Page 54 of Holiday Wishes and Tentacle Dreams

Chapter Eighteen

SIX MONTHS LATER - DOREN

Early June brought perfect, balmy temperatures for surfing, and Doren was luxuriating in the warm spray as they rode one more wave into the shore. The beach, deserted in winter, was busier now, although the area by the houses was still more sparsely populated than the big public area with its boardwalk and parking lots.

Waiting for them in a large Adirondack chair, face shadowed from the sun by an oversized striped umbrella, was Jake. Try as they might, Doren hadn’t convinced their mate of the value of surfing as a leisure activity. The one time Jake had tried it didn’t go well. If Doren was honest, his ability to stay upright was pretty much nonexistent.

Ah, well. Luckily for Doren, Jake loved to sit and watch his partner skid across the surface of the water while he relaxed in the sun's warmth.

Doren dragged the longboard over to the chair, sitting down in the sand next to him. Jake was beautiful, the summer sun leaving a dark tan over his glorious, bearish body.

Turning to Doren, Jake wore a smirk as he asked, “Do you want to go toGrounds for Divorce fornitro cold brews?”

Of course they did! Jake knew them too well. Doren had been despondent when it was no longer peppermint latte season, but then Jake had introduced them to the wonders of nitro cold brew with a sweet cream topper. So much caffeine! So bracing! It was the perfect summer coffee drink.

Jumping up, Doren bounced on the balls of their feet as Jake groaned a bit, lifting himself out of the beach chair. Jake linked his arm with Doren’s, and they were struck by how perfectly Jake fit by their side.

Did Jake still have bad days, weeks, even months? Absolutely. But by Jake’s own admission, they weren’t as intense. Or perhaps he had better coping mechanisms. He wasn’t just seeing his own therapist now, but attending group therapy as well, once a week in nearby Portland. Doren was proud of how Jake had taken his mental health treatment into his own hands.

“I still can’t believe Gram let us stay here,” Jake said as they ambled together through the sand, the grains squeezing between their toes as they walked.

Doren hadn’t been surprised. In fact, Doren had expected it. They’d been much less shocked than Jake when she’d visited a few weeks ago to tell them she wasn’t renting the house out, and they could stay as long as they wanted.

“She adores you,” Doren said, stopping to let a toddler with a bucket full of seawater run past.

“It’s still a good amount of money she’s losing in rent. She could charge a lot.” The uncertainty that crept into Jake’s voice was rarer these days, although Doren noticed it most when Jake was worried about disappointing his grandmother. “Who knows how long it will be before my business takes off. If it even does.”

Doren clicked their tongue at Jake’s words. “She believes in you. So do I. Before you know it, Dorothea’s pies will be in every shop in town.”

Doren had encouraged Jake to stop his search for executive assistant positions. Doren could tell from the way he spoke that such a job would make him miserable, and they were of the opinion that, unless you had children to support, there was no reason you should force yourself to do something you hate.

The idea of upscaling Dorothea’s pie operation had been Jake’s. Over the last few months, they’d become fast friends. Dorothea had been giving away pies for decades. The pastries were legendary in the tourist town.

After confessing his deceit regarding Dorothea’s pies to Doren, Jake had discovered he enjoyed baking. Dorothea had become his mentor, and together, the two had found ways to increase her yield without losing their love of the art.

Doubt might eat away at Jake’s confidence on occasion, but Doren had seen the eager looks on potential client’s faces when they heard his proposal. Every single business in Linwood Falls wanted a piece of that pie, so to speak.

When the two of them reached the door toGrounds for Divorce, Doren caught a flash of movement from the shrub where they’d spied on Jake so many months before.

“Hey,” Jake whispered, leaning in. “Is that Bard?”

Sure enough, squeezed between the greenery and the wall was the compact frame of Doren’s sibling. Bard’s eyes were glued to the windows of the coffee shop.

Doren shook his head and walked over to their sibling. Bard had acquired a new obsession over the previous months, and Doren didn’t understand why they didn’t just ask the guy out.

“Rex is working today, huh?”

Bard yelped and jumped, turning around to face them. Jake giggled, and Doren had to admit the shocked expression Bard worewaspretty funny. Before the last few months, Doren would have thought nothing could throw Bard off.

Until Rex.

“Who is Rex?” Bard asked, adopting an innocent expression. “The barista? That’s nice. No, I was just getting out of the sun for a second.”

Doren rolled their eyes so hard they almost popped out of their skull. Jake patted Doren’s arm. Jake wasn’t Bard’s sibling, so he had more patience for their stubbornness.

“Why don’t you talk to him?” Jake’s compassionate words lacked the teasing Doren would have included. “You’re very good-looking. He’d jump at the chance to go out with you.”

Bard attempted an innocent face, but they were Doren’s sibling, and they weren’t that great of an actor.