A Happy Holidate ~ A Short Fiction Romance
A Happy Holidate
Snow flurries danced onto the windshield of Sarah’s SUV as she drove through town. “It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas,” she sang with the crooner on the radio, while from the back seat her white Siberian Husky howled along. Having just finished her shift at work, Sarah decided to grab a coffee and do a little holiday shopping at the local dog-friendly bookstore café. Once parked, she opened the rear door and unbuckled her dog from its safety harness. She was about to clip on the leash when her foot slipped on the snowy curb and, with arms and leash flailing, she began to fall. Her husky seized that moment to bolt out of the vehicle.
“Winter!” Sarah cried.
She was mid-fall when a strong arm wrapped around her waist. Glancing up, Sarah’s breath caught in her throat at the mesmerizing sky-blue eyes gazing down at her.
“Are you okay?” asked her handsome rescuer, concern filling his voice.
“My dog—”
“I believe this beauty is yours?” Winter was tucked safely under the man’s other arm happily licking snowflakes off his clean-shaven face.
“Winter.” Sarah sighed from relief. “Thank you so much for catching her.”
He helped Sarah to her feet. “And you,” he added with a glint in his eyes.
A blush warmed up her cheeks. “And me.”
He set Winter down after Sarah clipped on the leash. “I adopted her a few months ago. She has a lot of energy, but she’s a sweetheart. Do you like dogs?”
“I do. I have two Shepherd mixes. I’m Liam Newton, by the way.”
“Sarah Sullivan.”
“Are you heading inside?” he motioned with his thumb.
Upon her nod, he held open the door for her and Winter. “How fortunate for me,” he drawled, causing Sarah’s heart to thump wildly.
“My sister is Sue, the owner,” he mentioned. “Do you come here often?”
“So much so, I’m starting to worry about my high intake of caffeine. Plus, it's dog friendly!”
“I’m a total java junkie, too,” he confessed with a chuckle. “Helps with deadlines.”
“Deadlines?”
“I was a military journalist and recently moved back to town. I’m the new editor of Around Town.”
“I love that magazine.” Sarah smiled. “A military journalist, that’s impressive.”
Liam slipped off his coat and helped Sarah off with hers. Grinning, he asked, “Does Winter have a favorite drink?”
Winter tipped her head at hearing her name, her crystal blue eyes studying Liam.
“The dogalatte, of course.”
Liam whispered, “Isn’t that just a cup of whipped cream?”
Sarah raised a finger to her lips. “Shhhh. Don’t tell her that.”
Sue came out of the kitchen and Liam greeted her with a bear hug. She raised a curious eyebrow as she poured two mugs of steaming coffee. “I didn’t realize you knew each other.”
“We just met.” Liam winked at Sarah, sending her pulse racing.
“He’s my hero.” Sarah gave Liam a coy smile to which she thought she saw a flash of pink tint his cheeks. “He saved me from a fall and caught Winter, who apparently decided to channel her inner snow dog and race off as if she was in The Iditarod.”
Sue smiled and patted her brother’s hand. “Glad
you were there.”
“Me, too,” he said, turning to Sarah, noticing her scrubs with the embroidered animal hospital logo. “I know that vet hospital. What do you do there?”
“I’m a veterinary technologist.”
“Now who’s impressive?”
Sue smiled as she peered over the counter at Winter. "I'll go get you your special treat, sweetie."
At the mention of "treat," Winter's tail began wagging.
“Liam!” exclaimed a woman who entered
the store and rushed over to him pulling him into an embrace.
Sipping her coffee, Sarah peered over at them.
“Woooo.” Winter asserted her presence.
Sarah glanced over at Liam and the woman and sighed. “Come on, girl.” Sarah and Winter headed over to the bookstore area where Sarah absently stared at the shelves. Of course Liam would have a girlfriend. “Figures,” she muttered out loud.
“What figures?”
At the sound of his deep voice, Sarah’s heart skipped a beat.
“You forgot Winter’s treat.” He bent down and offered the cup of cream to the Husky, who eagerly lapped it up. Liam glanced at Sarah. “I was going to introduce you to my sister-in-law, but you disappeared.”
Feeling silly at her presumption, a blush stained her cheeks. "Sister-in-law?"
Liam continued, “I hadn’t seen her since I was discharged. She and my brother are hosting a holiday party this weekend. Sarah, I want to ask you, if you weren’t seeing anyone, would you be my plus one?”
“I’m not seeing anyone,” Sarah quickly replied.
Liam stood up and looked warmly into Sarah’s eyes. “Is that a yes?”
“A definite yes, on one condition.”
“What would that be?”
“That Winter can come, too.”
Liam smiled and gave a pat to Winter’s silky fur, who in turn gave his cheek a quick lick. “Of course. My Max and Mia would love to meet her.”
"Wonderful," exclaimed Sarah, "Then it's a holi-date!"
As Christmas music played over the store's sound system, Sarah and Liam spent the next few hours relaxing on the store’s sofa in front of the crackling fire with Winter snuggled between them. Sipping coffee, they talked about everything from their careers and mutual love of dogs to favorite pastimes.
~ The End ~
Author's Note:
Story, Blog Articles & FiveSibes Photos are
Love love this story, beautifully written and brought tears to my eyes
ReplyDeleteLove this story. Left me wanting to hear about the party. Really excellent!
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing this cute holiday story! :) Hope you are enjoying your holiday season! :)
ReplyDeleteThanks for reminding me how much I love short stories! Greatly enjoyed it.
ReplyDeleteWhat a fabulous read! I wanted to read more about the party and how they get to happily ever after. Thank you for this fun and lovely holiday treat. I often don't take time to read such fun fiction. Thank for this gift! I'm sharing it with all my dog lovers as new year's gift!
ReplyDeleteWhat a beautiful holiday romance - I love it!! You're such a great writer Dorothy, I always enjoy your work. Happy New Year!
ReplyDeleteGreat job. Dogs bring us together.
ReplyDelete