DID YOU KNOW?
This year marks the 82nd year since the first Christmas parade in Pleasant Sands. The first parade consisted of the local marching band, the fire truck and Santa riding in a horse-drawn carriage.
“You’re just going to walk away?” Angela took a step back as if sizing him up. “Really? Just like that?”
He stopped. “This isn’t the place for this discussion. And I’ve upset you. I’m sorry. That wasn’t my intention. I was just here to enjoy the parade.”
Her sister stepped in. “Angela, he’s right. Come on. People are trying to enjoy the parade.” She nodded toward Chrissy, who was staring up at Angela like she’d seen a ghost.
“You’re right.” Only she didn’t walk away. Needing the last word, she turned and leaned in close to Geoff. “I guess you think it’s fine to create a tourist trap.”
“It’s just business.”
“That’s not the way I do business. I’ll remind you too that there are a lot of people that live here year-round. I sell quality items at a fair price. My customers are happy, and so am I.”
“You think my customers aren’t happy?” Geoff felt his patience slip. “Our customers don’t have to buy anything. They could easily walk out of my store and drive twenty minutes up the road to the superstore. Or to yours. But they don’t. They’re buying. From Christmas Galore. Sales are good. Clearly I’m doing something that appeals to the masses. Yes, that even includes your neighbors.”
A small grunt escaped her lips. “My store is special. It’s unique.” She lifted her chin, pressing her lips firmly together in hopes that he wouldn’t notice they were trembling.
“It is. I’ll give you that.” He lifted his chin, mimicking her body language. “Christmas Galore does not need to steal ideas. I was there in your quaint little store because I was curious about the snow after you came and accused me of stealing your idea.”
“Oh, and that’s supposed to make me feel better? You’re stalking me?”
“I’m not stalking you. I was curious, and Snow Valley is very creative. I give it to you, it’s way better than our snowball fight. You caught my attention and … Oh, forget it.”
She crossed her arms and the pulse in her jawline told him she was biting back more she had to say.
“What?” he prodded her. She was cute when she was spun up like this. Her hands balled in fists so tight her fingers looked translucent, and her chest—right there above very nice cleavage—reddened at the pace of a blue crab in a pot of boiling water and Old Bay.
“To you this is a tourist town. To me, to a lot of people … this is home. A unique and precious natural resource to be treasured, a string of barrier islands off the coast. Neighbors to the tune of nearly twenty-eight hundred year-rounders who want to help one another. We’re just seven feet above sea level here. If I had to guess you probably have plywood stacked to the ceiling back there in hopes of a big storm so you can gouge the locals as they try to protect their properties.”
That caught in his throat.
She wasn’t wrong.
Every location of Christmas Galore took up precious square footage—a floor-to-ceiling four-by-eight-foot footprint—in their warehouse just for such an event. Plywood and water. “My goal is to sell what our customers need.”
Her brown eyes clawed at him like talons. “And riding Christmas just to make a buck.” Angela flipped her hair back over her shoulder. “I’ve heard about your stores. Seen your ads. Your ‘Christmas,’” she air quoted, “store in the fall doesn’t have anything Christmassy about it. You’re as commercial as can be. You’re a fraud.”
Geoff blinked. “There are Christmas trees set up in our store year-round.” Some of them were actually conical-shaped shelves that looked like Christmas trees, but that counted. “And we have one aisle of nothing but snow globes. Over one hundred and fifty different ones across all of our stores.” He didn’t mention that most were summer and non-Christmas themed, but that wasn’t really important at the moment.
“Oh yeah, just to hang random knickknacks, flip-flops, sunglasses and overpriced made-in-China silk-screened items that won’t last the length of a vacation, which here in Pleasant Sands is an average of only five days,” she shared.
“Didn’t your mother ever tell you if you don’t have anything nice to say, to not say anything at all?” Geoff asked.
“You’re going to talk to me about being nice?” She managed a shrug and said offhandedly, “I can tell you—”
Geoff placed the tips of his fingers against her lips.
She sucked in a breath, craning her neck to avoid his touch, but he’d touched her lips and they were soft. Much softer than the harsh words that had been flying out of them.
“I can see you and I are going to have a lively competitive relationship.” He slowly pulled his hand back. “I didn’t mean to make you feel second best.”
“I do not feel second to you. We are not even in the same space. I own a Christmas shop that has been a part of families’ celebrations for generations, and I run it for all the right reasons. You … you, Mr. Christmas Galore, are just in it to make money.”
“I thought there was room for both of our businesses, but I can tell you if that is not the case, I’m afraid I won’t be the one closing my doors.”
She turned and stormed off. Don’t cry, she told herself. Whenever she got this upset the tears threatened. Heat rushed to her cheeks as she walked by at least ten people who had stepped in closer to get an earful.
Geoff couldn’t take his eyes off her as she walked away.
* * *
Angela forced a smile toward a burly man with a dark tan and a shock of white hair. “I guess it’s not the season for forgiveness after all.” She’d never seen him before. Her luck, he probably worked for Geoff.
The white-haired man gave her a little nod and salute as she whisked past him with Marie and Chrissy in her wake. She brushed her fingers across her lips where Geoff’s fingers had pressed against them.
“Good heavens, Angela. What the heck was that all about?” Marie said as they practically jogged to the other end of the block. “Hold up. Chrissy can’t keep up.”
Angela stopped and waited for them.
“I haven’t seen you this spun up since the time Momma Grace took your library card after you fell asleep in class for staying up all night reading in your room with a flashlight.”
“I loved reading. This is very different.” Angela craned her neck, checking to see if she could spot Geoff in the crowd. “He’s the enemy.”
Marie snorted a laugh. “The enemy? Puh-lease. Angela, you are being way overdramatic. I get it. You’re not happy about their store coming to town, but I can assure you there is not a battle plan in their office somewhere. He did not come to the parade to track you down to have words in the middle of this crowd. Which, I might add, is full of customers. Not exactly flattering behavior for either one of you.”
Chrissy reached for Angela’s hand. “Don’t be mad, Aunt Angela.”
Angela relaxed a little. “I’m sorry, Chrissy. I’m messing up our fun night.” She gave a quick nod toward the corner. “Let’s find another perfect spot to watch. I think I see the floats coming.”
Marie and Chrissy followed Angela through the crowd, with Rover leading the way.
“Excuse me,” Angela said to a man wearing a holiday T-shirt that read, HAVE YOURSELF A SANDY LITTLE CHRISTMAS, across the front, probably from Christmas Galore. “Can we scoot in between you so our little one can see?”
The man stepped back and let them ease in front of him. “Thank you so much.”
Marie stepped next to Angela. “You look like you’re going to explode. I didn’t know you had that in you.”
“I didn’t either.” She looked down the block to see if he was still standing down there.