Crushes and Confections (Holiday Hollow)

1. Claire

Whoever said omegas could have whatever they wanted had clearly never secretly been in love with their best friend.

I very clearly wanted him, a fact he was of course oblivious to, and that particular dream of mine was never going to come true. Even if I’d been able to visualize it a little more now that we were living together. I’d made peace with it, truly, but sometimes those feelings snuck up on me.

Which is probably why I was entertaining his musings as we covertly stared at the mysterious alpha who had started coming into my shop like clockwork a little over a month ago. At first, I had thought he was a tourist on an extended trip, but now I was beginning to think he must have been a new local.

“There’s no way a man like that is untied,” Riley said, snagging a cookie off the tray I was filling. “If he so much as breathed a word to me I’d have him packed up in a heartbeat. I’d show him my gold hot pants and then poof, he’d be done for.”

“I honestly don’t know how he’s able to resist,” I said with a smirk, knowing exactly how man-crazy my bestie was.

“Right?” Riley huffed. “I mean it’s honorable that he’s all focused on work shit, but a beta has needs. He could throw your boy a bone.”

He batted his thick lashes at me and I had to once again sigh.

Having just come from his job managing Cedarwick Orchard, Riley was dressed in jeans and a flannel. A simple outfit, right? No big deal.

Wrong, because this was Riley and he didn’t do anything in halves. His jeans were all but painted on and the man’s shirt was unbuttoned just a few too many times for it not to be a statement, letting his necklace peek through.

His sun bronzed skin was practically glowing because he never let skincare slide. The hint of muscles hiding under every piece of clothing he wore teased me perpetually. Riley was nothing less than gorgeous. But it was his confidence and genuine kindness that really did me in.

At first glance, he was often mistaken for an alpha, the years of working the orchard making him rather muscular. And more than once when he’d opened that sassy mouth of his he’d been mistaken as an omega, but ultimately he was just Riley.

My wonderfully extra Riley who I’d been best friends with since grade school. The one I thought I’d always end up with. Even when he presented as a beta and I an omega, I thought for sure we’d wind up in the same pack. Some real life fairy tale shit.

That was until he had found his love for boys our junior year of high school, a fact he’d been rather shy to share at first, which was a shocker. But honestly, I didn’t care who or what he liked. I just wanted him happy. I loved him with my whole damn heart.

“You okay there babe?” he asked, nudging my shoulder. “You’re staring at that tray like it has the answers to the universe.”

“I must be more tired than I thought,” I said, giving him a pointed look. “Someone roped me into a Julia Roberts marathon again.”

“The woman is a national treasure, Claire Bear. She deserves for us to pay our respects.”

He gave me a smirk but I could tell he was just as tired under the surface, though he hid it well.

The orchard had been undergoing some pretty extensive upgrades this past year, part of what they were now working on was the external buildings, including the small lodge Riley was given once he became a managing partner.

It was fun having him at my cottage and having his scent of spring rain filtering through my space. It settled an ache in my chest I’d long since thought wouldn’t go away, the one I scarcely admitted to myself, which is why I made my next offer.

“I could introduce you, Ri.”

“Introduce me to Julia Roberts?” he asked in disbelief.

“I’m not talking about Julia Roberts. I’m talking about the alpha you’re drooling over. I don’t know much about him, but I do know his name. Perks of being the owner,” I said with a wink, before turning and letting my curls bounce over my shoulder as I stepped out from behind the display case.

Claire’s Coffee Confections was the go to coffee shop and bakery in town, and thanks to Autumn, who owned the orchard Riley was a partner at, we were actually gaining some traction with distributing some of our goods all over the state.

Being twenty eight, owning my own place, and having the success that I had all while being an omega was something to be proud of.

I attributed it all to Holiday Hollow, the magical small town where we lived in North Carolina that celebrated every minor and major holiday as its own unique event. It was just the right amount of cheesy and I loved Holiday Hollow even more for it. There was never a dull moment.

Here everyone looked out for each other. The city wasn’t easy on omegas, there was still more favor for alphas and betas. In Holiday Hollow it was far easier to feel like an equal. I never had to worry about being forced into a path I didn’t want.

Ultimately everything in my life was my choice, future pack or not, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.

The alpha looked up at my approach, a wavy piece of chestnut hair falling over his glasses as his fingers paused on his laptop.

“Everything okay, Claire?” he asked seriously, his warm and weathered voice washing over me.

“Yeah,” I said, the weight of his attention on me making me feel a little heady. “I just wanted to check and see if you needed anything and introduce you to a friend of mine, actually.”

His shoulders relaxed at my words and a lopsided grin stretched against his face.

“I’m good, Claire,” he said, closing his laptop and putting it in his bag. “I’d be better if you took a seat and joined me for a drink. Introduce me to your friend and we can chat if you have a few minutes?”

“She’d love to,” Riley called out from behind me.

A laugh spilled out of me and I shook my head at the gorgeous alpha. “That’s a yes. Let me grab him and the drinks before he explodes.”

I walked back behind the counter, making sure my crew had everything handled before Riley grabbed my hand and all but dragged us to that table.

He put his drink on the table, not letting go of my hand as he looked at me expectantly.

“Vance, this is my wonderful best friend Riley. Riley, Vance.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Riley,” Vance said, taking his hand in his and holding it for a second with a knowing look, his nostrils flaring as he looked between us. “Here, take a seat and we can actually get to know one another more than just our names. I’m still pretty rusty when it comes to socialization skills sometimes.”

He went around and pulled the two chairs on the other side of the table out for us expectantly. Riley and I blinked at each other for a second in disbelief before we both quickly took the offered chairs.

The gesture was making me feel the same way his warm voice had when he said my name and it took me a second to recover.

“Well, luckily for us, I’m excellent at holding a conversation,” Riley flirted. “Plus Claire here is the best person in the world and we’ve lived in Holiday Hollow our whole lives. If the welcoming committee hasn’t gotten their hands on you…well, I’m sorry Vance, but you’re doomed.”

Vance’s eyes widened in a somewhat cautious alarm. “What do you mean I’m doomed?”

“This is Holiday Hollow,” I said. “Correct me if I’m wrong, but you’ve been here longer than a normal tourist so I’m assuming you’re now a new resident. If the welcome committee hasn’t given you the full red carpet well, there’s really only two options left.

“One, you or someone in the community clues them in. They’ll fuss after you for months and you’ll probably be roped into more things than you dared dream of. We do love our hospitality here,” Riley said, picking up the conversation from me seamlessly. “Or option two, you let us be your welcoming committee and you get a more laid back experience.”

“Don’t forget the perks of extra coffee and treats,” I said seriously.

Vance’s eyes darted back and forth between Riley and me, that smile not slipping off his face. “Well, I think I know exactly which option I want to take.”

There was underlying heat in his words, and I shifted in my chair as Riley let out a little curse under his breath, his confidence slipping for a moment before he took a deep breath and settled.

“Smart man,” Riley said. It was almost comical to see Riley thrown off his game. Though anyone who didn’t know him as well as I did would hardly notice.

“How are you liking the small-town life?” I asked to give Riley a moment to recover.

“Well, it just got a little better,” Vance said. I swear the man was flirting with us right back and that had me ready to hide. Having Riley be flirty was one thing, but I wasn’t quite used to someone else flirting with me. As if he sensed me feeling uncertain he continued on. “It’s definitely an adjustment. Paris was full of life and people, but it lacked the heart Holiday Hollow has. Here it’s just as busy, just in a different way.”

“And you haven’t truly experienced enough events in this crazy town to have a full snapshot,” Riley laughed.

“Bigger than that Christmas event?” Vance asked, clearly surprised.

Riley’s laughter had both Vance and me zeroing in on him for a moment. The way he lit up with joy was almost hypnotic. I swallowed hard and took a drink of my coffee to keep from getting derailed.

“Christmas is basically a give me, but Valentine’s Day is huge here too. It’s different and over the top every damn year,” Riley explained. “The whole town will look like cupid exploded on it.”

When Vance smiled at that a small dimple showed through on his left cheek and if I wasn’t taken before, I was now. I could lick chocolate from that dimple and die a happy omega.

Oh, chocolate. With Valentine’s Day coming I could make a cherry chocolate pastry. No one can resist a heart shaped treat in Holiday Hollow.

“Claire!” Riley’s exasperation shook me from my thoughts. “You thought of a new recipe didn’t you?” The accusation had a blush glowing on my cheeks.

“Maybe,” I hedged playfully as I plucked my phone from my apron and made some quick notes.

“I’m the same way with my work,” I heard Vance say. “So, you said Valentine’s Day changes every year. What is this year?”

“Oh, they don’t just put out a flyer or announcement in Holiday Hollow,” Riley corrected him with a smirk. “They make a grand spectacle out of it.”

“Tell me there’s no grown men dressed as cherubs,” Vance pleaded.

“Don’t say that too loud,” I teased. “If the wrong person overhears you it’s a guaranteed nightmare come to life.”

“Noted,” Vance said, shaking his head. “I swear this whole town is an experience. I’m going to have to make notes so I can remember all of this very important information.”

“Not giving ideas to the planning committee definitely makes the top of the list,” I agreed.

“One year Claire and I were walking from the diner down to the bookstore. I don’t even remember what we were getting but we were jokingly, lovingly, talking about festivals.” Riley paused so his sarcasm really landed. “We were making up ridiculous ideas for the next celebrated holiday. We joked that the town committee would dress up as trees on Arbor Day and stand around town like some sort of twisted horror movie.”

“Tell me they didn’t,” Vance gasped, leaning forward. He was eating up every bit of Riley’s exuberant storytelling.

“They did,” I confirmed. “On every street were a few trees and if you approached they gave a very well rehearsed speech on the environment and random tree facts.”

“Any other town and I’d think you were exaggerating,” Vance laughed. “But here… I believe every word. I have so much to learn about this town. Admittedly, I am a bit of a recluse and was unsure about it at first, but I’ve been realizing that it has a lot more to offer than I originally thought.”

“It’s crazy, but it’s home,” I said. “If you ever need us to translate small-town speak, you know where to find us.”

“With the best coffee I’ve had,” he hummed as he took a long pull of his. I loved that he always asked me to make him whatever I thought would be delicious, as long as it had a shot of espresso in it. The first time felt intimidating, but after that it became a game of sorts. And he’d loved everything I’d come up with. I’d started looking forward to our little interactions.

“You’re too kind,” I said formally, bowing regally which had that dimple flaring again.

Vance ran his hand through his wavy chestnut hair, his smile staying firmly in place as he looked at us both, a spark in his blue eyes.

“I’d love to take you two on a date,” Vance said. “Would you join me for dinner sometime?”

My entire world froze as the words hit me.

All my life I’d been waiting on an alpha who would be interested in both Riley and me. Part of me couldn’t let go of the pack pipedream we’d had as kids and here was a chance at that, all tied up on a silver platter with freckles and the cutest glasses I’d ever seen on an alpha.

I honestly didn’t know what to do but from Riley’s excited look my way, I knew he wanted to go. They seemed to mesh well together and the flirting between them was constant.

Nervously I pulled out my chapstick and put it on before finally forcing the words out.

“I, uh, actually am super busy prepping for Valentine’s Day… I don’t know. You two should definitely go though,” I deflected quickly.

Riley’s eyebrows were practically in his hairline as he looked at me. I could read the expression on his face easily. It was his way of asking if I was sure. I nodded once and he answered Vance, who was looking a bit confused by our strange hesitation and silent conversation.

“I’d love to,” Riley gushed. “When did you have in mind?”

He leaned forward, looking up through his thick lashes, and suddenly Vance’s attention was on him again. My stomach was in knots and I hated the idea of passing up this chance, but I couldn’t mess this up for my best friend.

Even if all I wanted to do was suggest we eat dinner off of each other and then go snuggle back in my cottage together.

Okay, well maybe more than snuggling…

“Claire?” Jessie, one of my baristas called out to me. I practically flew out of my chair with a hasty goodbye before heading back there.

“What can I help with?” She raised her eyebrows at my high pitched voice.

“Uh, the espresso machine is acting up again, can you take a look?” she asked. “You okay?”

“Yeah, yeah, I’m great,” I assured with a fake smile, going right for the espresso machine. The entire time I worked, I refused to look back at the two men I wanted nothing more than to go on a date with.

After thirty minutes of steam burns and a few love taps to the side of the machine, I had it working again. With a deep breath I risked a look back at the table, but both men were gone.

The disappointment was stronger than I expected. But my best friend deserved this. He was a hard worker and made everyone around him better.

They’d be good together.

Yet I couldn’t shake how badly I wanted to be a part of that equation.