Winter Star

By Kassandra Lea

Feeling disowned by her family, Belle isn't exactly feeling chipper for the holidays. Her girlfriend Julie has a plan in mind, however, and hopes it'll be the right surprise to bring a smile back to Belle's face. Who wouldn't love a wintery get-away at their favorite childhood place: their family farm?

But what should be a time for reminiscing and digging up holiday cheer is well, not exactly what they get. Not when Julie's friend Hector, her partner in surprise-making crime, shows up. Belle, already in a sensitive place, begins to question their relationship.

Will Julie's attempt to brighten holidays succeed or fizzle?

• Language: English
• Publisher: JMS Books LLC
• Release date: Dec 13, 2019
• ISBN: 9781646561728

Kassandra Lea

Kassandra Lea’s stories have appeared in a number of anthologies. She lives in southern Wisconsin. For more information, visit facebook.com/leakassie.

Book preview

Winter Star

By Kassandra Lea

Published by JMS Books LLC at Smashwords

Visit jms-books.com for more information.

Copyright 2019 Kassandra Lea

ISBN 9781646561728

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Cover Design: Written Ink Designs | written-ink.com

Image(s) used under a Standard Royalty-Free License.

All rights reserved.

WARNING: This book is not transferable. It is for your own personal use. If it is sold, shared, or given away, it is an infringement of the copyright of this work and violators will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.

No portion of this book may be transmitted or reproduced in any form, or by any means, without permission in writing from the publisher, with the exception of brief excerpts used for the purposes of review.

This book is for ADULT AUDIENCES ONLY. It may contain sexually explicit scenes and graphic language which might be considered offensive by some readers. Please store your files where they cannot be accessed by minors.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are solely the product of the author’s imagination and/or are used fictitiously, though reference may be made to actual historical events or existing locations. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

Published in the United States of America.

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Winter Star

By Kassandra Lea

Chapter 1

In the little café attached to the bookstore, Julie McGee sat with her hands wrapped around a mug of a warm, chocolatey beverage. This was by far one of her favorite places on Earth, from the heady aroma of brewing coffee to the tippy-tap of laptop keys from a nearby table. Of course, there were rows upon rows of shelves making up an impressive sea of books and magazines, any of which might catch her eye as she walked by.

Shoppers milled around checking out the merchandise, most likely picking out gifts for loved ones. Maybe after she finished with her business Julie would give the shelves a decent browsing, see if anything screamed ‘buy me.’

She checked her watch.

Ten minutes past their agreed upon meeting time.

Julie fished her cell phone out of her pocket to see if she might have missed a message, but the screen was blank. Not a single notification.

Sorry, apologized the man she’d been waiting for, the only man she’d ever allow to keep her waiting. Hector Leeds plopped into the chair across from her, tufts of red hair curling out from underneath his knit hat. The ginger tendrils almost matched the rosy hue of his freckled cheeks, his light green eyes sparkling. Like everyone else in the city, he was dressed in warm clothes, but still lacked the telltale signs of someone fighting against the bitter winds of winter, no coat or scarf in sight. The brunt of winter had yet to arrive after all. I tried to get away earlier; my boss had other ideas.

Better late than never, Julie spoke the old adage. From the pocket of her hoodie she withdrew a package of chocolate-covered crackers that Hector loved. She slipped them across the table in his direction.

Hector arched an eyebrow. Is this a bribe or…? What’s the reason for this?

Reason? Julie shrugged. Since when do friends require a reason to hang out with each other?

I appreciate the offer, Hector said. He picked up the treat, the wrapper crinkling under his touch. Still, you said there was something you wanted to discuss, so what’s up?

To stall, Julie sipped her beverage. She’d known Hector since grade school, lucky enough to give him the label of best friend from the day she’d gotten his comic back from a bully. They’d weathered many milestones, and he had been the first one she had come out to on her fifteenth birthday. If she ever found herself wishing for male companionship, which was highly unlikely, Hector topped the list. In other words, if she could trust anyone with a dilemma, it was the man staring at her now.

Well, you know how Belle and I wound up crashing at your place for Thanksgiving?

Kind of hard to forget. It was just the other day, after all, and you, he said, pointing at Julie, made one of your divine cakes.

Julie laughed lightly. Box cake, Hector, with a few tweaks, that’s all it was, but thanks.

"I think our impromptu, thrown together meal was c’est magnifique. Hector kissed the fingertips of one hand. Besides, it was an excellent excuse to take a break from my start-up."

He had a point: the crazy whirlwind of events