Page 27 of Holiday Hook Up

Chapter 6

“One large pie, extra sausage and mushroom for our favorite customer.” Ralph slid the hot-out-of-the-oven pizza in front of Adam and patted his back. “Or should I say elf?”

Adam grinned and reached for the fountain Coke that had been dropped off by his waitress earlier. His green and yellow costume had gotten more than a few chuckles and wisecracks when he stepped into the pizzeria. “Adam the Elf needs to fuel up for a big night.” He tipped up his pointy felt green hat and pulled back his first slice, rolling some of the gooey mozzarella cheese off the side with his finger.

Oh, yeah. This was so going to hit the spot.

He’d stopped into Ralph’s Pizzeria for dinner before meeting Rachel at her flower shop. It’d been four days since their evening ice skating. For tonight’s Holiday Hook Up, they would be spending a few hours giving out Christmas gifts to kids in need at Sparkling Vines winery.

Why the organizers had chosen the local winery to hold the event, he wasn’t quite sure. He loved dressing up as an elf, though. So what if he looked goofy in his green tunic with wide yellow sleeves? This grown man could put on green tights for a good cause. He liked that one of his hookup dates involved helping little tykes have the best Christmas they could possibly have.

He’d gotten totally into his costume. Earlier today, Caitlin had helped him pick out everything he needed to transform into Adam the Elf. Her triplets had all giggled when he entered the nursery. At least it sounded like giggles . . . or maybe babbles . . . they weren’t even one yet.

He glanced out the window in the direction of Rachel’s flower shop. So far, his Holiday Hook Up had been rather uneventful, and truth be told, that was fine by him. Before their first date, he wasn’t sure how Rachel would act toward him after months of keeping her distance.

Sure, they’d shared some laughs on the ice rink, mostly over his bad skating, but it wasn’t like old times.

The spark wasn’t there. He was pretty sure Rachel’s lack of communication signaled she hadn’t felt it either. He’d left her a message earlier about picking her up for tonight but hadn’t heard a peep.

He’d been relieved when an excuse to make it an early evening had fallen out of the sky—or onto the ice. Not that he wanted Bethany to get hurt, but her being trampled on by Evandidgive him a rather convenient out to bail on having dinner with Rachel.

Ralph came over and placed a white bowl on the table containing some of his specialty garlic sauce. “I almost forgot how much you love this.”

“Dude, you don’t even know.” Adam dunked his pizza into the yellow sauce and took an enormous bite. One taste was all it took for his eyes to roll back. “Freakin’ heaven.”

“We’re always happy to see you.” Ralph gave him a playful slap on the back. “Glad your usual spot was available.”

Adam nodded and watched the pizza owner disappear into the kitchen. This had been his table since he was fourteen. He’d come here on the weekends and would sit for hours, watching the Buttermilk Falls world go by.

Not that there was much to see, other than the customers going in and out of the Majestic Theater, the Belle Bridal Boutique owned by Will’s mom, and the Christmas Corner.

It always beat going home and sitting on his bed listening to his parents fight on the other side of the wall. Not only had their dad been cheating on their mother when he was stationed overseas, but when he came back to Buttermilk Falls, he had a hard time getting steady work. After trying to stay together for many years for his and his brother’s sake, they both threw in the towel and separated shortly after Adam’s fourteenth birthday. He and Tom continued to live in the house they grew up in with their mother.

His mom didn’t have any money back then, and his small allowance from his pop really couldn’t pay for more than a pizza slice and some water. For whatever reason, Ralph had always given him a full pie, which he’d sit quietly and devour. Sometimes he’d bring a book with him, but most times, he’d just sit and stare out the window.

During this time, Ralph had put him to work as a busboy, giving him a few bucks under the table. When Adam offered to pay for his large pizza each time with his tips, the pizza owner would smile and pat him on the back without a word.

When Adam turned sixteen, Ralph gave him a weekend job making pizzas. He quickly learned that there was a special skill to tossing the dough. One he didn’t have. More often than not, his hand-tossed pizzas ended up on the floor and then the trash.

So, the summer of his senior year, he traded in pizza dough for a tool belt and went to work part-time for his dad who, after the divorce, began to turn his own life around and started a construction business.

In hindsight, that decision had been a good one. In addition to learning a trade skill, working side by side with his father helped mend their broken relationship. He didn’t like how his dad had treated his mother, but he’d learned that summer that people weren’t perfect.

Still, his parents’ failed marriage made him question whether first love lasts. Maybe if he hadn’t been so paranoid that it wouldn’t work out with Rachel they’d still be together.

But if the spark died out, would he have gone down the same wandering road that his dad did?

He grabbed another slice and took a bite. It didn’t matter now. It’d taken some time to get over her, but Rachel’s breaking up with him had been for the best, and he had a sneaking suspicion that after their lackluster date she knew that, too. Probably the reason she hadn’t called him back.

Glancing out the window at the Christmas Corner, he noticed Bethany’s Nissan was parked outside, which hopefully meant her knee was as good as new.

He smiled, remembering the first day he’d laid eyes on his neighbor. He’d gone to Ralph’s a couple days after his fourteenth birthday. His mom had given him some extra money to buy his dad a Christmas present, and since he wasn’t speaking to his pop, he decided to stop in for a slice of pizza.

He’d never ordered one by himself before and was torn between getting a sausage slice or one with mushrooms. He’d splurged with the money and had gotten them both and was contemplating which one to eat first when Bethany stopped in front of his table.

She’d looked down at his pizza slices but turned away before he could say hello. Not that he would have said hi or anything. He still found girls pretty annoying and downright confusing.

After that day, he’d catch a glimpse of Bethany a few times across the street, handing out colorful red and green flyers. He overheard Ralph talking to a customer one evening that the Wilsons were new to town and they were opening a Christmas store.

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