The Puzzle Box

By CC Bridges

Elementary school art teacher Cole Peters is expecting a lonely Christmas this year while his longtime boyfriend, James Carducci, is on deployment with the Army. However, a box from James contains puzzles that lead Cole on a scavenger hunt through the greatest moments of their relationship. Together with his best friend Liz, Cole works his way through each clue.

The final puzzle could lead Cole to a gift beyond his wildest expectations

• Language: English
• Publisher: CC Bridges
• Release date: Dec 17, 2019
• ISBN: 9781393481195

CC Bridges

CC Bridges spent her childhood visiting other worlds in books, comics, and the starship Enterprise. It’s no surprise that she ended up a librarian, being surrounded by the books she loves so much. She writes about amazing worlds with honorable characters. Her hobbies include paying money to get locked in a room for an hour so she can solve puzzles to escape, along with the aforementioned reading. She has an MFA from Southern New Hampshire University.

Book preview

The Puzzle Box

CC Bridges

Published by CC Bridges, 2019.

This is a work of fiction. Similarities to real people, places, or events are entirely coincidental.

THE PUZZLE BOX

First edition. December 17, 2019.

Copyright © 2019 CC Bridges.

ISBN: 978-1393481195

Written by CC Bridges.

Also by CC Bridges

Heaven Corp

Angel 1089

Exodus

Angels Rising

Standalone

A Corgi Named Kilowatt

Wolf Knight

A Christmas Yarn

The Puzzle Box

Lost and Found

The Superhero Division

Better Latte Than Never

The Perfect Blend for Christmas (Coming Soon)

Watch for more at CC Bridges’s site.

Table of Contents

Title Page

Copyright Page

Also By CC Bridges

The Puzzle Box

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Also By CC Bridges

About the Author

Jingle Bells blared out from Cole’s phone. Not bothering to leave his pillow, he grabbed the phone from his end table and tossed it across the room. Liz must have changed his ring tone again. Today was Saturday, damn it; he should be able to sleep in.

That was when the doorbell rang.

Right. Saturday. He was supposed to go shopping with Liz.

Fuck.

Cole reached for a pair of jeans, not bothering with the sniff test. Saturdays were his days to slack off. He’d stayed up way too late last night sketching out the idea for the sculpture he wanted to work on later, forgetting he said yes at work yesterday when Liz asked him to go Christmas shopping.

She was just going to have to deal with an unshowered and half-awake Cole. He opened the door and wrinkled his nose at the sight of her. She looked far too perky for zero fuck thirty in the morning, dressed in a pair of track pants and sneakers, which she somehow made look fashionable. Liz pushed a red sparkly to-go cup in his hand and came inside.

Bless you. He took a sip and shook his head. Mocha?

Don’t worry. It’s still got enough caffeine in it to take out an elephant. She took a sip from her own cup, decorated with silver and gold ornaments. I know how much you hate mint chocolate, so I spared you the candy cane latte.

Which must be what was in her cup. Cole made a gagging noise. I don’t know how you can drink that.

Helps keep me in the holiday spirit.

Bah humbug, he muttered. Give me five minutes. I don’t even know where my hairbrush is.

He left her in the living room while he went to ransack his bathroom counter. Cole had a system, and it worked during the week when he had to be up early to get to Wilson Elementary School on time. Right now he couldn’t even find his electric razor.

That had somehow ended up on the floor—he probably knocked it over yesterday and didn’t bother to pick it up. Cole ran