “At least you have two living and involved parents,” I snapped. “Count your fucking blessings, Laura. There are worse things out there than parental expectations.” I got up from the chair and walked to the window. I couldn’t look at her anymore.

  “I didn’t know anything about your parents. You never talk about yourself, Colden. You never share anything. I try to talk to you, all the time, and you give me nothing.” One tear after another rolled down my cheeks. I angrily wiped them away.

  “I didn’t want you to know. I didn’t want you to get to know me. You’re just a coworker, Laura. Someone I don’t even like. We just have to be able to share a workspace and that’s it. We don’t have to be friends.” I felt her standing behind me and I turned slowly to meet her eyes.

  “I wanted to get to know you, Colden. I tried. I know I’m not the easiest person to get along with. I take work way too seriously, I know that much. I need to lighten up. I know you probably don’t want to be my friend, but I’ve wanted to be yours.” I was shocked. It was as if she’d flipped my entire world upside down. I’d had it all wrong.

  “Why do you want to be friends with me?” I couldn’t imagine. I knew she already had friends. Probably rich friends that she could do rich people things with. Gold facials or whatever. I had no idea how rich people spent their money. I’d like to find out someday, though.

  “Do you really want to do this?” Laura asked.

  “I mean, you started it by barging into my room with the pig. You could have just left me alone.” That was what I wanted. Right?

  “Fine,” she said, getting up. “I’ll leave you alone, if that’s what you want.”

  “Yup,” I said, staring at the pattern in the carpet.

  “Fine,” she said again, and walked out the door, shutting it firmly behind her, leaving me and Minnie together.

  “Alone at last,” I said, petting Minnie, who sat down to my feet and put her chin in my lap.

  “You can be my friend, Minnie. It would be fun to have a pig as a friend.” She made a snuffling noise and smiled. I had decided: Pigs could smile.

  “Can you fix my car?” I asked her. She didn’t answer. “Okay, can you search for a secret hoard of gold? I’m sure there’s some buried around her somewhere. You’d be like a truffle pig, only with money. I could train you and we’d travel all around the world having adventures finding gold. How does that sound?” Minnie closed her eyes and sighed, as if that idea contented her.

  “It’s a plan,” I said.

  Since I still didn't have my car, I decided to take a walk to get away from the inn and the family that owned it for a while. I snuck out the back door and somehow managed not to see a single Sterling on my way. It wasn’t as cold today, so the wind didn’t freeze my nose instantly. The snow had melted a little in the sun, and the roads were clear, so I didn’t have to worry about slipping on ice and slush. I had no idea where I was going, but I had my phone to navigate me back in case I got lost. It wasn’t like there were a whole lot of places to go. The inn was down the street from the main area of town, if you could call it that. A gas station, a teeny-tiny bank, a grocery store, and a post office. That was pretty much it, at least I thought until I saw that there was a bitty coffee shop attached to the grocery store, along with a little shed that had a giant ice cream cone on top of it and a CLOSED sign across the door.

  Coffee. Blessed coffee. I didn’t drink it much, but I was hit with an overwhelming need for something rich and dark and full of caffeine. The smell alone made my mouth water. I pushed through the door, hearing the tinkle of a bell as I entered. The place was small, but so cozy. Only three tables, but there was a full-size espresso machine, and a full glass case of delectable-looking pastries. Sold. I was camping out here for the rest of the afternoon. I’d smartly shoved a book in one of my coat’s giant pockets, so I was set.

  I went to the counter to order and the young barista seemed excited to see me. Like, overly excited.

  “How can I help you?” she chirped, her eyes bright behind clear-framed glasses. I’d put her age either late teens or early twenties. Still eager in her first job.

  “Um, yeah, I’ll have the gingerbread and white chocolate latte with a cherry Danish, please.” I needed carbs and sugar and fat right now.

  “Coming right up! What kind of milk did you want with that latte?” I looked at the selection and went with oat milk. I’d never tried it, but why not?

  The Danish came on a plate and the latte came with an extra smile from the barista. She was the only one in the shop, but it wasn’t like the line was twenty people deep. There were only three other people in here right now. Two teens w
ho looked like they’d come here after school and an older man on a laptop. I sat at the only other available table and pulled out my book, settling in.

  The bell above the door tinkled and I glanced up to see who it was. Michelle.

  “Oh, hey, I didn’t know you were over here. I just snuck over for a pick-me-up. I couldn’t deal with my family anymore, and a bunch of people checked out and I had to clean and do check ins and I really need a coffee. Hi, Ashley.” The last part was directed to the barista. “Can I get my usual?”

  “Coming right up,” Ashley said to Michelle.

  “Do you mind if I join you while I wait? I’ll be going back in a minute.” I didn’t mind. I liked Michelle. Even though she had a few too many stars in her eyes about the realities of living in a city as opposed to staying here.

  “Yeah, go ahead.” The older guy at the laptop coughed, as if he disapproved. Maybe he was writing a screenplay. There seemed to be a guy working on a screenplay in every café in all corners of the world.

  “I heard about your car. That sucks.” Yeah, it did. I was already tired of thinking about it.

  “Yup,” I said, sipping my latte. It was cool enough to drink now. I swallowed the caffeinated goodness and sunk my teeth into the Danish. Delicious. Completely perfect. I was going to order a second to take back with me for a midnight snack. Guess I was hanging out at The Sterling Inn again tonight. Unless I wanted to abandon my car, rent another, and bail. That prospect didn’t seem so bad but, eventually, I was going to need my car.

  “Is there anything I can do?” Michelle was such a peach. We should definitely become friends. She was just the kind of person I should be friends with.

  “Not unless you know where a pile of money that no one wants is buried. I’m going to train Minnie to be a money pig.” Michelle blinked at me a few times and then she got it.

  “Oh, right, like the pigs that look for truffles! That’s not a bad idea. Put her to work.” We both laughed at the idea of Minnie having a job.

  “She should earn her keep, don’t you think?” I said.