Showing posts with label memorial 2024. Show all posts
Showing posts with label memorial 2024. Show all posts
Sunday, June 2, 2024
Monday, May 27, 2024
🗽Monday's Mystical Magic🗽: His Accidental Memorial Day Omega by Ava Beringer
Omega Holidays #4
I’m an omega, abandoned and pregnant. He’s an alpha soldier, tormented by his past. We’re both broken and broken-hearted. Can we become each other’s savior?
Omega Tajj Townsend was shocked when his college sweetheart filed for divorce, leaving him destitute. Then he discovered was pregnant. Now he’s broken-hearted, ashamed, and dependent on family for everything. He’s excited to meet the hero Army alpha he’s heard so much about, but the man his friends drag into the house is drunk and dangerous. Will Tajj get a chance to see the real alpha behind the broken man, and find true love for the first time in his life?
Alpha Brad Coleman can’t stop the nightmares. As a former medic in the army, he’s seen lots of terrible things, but one lost patient haunts him. His live spirals out of control, and he finds himself living with his buddy Mitch. Mitch’s family, and Tajj. When Brad meets pregnant, abandoned Tajj, they bump heads but their chemistry is undeniable. Will Brad finally have something positive to look forward to in his life?
Will Tajj learn to trust in an alpha again? Can Brad convince himself he deserves love? Can they find a way to come together in spite of it all?
This is the fourth book in The Omega Holidays series. In it, you'll find a small but sassy omega and a wounded soldier who are guaranteed their HEA. 18+ readers only please! This book contains occasional strong language, MPREG/Omegaverse, and hot, spicy grownup stuff. The omegas are heating up and the alphas are very knotty boys. Get FREE short stories when you join the newsletter family!
Another new-to-me author. Another author added to my check-out-backlist list.
When I was looking for books I'd read for my Memorial Day blog post I realized that I'd already posted most of the fitting stories then I remembered Ava Beringer had one in their Omega Holiday standalone series. So once again, as much as I prefer to be a series read-in-order gal, I jumped in the middle. So glad I did, now I can't wait to go back and read the rest.
Tajj and Brad are exactly what each needs. Tajj wants an alpha who will care for him, on the surface that sounds like he's looking for "sugar daddy" but that couldn't be farther from the truth. He's not looking for someone to do everything for him just someone who wants to be the caring partner that his soon-to-be ex-wife and mother to his unborn child was not. Brad wishes for an omega he can care for but who will also care for him And again, on the surface that doesn't sound like an equal partner but the truth is they both just want what almost everyone wants: a partner who will complete them.
Well, despite what their inner alpha and omega are pulled towards their initial meeting isn't exactly pleasant and definitely not a cute meet. They definitely have their work cut out for them if they truly belong together. I won't spoil anything so I'll end it there, just know what's important in life is worth the work.
Brad's PTSD and Tajj's being abandoned by his spouse give His Accidental Memorial Day Omega a heart-filled tone but don't think it's bogged down in angst, there is plenty moments of fun, wit, friendship, family, and heart that makes this an all around pleasant and uplifting read that will put a smile on your face and hope in your heart.
Chapter 1
Tajj
I bounced Baby Love in my lap, the two of us enjoying the Friday morning entertainment. Her parents bickered playfully, volleying barbs back and forth across the dining room table like a game of tennis. I stuck a crispy, fatty piece of bacon in my mouth and chewed, rubbing my six-month pregnant belly as the always-hilarious Wasilewski Show went on right in front of me.
“I’m still the better salesman,” said my cousin Jeremiah, waggling his head in a sassy way.
His mate Mitch crossed his arms and sat back in his chair, a cocky smirk on his face. “Only because I let you win. I’m a gentlealpha.”
Jeremiah dismissed him with a wave of his hand. “Yeah, right. Excuses, excuses.” Love, who was four months old and enthralled by her parents’ banter, let out a string of amused babble. “That’s right,” Jeremiah said, “you tell ‘em, baby.”
I chuckled because my cousin and his mate, now fiancé, were just so darned cute. The more time I spent around them, the more I enjoyed watching their relationship blossom, even if it started out unconventionally. Even if I hadn’t been at my best when they were figuring everything out. I’m different now, and that’s what counts. Everything’s different now.
Mitch leaned forward, resting his elbows on the polished wood. He pointed a finger at Jeremiah. “If you want me to stop going easy on you, just say the word.”
Jeremiah pursed his lips to keep from laughing. “The word.”
“You think you’re so clever, don’t you?”
“Clever enough to be the winner for like, the entire time I’ve known you.”
“We’re gonna cream you this quarter, just you wait.”
I spoke up then, rolling my eyes fondly. “Please don’t say cream in front of the baby. Or me, for that matter.”
“What? It’s just shop talk.” Mitch winked at me.
I laughed out loud then. “No, it isn’t. For you two, it’s foreplay. We’re trying to eat breakfast here.” I gently squeezed Love’s chunky cheeks between my thumb and forefinger and she gave us a big smile. “See? She agrees. Lovey-dovey, we love it. Freaky-deeky, we love it for you, in the privacy of your bedroom.” Mitch and Jeremiah looked at each other for a few seconds, then busted out laughing. Before they became a couple, they were bitter, competitive work rivals. Apparently, there was always some sort of chemistry involved, because here we were.
Jeremiah shook his head, as if he wasn’t sure whether to be amused or embarrassed. “I hate to admit it, but I think you’re right, cuz.”
“I guess it has been for a long time,” Mitch agreed. He bounced his eyebrows at my cousin. “Babe, talk salesy to me.”
“As a team, our sales are up twelve percent over the time before we joined forces.” Jeremiah shrugged one shoulder, as if to say, “it was nothin’.”
Mitch shivered playfully. “Ooh. Tell me more.”
“I got word that we just booked 3M as a client. A nice, fat contract with a nice, fat bonus.”
“What’re you trying to do here, drop a man to his knees?”
“Maybe.”
I playfully covered Love’s ears, telling her, “Oh, boy, here we go with your dads and their appetites.” Love cooed in response.
Mitch got up from his chair, rounded the table, and leaned over Jeremiah, nose-to-nose, lips almost touching. “What else?”
“I don’t know for sure, not yet,” Jeremiah whispered like they were in their bedroom, “but I heard that 3M is gonna up the initial order by fifty percent.”
Mitch’s eyes widened. “Fifty per...? Hun, you’re a frickin’ genius.” He leaned down to catch Jeremiah’s mouth in a kiss, but stopped when they remembered we were still in the room.
I took one of Love’s little hands and waved it at them. “Hi, dads. We’re still here.” Love giggled.
Jeremiah cleared his throat. “Tajj, would you...?”
I smiled and nodded, poking my belly out in front of me as I pushed myself up from my chair. “I got her. I think we’ll leave the house and save us both the trauma.” I was happy for them, of course I was. It was just hard to see, especially when my wife and I had never been in love like that.
Mitch angled his head toward me. “Do you need to grab anything while you’re out?” That was code for “do you need some money?” I was grateful, not just for the money and support but for them being gentle about it. My pride, however, took a blow every time it came up.
I gave him a little smile. “I think I’m good, but thanks, Mitch. Me and my baby are due for a trip to the zoo. Ain’t that right, Lovey?” I bounced her a little and she blinked at me with her loving eyes.
“You just let us know, alright?” Jeremiah added, as Mitch took his hand to lead him toward their bedroom.
“I sure will,” I called after them, right before they disappeared in their room and closed the door with a click of the latch.
“The good news is, your parents are crazy about each other,” I told Love with a laugh. A muffled moan reached my ears through their door. “The bad news is, if we’re not careful, we have to hear about it. Ready, little one? Or should I say, little ones?” I rubbed my belly again. I was short, so it already stuck out much farther than other omegas in the same stage of pregnancy. My baby moved a little, poking out what might have been a foot near my navel. “Glad you’re excited, too,” I whispered, amazed that I had a little human growing inside me.
“Let’s get ready to go, huh?” I said to Love as I carried her back to my room.
Ever since my alpha wife of more than a decade randomly decided, out of the blue, that she was done with me, I’d been living in Jeremiah’s guest room. After living the high life with Karina for so long, to say it was humbling was an understatement.
I scooted over a stack of neatly-folded hand-me-down newborn clothes that Jeremiah and Mitch had given me for when my own baby arrived. So far, they’d been the ones to care for me during my pregnancy when the mother of my child couldn’t seem to care less. It made me even more ashamed of my jealous and shallow behavior from a few months ago.
I laid Love on the blue bedspread, dotted with moons and stars, and rubbed my belly. My whole body somehow seemed hollow, empty without my alpha here to care for me.
“Nope. Not my alpha anymore. Not our alpha. Looks like it’s time to crown myself the ‘strong independent omega who don’t need no alpha.’ We’ll be alright, little one.” The baby moved around, unsettled, as if they didn’t believe me. “It’s okay,” I whispered. “I don’t believe myself sometimes. I promise you, though, even though it feels like it, we’re not gonna fall apart without an alpha. We don’t need one.” As I said that, my heart called out for someone special. The alpha who really was who I tried to make my wife into for most of my adult life. Someone to swoop in and love and care for me and my child. I let my chin drop to my chest. Fantasies, nothing but fantasies.
I turned my attention back to Love, who spent the interlude looking up at the white ceiling and over to the blue walls like she was watching a blockbuster movie. I put a little t-shirt on her, pink with red hearts, and a little red tutu up over her kicking legs. I added a few things to her baby bag, which I usually kept already packed for our day trips and running errands. I was her live-in nanny right now, and as difficult as it was to accept my current predicament, I was safe, I had family to care for me, and I had everything I needed. Plus, Love was the epitome of her name, an angel of a baby.
I gave her a smacking kiss on the cheek. The sound and sensation made her laugh. “Let’s go have a fun day, just the three of us, huh?” My own child wriggled, seeming enthusiastic about our little adventure.
The zoo was lots of fun. Maybe even more for me than for Love. Her four-month-old eyes were just at the point where she could see clearly and focus on things, so she stared wide-eyed and enraptured at the monkeys flying through the branches in their enclosure, the kangaroos bouncing across the grass in theirs, and the galloping zebras especially held her attention.
“See all those pretty stripes?” I said to her as she stared at the zebras, her mouth wide open and drool running down her chin and onto her collar. “Wow, we don’t know where one zebra ends and where another begins, do we?” Love flapped her arms and made a little whooping noise. “I wonder if you can smell them as well as you can see them now. They’re kinda funky. PU.” Love flapped her arms some more.
I had her out of her stroller, holding her against my chest with one arm, sitting on top of my belly. It was a challenge for me to reach into my pocket for my phone, but I was happy to record her response to send to Jeremiah and Mitch for later, and to keep for myself.
I took a selfie of the two of us, me smiling into the camera, Love staring open-mouthed at the zebras. I nuzzled my nose into her dark, silky baby curls, inhaling her sweet scent. “You’re such a precious baby. I hope mine is just like you.”
I stopped in the gift shop, where I bought Love a tiny koala plushy, which she immediately clung to. The dangling keychains caught my eye. One had a cute little giraffe, and it made me think of when Jeremiah and I were kids. His favorite animal was a giraffe. I bought it for him and asked the lady at the counter to wrap it nicely in a little bit of tissue paper. After rolling to a few more enclosures plus a seal show, Love was getting fussy and I needed to sit down.
“Oh!” I groaned as I lowered myself onto a bench in the shade of a big, mature, tree. “Can you believe I’m gonna get bigger than this? Can you believe I still have like fourteen weeks to go?” Love wasn’t trying to hear it. She was full-on crying now. “Okay, I’m sorry, I’m sorry. Let me fix it right now,” I cooed. “Is my favorite girl hungry?” I dug into the baby bag, sitting under the stroller’s carriage, for everything I needed to make Love a bottle. I pulled out the powdered formula and set it down next to me. When I went for my water bottle, though, my belly got in the way. As I reached for it, it fell and rolled a few feet away. “Damn it.” Now I had a crying baby and a runaway Hydroflask. Before I could figure out how to get myself standing to go after it, an omega woman with a kind face reached down and picked it up for me.
“Oh, thank you so much. You’re a lifesaver. So many lives,” I joked, pointing at Love, myself, and my belly.
“Happy to help,” the woman replied, smiling with a tilt to her head. “Can I grab her for you?”
“Sure. She loves new people, but she might not be her usual outgoing self because she’s starving.”
“No problem, I have three of my own so I know how that goes. Everybody’s on their bad side until they're fed.” She sweet-talked Love a little as I washed my hands with some of the water from the bottle, and while Love didn’t settle completely, she seemed to feel better with somebody to complain to. The woman nodded toward my tummy. “Congratulations, by the way!”
“Thank you so much.” I returned her sweet smile, patting my belly before scooping formula into Love’s bottle. “Fourteen weeks to go, give or take.”
“You and your alpha must have quite the spark, to have one so young and another already on the way.”
“I, uh,” I dropped my eyes to my belly, rounded with Karina’s baby. They then skipped to my left hand, where my ring still glittered. I hadn’t been able to bring myself to take it off. Unlike the promises my wife made to me, it hadn’t faded. I tried for a bashful laugh. “What can I say?”
The woman waved a hand, her grin devilish. I guess I gave her the answer she wanted. “You don’t have to say anything at all.”
Other families flowed by us, some giving me empathetic looks at Love’s obvious distress, their own children yelling and skipping and some of them crying. The nice lady cradled her while I finished preparing the bottle, pretending to be super focused on it so I could avoid her eye while she asked me questions that I didn’t have good answers to.
“How long have the two of you been married?” She handed Love over to me, and when I put the nipple in Love’s mouth she immediately started sucking noisily, looking up at me with tear-stained but forgiving eyes.
“Right out of college,” I said, even though it didn’t seem like it was me talking, only someone else using my voice.
“You waited a while to have them, now you decided to have them back to back?” She joked.
“We were career-focused.” Money-focused was more like it. “We weren’t even sure if we wanted kids, you know?” That was the truth. We were so focused on being high-rollers that we’d never discussed whether or not we wanted kids. It always seemed like a conversation for later. We did have a lot of fun, and I was glad we did before bringing any children into the world. Now...
“Now you’ve got a beauty and another on the way.”
“Looks that way, huh?” I said, just barely keeping the smile on my face. It helped when I looked down at Love, her face back to being sweet, her eyes drifting slightly closed with the satisfaction of a good meal.
“Make sure you hold on to that love. It’s rare, you know. It’s special.”
“I will,” I lied. I tried. I tried to hold on to it. Maybe it was never that special. Maybe I was never that special.
The woman gave Love’s cheek one last brush of her fingers. “You’re doing a great job, Dad.” That almost had me crumbling in the middle of the zoo right in front of the giraffes and the entire world to see.
“Thank you,” I said in a whisper. “Sometimes it doesn’t feel that way.”
“Parenthood is always gonna be tough, but you’re loving them and doing what’s best for them. That’s what good parents do.” She patted my shoulder, then gave me a little wave. “It was nice meeting all of you.”
“Bye.” I lifted a hand to wave back as she blended into the fast-moving crowd. I dropped my chin to my chest, blinking rapidly. No crying in public, Tajj. I rocked Love as she slurped down her bottle.
“Not too fast, Lovey. We don’t want you spitting up all over the place, right?” Her eyes had drifted shut as she lazily gave a few more half-hearted sucks at the bottle. I held her upright against my chest and patted her back, getting a little burp out of her. “You’re getting so big I almost don’t need to do that anymore.”
Love fussed a little, cranky that I interrupted her oncoming nap to burp her, so I gave her a pacifier. She drifted off to sleep and suddenly, I wanted to do the same. I felt drained physically, but also emotionally. On top of that, my stomach had the nerve to growl.
I rubbed my tummy where my baby moved back and forth a little. “Okay, precious, let’s get the two of us fed, too.” There was a food court about a quarter-mile away, roughly. “Damn, that seems so far.” I must have overestimated my energy levels, because my feet were tired and starting to swell. The sun, which had seemed so beautiful and warm earlier in the day, now felt oppressive.
“The good news is,” I said as I hefted myself up with a groan, “it’s on the way to the parking lot. I grab something to eat, then we say adios.” Love slept on as I maneuvered her stroller through the throngs of people, the fresh sweet scent of their mini-donuts driving me crazy with cravings. I stopped at the first mini-donut booth I came across and bought a whole bucket, gnawing on the cinnamon-y, sugary, doughy goodness, moaning with pleasure as I went along my way. It was only the start, though. I had every intention of devouring a mini-smorgasbord and then sleeping it off at home.
The crowd was thick at the food court, lots of bodies pressing in making it hotter, assaulting my senses with their scents, overlaid with perfume and sometimes BO. Since I was short it was always hard to see, which was disorienting. People didn’t seem to care that I had a baby in a stroller, but my pregnant belly helped a little bit and bought me some room.
I took a step and stumbled a little, my sandals catching on the uneven concrete pavement, my head woozy and my stomach roiling with the beginnings of nausea. I caught myself on the handle of the stroller. I wish there was someone here I could lean on, literally and figuratively. Karina should be here with me, damn it. She should be telling me to have a seat and get off my feet while she handles this. That’s what good alphas do. I pressed my lips together and moved forward. I don’t need her. I don’t need any alpha at all.
I stepped into line at a pizza counter, thinking about how those donuts weren’t cheap. I usually put off asking my cousin and his fiancé for money as long as possible, because it filled me with so much regret and shame. I’d gone a few days longer than usual, and I needed to check my financial situation.
I held one foot up off the ground then the other, trying to give them some relief from all the walking. It really would be nice if I had someone to bring the food to me so I could rest. A strong, reliable, faithful alpha to take care of me. The right alpha. My alpha. My heart ached at the thought. As if my feet weren’t hurting enough. There was no such person as “my alpha” anyway.
I pushed that thought out of my head as I wrestled my phone out of my pocket again and pulled up my bank account balance.
My jaw dropped. “It can’t be.” Two dollars and fifty-seven cents. When did my balance get so low? That wasn’t even enough to buy a hot dog on a stick. The donuts and gifts weren’t cheap, but they shouldn’t have wiped me out completely. The hollowness, the emptiness I’d been feeling for so long returned.
Turned out, I did need some money. “I’ve been putting off asking for way too long, but I shouldn’t have to ask,” I hissed to myself. “I have money, and I worked hard for it!” Another wave of dizziness hit me. I needed to sit down right now.
“Excuse me,” I said to the people around me in the line. “Excuse me, thank you.” It took a lot of “excuse me’s” to maneuver the stroller out of the line and past the people in the burger line right next to me. The sea slowly parted and I passed through. The people weren’t rude, exactly, but they weren’t in a hurry to let me through.
I finally made it out, and dropped heavily onto the nearest chair at a table with a half-eaten portion of lo mein that did nothing for my nausea. I don’t need anybody. I don’t need Karina, and I certainly don’t need any other alpha. I can handle this. The more I told myself that, the less I believed it. Situations like this seemed small, but in the grand scheme of things they were big, because I was so vulnerable right now. Not only that, but I wondered what it would be like to have someone really love me. Snap out of it, Tajj.
I squeezed my eyes shut before I thumbed down to Jeremiah’s contact number and tapped the little green phone button. He answered after a few rings, his camera on and aimed at him, but he wasn’t looking at me. He was in his office, his fingers flying over his keyboard, making tons of money that he selflessly shared with me and my child.
“Hey cousin, what’s up?”
I cleared my throat. “Know how y’all asked me earlier if I needed anything?”
“Uh-huh.”
“I said no, but it turns out I was wrong.”
Jeremiah stopped typing and looked at the phone. “What happened?”
“Tried to buy some lunch. Didn’t have enough.”
Jeremiah cursed. “Y’all still at the zoo?”
“Yeah. Love’s fed, she’s knocked out. We’re not, though, and I’m starving. I was able to get some mini donuts and that was it.” I tried for a joking smile. My empty gut clenched having to explain to my cousin that I was too destitute to feed myself and my unborn child.
Jeremiah stroked his chin, thinking. “Okay, I can send you a quick payment through a cash app. Or...” he lifted a finger. “Check the left front pocket of Love’s baby bag. In the little card flap.” I dug in there, pulling out what looked like a silver credit card attached to a little piece of paperboard that said “Visa” on it. “We put a Visa gift card in there for emergencies. It has a hundred dollars on it. Did you find it?”
“Yeah,” I whispered, my voice choked up. “Thanks, y’all think of everything.”
“Well, you take such good care of our baby girl.” And we know how much you need it, were the unspoken words. “Go crazy and get yourself full, then come home and lie down. Me and Mitch have a few things to finish up, then we’ll be home early and we’ll take Love. I can’t wait to get this weekend started.” He cracked his knuckles. “I’m gonna knock this report out and I’ll catch you at home. Go eat and rest, okay?” I just nodded. I couldn’t seem to get any words out.
After we clicked off, I just dropped my head into my hands. I was out of energy, and done with trying to look like I wasn’t falling apart. There were no more nice ladies to come help me. I got a few pity looks, but it was more than I could bear so I got back to my swollen, painful feet and wheeled Love right outta there.
She slept the whole way home, only waking up when we got back, crying soon after. I changed her diaper and laid her down on the bed next to me, now calm and sweet as ever. I propped myself up on one elbow, making a zoom noise as I drew my finger up from her belly button to her nose. She thought it was hilarious, laughing and showing her little pink gums.
I pulled out my phone, checking all of my pre-divorce accounts for what must have been the millionth time. Everything was still blocked. My joint account with Karina, my personal 401k from the position I held at her family’s paper company for over a decade, our joint IRAs, our investment accounts, even my HSA, which I could damn sure have used with my insane prenatal medical expenses.
“Karina, that low-down, good-for-nothing... Won’t even give me access to my own accounts. Who does she think she is? It’s my money. Sure, she had a lot when we got married, had it coming out of her ears. Nepotism at it finest. Sure, I liked having that money. I liked that she had lots of it. I liked earning it, and I liked spending it. I earned some of it, though. I earned my keep.” I poked myself in the chest for emphasis. “If I had my money, we’d be doing just fine.” I rubbed my tummy, my shirt riding up to expose a sliver of skin underneath. “Why is she keeping it from me?”
Love listened with big, wide eyes and both her fists stuffed in her mouth, covered with drool. “You’re such a good listener, yes, you are!” I tickled her tummy and she giggled. “No more burdening you with my grownup problems, no, no, no. You’re too cute for that, too precious, huh?” Love let out a happy little shriek that cut straight to my heart. “I hope my little one is just like you. I can’t wait to watch you grow up together, just like me and Juju. I hope y’all will stay close, though. Don’t do what I did.” Love cooed as if in agreement, clutching her koala against her chest. I spread a hand on her fat little belly and gently rolled her back and forth a little. “Y’know, baby, as much as I hate the situation with my ex, I can’t say I don’t deserve it. I was riding high on a hog, living a lie. It was all bound to come crashing down. Now I get to be here with you. I’ve made amends with your dads, we’re all closer than ever, and I’m happier than I’ve been in a looooooong time.” That was the honest truth. Besides getting done with this divorce, the only things that would make it better were to meet my brand-new baby for the first time and...to find a special alpha to love in the way that Karina and I never had. At least I would get one of those things for sure, and it was the one that mattered most.
As if they heard me, my baby kicked and poked what I thought was a hand up near the top of my belly. I laid a fingertip against the teensy bulge, holding hands with my pride and joy.
“No matter what, we’re gonna be alright. Just you and me, all by ourselves.” Not forever, a little voice whispered. Someone’s coming. I laid down with my face close to Love’s, mine on a moon and hers on a star, just enjoying her angelic company. I fell asleep dreaming about an alpha knight in shining armor, coming to rescue me.
Ava Beringer is a major-league nerd who started off writing fanfiction and fell in love with mpreg and omegaverse. She loves to heat up a slick omega and a knotty alpha. By day she’s a good thirty-something midwestern girl, but she has a dark side. Okay, not really. She’s as bubbly as champagne but she can be pretty darn cheeky when you get her going.
She’s a digital nomad who’s traveled to thirty-five countries and counting. If she’s lucky, a cat will adopt her along the way.
Pick up your FREE SHORT STORIES, hear about her new releases and misadventures here, and tell her about yours! ❤
His Accidental Memorial Day Omega #4
Omega Holidays Series
Sunday, May 26, 2024
🗽Sunday's Short Stack🗽: Christmas Homecoming by LA Witt
Summary:
The Christmas Angel #4
August 1939. Roger Miller and Jack O’Brien have been close since childhood. By the time they realize there’s more between them than friendship, Jack is leaving their sleepy Iowa town for college. But they console themselves knowing he’ll be home for Christmas. Right?
It is Christmas before they see each other again, but that Christmas comes six years and a world war later. Aged, beaten, and shaken by combat, they’re not the boys they were back then, but their feelings for each other are stronger than ever.
Neither know the words to say everything they’ve carried since that peacetime summer kiss, though. Even as they stand in the same room, there’s a thousand miles between them.
But maybe that’s some distance the little angel in Roger’s rucksack can cross.
This 24,000 word novella is part of the multi-author Christmas Angel series, and can be read as a standalone.
It is Christmas before they see each other again, but that Christmas comes six years and a world war later. Aged, beaten, and shaken by combat, they’re not the boys they were back then, but their feelings for each other are stronger than ever.
Neither know the words to say everything they’ve carried since that peacetime summer kiss, though. Even as they stand in the same room, there’s a thousand miles between them.
But maybe that’s some distance the little angel in Roger’s rucksack can cross.
This 24,000 word novella is part of the multi-author Christmas Angel series, and can be read as a standalone.
One last splash through the local swimming hole for the summer leads to realizations for Roger Miller and Jack O’Brien but is it too late since Jack is leaving the next day for college? With promises of seeing each other at Christmas they wonder where they'll end up but the promised holiday reunion comes six years late after the long years of war have shaped their lives. Will Roger and Jack find happiness with each other finally or has their time passed them by?
Yet another amazing story in the multi-author Christmas novella series, The Christmas Angel. LA Witt's Christmas Homecoming is full of everything that makes holiday romances great: promises of more, separation by unseen circumstance, and inevitable reunions. I don't think I'm giving anything away by saying this is a HEA because as it so often is with holiday tales, the meat-and-potatoes of the story isn't in the ending but the journey the main characters take to get there.
For those who don't usually go for historicals all I can say is please go outside your norm and give this series a try. So far I've only read three of the seven tales but they have all been respectful for the past all while telling a great little gem of love story. With Roger and Jack's part of the Angel's journey we get to see them warring within themselves between what their hearts desire and what is expected of them: getting married and settling down(they don't call the years following WW2 the Baby Boom for nothing😉😉). As a forty-five year old woman in 2018, its hard to imagine what Roger and Jack faced as returning soldiers but LA Witt does a wonderful job of telling their story in a heartwarming entertaining Christmas package. Who says we have to wait till Christmas morning to unwrap all our treats?
I really don't think I can recommend this series enough. Is it one you need to read in order? No. As a matter of fact, I myself read book four before book three(a rarity for me but I accidentally opened Homecoming first and went with it😉). The Angel is the connection and since we don't really learn how she gets from one era to the next, it is not necessary to read in order. I will say that even though each entry is a standalone from a different time, I would highly recommend reading book one(Christmas Angel by Eli Easton) first simply because we learn how and where the angel came to be. It isn't something that will leave you lost if you don't start with the first one but personally I would be left wondering about her origins and it would leave me a bit distracted from completely enjoying each of the authors' entries, but that's just my personal opinion.
RATING:
Chapter 1
Roger
August 1939
“This place won’t be the same without you around.”
My best friend, Jack O’Brien, smiled at me as we strolled down the long dirt road that would take us from town to our houses. His hands were in the pockets of his dusty trousers, the brim of his cap shading his eyes from the late summer sun. “I won’t be gone forever.”
“Four years is a long time.”
“Yeah. It is.” He let his elbow brush mine. “But you’ll be so busy you won’t even notice.”
I laughed halfheartedly. “I’m pretty sure I’ll notice.”
He glanced at me, and he started to say something, but then didn’t. I was glad, because I had a feeling I knew what he was about to say.
“You’re gonna be married soon.”
I stared down at the dirt at our feet. I didn’t know if I would be or not. Everyone in town had been pushing for me and Daisy Morton to get married, and she always got this hopeful look in her eyes whenever someone mentioned it. Me, I got a funny feeling in the pit of my stomach that a man probably wasn’t supposed to get when he thought about marrying the nicest girl in town.
We continued through the dusty heat, and finally made it to the woods. We both sighed with relief as the road took us out of the bright sunlight and into the shade.
“Where do you think you’ll go?” I asked. “After college?”
Jack shrugged, staring at the ground like I’d been doing a moment ago. “Wherever there’s work, I guess.”
There wasn’t much work in this town. Hadn’t been in years. We hadn’t even felt the crash in ’29 because things had already been tough here. If not for the newspapers, I doubt we would have known about it at all.
So all I could hear in Jack’s words was: I don’t think I’m coming back.
As we kept walking, the silence between us as uncomfortable as it was unusual, I couldn’t think of what to say. How to tell him I wanted to go with him. There was nothing for me here except my parents’ farm, and Lord knew if that would still be standing in a few years.
I didn’t imagine there was much for me in the city either, but Jack would be there, and that seemed like enough. I didn’t say it, though. The train would take Jack away tomorrow, and I wouldn’t be going with him, and that was final. What did it matter if none of this seemed right?
We walked on, and we still didn’t talk. The quiet made me itchy. I wasn’t used to it. Not with Jack. We talked so much we drove our folks and friends crazy. But ever since we’d met up at the carnival this morning, things had been different. I couldn’t figure out what to say. I couldn’t even look at him without getting this ache in my chest. I was afraid to say anything because I was sure all that would come out was “don’t leave” or “let me come with you.”
Up ahead on the left was a well-worn trail that went deep into the woods. How many times had we gone tromping down that trail over the years? There were berries you could pick and eat—and a few we’d figured out real quick you shouldn’t—and if you followed the trail far enough, there was a swimming hole. Jack told me a while back he’d had his first kiss down there. Tenth grade with Dottie McAllister. My first kiss had been with Daisy a couple of months ago, on a dare in front of all of our friends. I liked to think Jack’s was more fun than mine.
It was hard to believe that time was over. Not the embarrassing first kisses, but our days of jogging down that path, vines whipping at our bare shins and both of us whooping and shouting with our friends before we cannonballed into the swimming hole with the leeches. Betting Jimmy Davenport he couldn’t hold his breath longer than I could. Tossing in coins and diving to find them, even though the pond was usually too deep and murky. Tying ropes to branches and swinging so we could sail through the air before splashing into the water, and still doing it after Bobby Harwood swung too far and broke his arm. Smoking stolen cigarettes and drinking stolen liquor and batting away mosquitoes.
I would miss those days—mosquito bites, leeches, broken arms and all.
And more than that, I’d miss the friend who’d been there for all the most amazing adventures.
I’d always known there would come a time when we’d drift apart and turn into memories. My dad told stories about his childhood friends, and even if he got a little melancholy now and then, he didn’t seem sad that those days were behind him. He had a family, and he had friends here in town, and he seemed happy like that. I’d always known that would be me someday too. Jack would be someone I talked about with a smile, just like I talked about David Sullivan, who’d moved to the city with his family five years ago. Sure, we all missed David, but life had gone on and so had we. That would happen after Jack was gone too. I didn’t know when or how, but it would.
As we closed in on the overgrown entrance to that little side trail, Jack slowed. Then he stopped. I watched him, and he stared at the grass-lined trailhead for a moment. When he finally turned my way, he had that smile that always meant we were about to do something crazy. Usually something that got our hides tanned once our folks found out. Worth it. Always worth it.
“No one’s expecting us for a while.” He gestured at the trail. “Want go down to the swimming hole?”
I blinked. “What?”
“Come on.” The grin widened as if he knew I could never say no to him. “Go jump in the water. Cool off. Have a swim for old time’s sake?”
It sounded crazy. Two grown men spending an afternoon in a swimming hole?
It sounded crazy and… irresistible.
So I grinned back and nodded toward the trail.
Jack went first, breaking into a run as soon as he was off the road, and I stayed on his heels. All the way down the winding trail, across the gully where we used to catch frogs, past the tree where Jack and Dottie had carved their names two days before they’d broken up, and into the clearing that would be littered with maple leaves in a few weeks.
At the center of the clearing was the swimming hole—a pond about ten yards across and so deep in places we’d never actually been to its bottom. The rope we used to swing on still hung from a tree branch, half-covered in moss as it swayed in the warm wind.
Sometimes there were kids and people our age, but almost everyone was in town for the carnival, so there wasn’t a soul in sight. We had the whole place all to ourselves.
A ways up from the water’s edge, we quickly stripped down to our drawers. Then we exchanged glances, ran, and cannonballed into the swimming hole.
The shock of the cold water always startled me, and I surfaced with a gasp. Beside me, so did Jack, and I turned, laughing and ready to say something, when—
He brushed water from his face and pushed his red hair back off his forehead.
When did you turn into a man?
I shivered, hoping if Jack noticed, he blamed it on the water. We’d both become men in the last couple of years, but we were still kids in my mind. Still two boys with nothing better to do than go out raising Cain, as my mother always said.
But that wasn’t a boy in front of me. That was a man. Broad-shouldered. The earliest hints of a beard that wanted to grow, and would be as red as the rest of his hair when it did. A sharp jaw. Muscles from working on the farm and climbing trees with me and our friends. I wanted to touch those muscles, a desire I’d never had before. And couldn’t explain now. And could barely resist now.
I’m staring at Jack. What in the world?
I pulled my gaze away and splashed some cool water on my face. It was enough to snap me out of that ridiculous trance, and as near as I could tell, Jack hadn’t noticed.
We swam and splashed like we always had. We dove to the bottom for some of the coins that had been down there for years. Jack found a nickel, but otherwise we both came up empty-handed. Still, it was fun, and the cool water was perfect. Not just because of the summer heat, but because it took me back to all the days we’d spent out here. One last hurrah before we left our youth behind.
Before Jack was gone.
The thought sobered me, cutting through the carefree feel of the afternoon and reminding me of tomorrow. I tried to ignore it, though. I didn’t want to think about tomorrow.
Unaware of the struggle in my mind, Jack treaded water, smiling as the sun beat down on his face. “Ahh. Too bad I won’t be able to do this when I’m home for Christmas.”
“You can if you want to, but your balls might not come back down till spring.”
Jack laughed, and I didn’t hear what he said because I was too busy staring at him. We’d swum in this place hundreds of times, but I’d never really looked at him like this. Like I needed to drink him in before the train took him away.
Crystal drops clung to the darkened tips of his wet red hair, and slid down the scattered stubble of his not-quite-beard. His cheeks and nose were sun-kissed, and when he met my eyes, his sparkled with… no, not with his usual mischief. With something else. Something I’d never seen before.
He waded closer to me, gaze still fixed on mine. I was standing on some solid ground, and I knew when he’d found his footing because his shoulders rose a couple of inches out of the water. He was taller than me, but the ground must’ve been lower, because we were eye to eye now.
Neither of us said a word. I had no idea what to say. What was happening? Why was he looking at me like that? Why was I looking at him like this?
And why was the thought of kissing Jack—my best friend, a boy I’d known my whole life—suddenly irresistible? Even the cool pond couldn’t stop me from getting hard, and my face burned. What if he noticed? What if he was close enough to notice?
And suddenly… he was close enough to notice.
Jack. Right there. Our faces inches apart above the water, our bodies nearly touching below it.
His hands found my waist, and I gasped, which drove me a little closer to him. Our hips brushed, and I only had the space of a heartbeat to be embarrassed before I realized he was hard too. In the name of balance, I put my hands on his chest, then slid them up and behind his neck, and we were doing more than grazing each other beneath the surface. The firm ridge against my hip was unmistakable, and there was no doubt he noticed mine.
My heart thumped so hard, he had to have felt that too, especially when our chests nearly touched. Our eyes locked. We’d touched before, but never like this, and now I really, really wanted to know what it would be like to kiss him.
But he’s Jack. He’s a man just like you. We can’t kiss.
Can we?
“Is this…” I licked my lips. “Are we supposed to…?”
“Does it matter?” he whispered, and then Jack O’Brien’s lips were against mine.
And everything.
Was just.
Still.
Kissing Daisy had never been like this. Nowhere near it. There was no one around to heckle us, but that wasn’t what was different this time. I loved Jack’s lips against mine. They were cool, but quickly warmed, and they moved gently—almost lazily—as he drew me closer. There was nothing awkward or embarrassing. Nothing that didn’t seem to fit quite right. Part of me worried someone might appear and catch us, and the scandal wasn’t one I wanted to imagine, but I couldn’t bring myself to let him go. I hadn’t known until this moment that I wanted to do this, but now that we were, it was like my entire life had been leading up to it.
The cool water seemed to be all that was keeping me from bursting into flames. Jack’s body was hot and firm against mine, his hands gentle and maybe even a little timid as he slid them up and down my back. As his tongue slipped into my mouth, I could taste the cigarette we’d shared while we’d walked, and I held him tighter and refused to think about anything that would happen after this. As far as I was concerned, time stopped here and now, and this moment was too big to be contained in a memory.
Jack’s lips broke away from mine, and he pulled back enough to look in my eyes.
How did I never notice how beautiful your eyes are?
Because we were boys. Men. I was supposed to be with Daisy, getting married like a respectable gentleman, same as Jack would do once he met the right girl. There was a future ahead of us, a future that was coming up quick, and where did something like this fit?
“What are we doing?” My voice shook as if I were shivering.
“I don’t know.” He smoothed my hair with a wet hand. “I don’t know why, but I’ve been wanting to do that for a long time.” The sunburn on his cheeks deepened with a blush, and he dropped his gaze. “And since I’m leaving tomorrow, I…”
“I’m glad you did.”
His eyes found mine again, and he watched me silently.
I couldn’t think of a single thing to say. Everything that came to mind would be too sad, and the moment would be lost.
Why did we wait so long to do this?
Do you know how much harder it’ll be to watch you leave tomorrow?
Please take me with you.
He must have seen the longing in my eyes, because he caressed my cheek and whispered, “I’ll be home for Christmas. You’ll see me again before you know it.”
We gazed at each other, and my heart ached.
But you’ll go back after Christmas.
But we’re men.
But Daisy.
“I’ll write you,” I said, as if it would make any difference. “As often as I can.”
His sweet smile made me feel things I’d never known I could feel. Warm and shaky all over, but in a good way, like I could stand here and look at him forever. Like I wanted to.
He cupped my cheek. “I’ll send you my address as soon as I can. And you better write.”
“I will. I promise.”
“Me too.” Beneath the water, his hand slid up my back, and he drew me in closer. “I’m going to miss you.”
Before I could speak, his lips were against mine again, and I held on. As the kiss lingered, my body felt things it never had before, but so did my heart. My chest hurt and my stomach was sick because no matter how glorious this moment was, it was just that—a moment. One that would be over sooner than I was ready to let it go.
Tomorrow, Jack would be gone.
And it had taken me until today to realize I loved him.
In 1750, a master woodcarver poured all his unrequited love, passion, and longing into his masterpiece—a gorgeous Christmas angel for his beloved’s tree. When the man he loved tossed the angel away without a second thought, a miracle happened. The angel was found by another who brought the woodcarver True Love.
Since then, the angel has been passed down, sold, lost and found, but its magic remains. Read the romances inspired by (and perhaps nudged along by) the Christmas angel through the years. Whether it’s 1700s England (Eli Easton's Christmas Angel), the 1880’s New York (Kim Fielding’s Summerfield’s Angel), the turn-of-the-century (Jordan L. Hawk’s Magician’s Angel), World War II (L.A. Witt’s Christmas Homecoming), Vietnam-era (N.R. Walker’s Soldier’s Wish), the 1990’s (Anyta Sunday’s Shrewd Angel), or 2018 (RJ Scott’s Christmas Prince), the Christmas angel has a way of landing on the trees of lonely men who need its blessing for a very Merry Christmas and forever HEA.
Since then, the angel has been passed down, sold, lost and found, but its magic remains. Read the romances inspired by (and perhaps nudged along by) the Christmas angel through the years. Whether it’s 1700s England (Eli Easton's Christmas Angel), the 1880’s New York (Kim Fielding’s Summerfield’s Angel), the turn-of-the-century (Jordan L. Hawk’s Magician’s Angel), World War II (L.A. Witt’s Christmas Homecoming), Vietnam-era (N.R. Walker’s Soldier’s Wish), the 1990’s (Anyta Sunday’s Shrewd Angel), or 2018 (RJ Scott’s Christmas Prince), the Christmas angel has a way of landing on the trees of lonely men who need its blessing for a very Merry Christmas and forever HEA.
L.A. Witt and her husband have been exiled from Spain and sent to live in Maine because rhymes are fun. She now divides her time between writing, assuring people she is aware that Maine is cold, wondering where to put her next tattoo, and trying to reason with a surly Maine coon. Rumor has it her arch nemesis, Lauren Gallagher, is also somewhere in the wilds of New England, which is why L.A. is also spending a portion of her time training a team of spec ops lobsters. Authors Ann Gallagher and Lori A. Witt have been asked to assist in lobster training, but they "have books to write" and "need to focus on our careers" and "don't you think this rivalry has gotten a little out of hand?" They're probably just helping Lauren raise her army of squirrels trained to ride moose into battle.
B&N / iTUNES AUDIO / CHIRP
KOBO / AUDIBLE / AUDIOBOOKS
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