The conversation with Cole, as it turned out, went smoother than expected. It had Tali in a good mood, and she was almost feeling something like Christmas spirit for the first time in a long time. She found herself humming Christmas music of all things during her shifts.

“Tali, sweetheart,” Mabel said, coming into the kitchen where Tali was gathering up ingredients for soup. “Think I could have you out on the floor for a minute? There’s a woman out there asking for a soy mocha latte with a caramel drizzle and I don’t even how to begin to tell her we don’t have any of that. Maybe you might know how to fix her something to her liking though.”

Tali frowned. “Out-of-towner?” she asked. It had to be. She didn’t think anyone in Newcomb knew soy milk was a thing that existed.

“Guess so,” Mabel said, rolling her eyes. “I never seen her before. She’s at table six.”

Tali walked out and grabbed the coffee pot off the counter in the hopes whoever it was would be less high-maintenance than Mabel made it seem.

At first, the woman was obscured by the booth she sat in, but when Tali got close enough, she let out a scream and dropped her coffee pot to the ground with a clatter—letting out a second cry when a bunch of hot coffee splashed up and soaked through her jeans.

“SHIT! I mean, damn! Mabel, I’m sorry—” she said, turning quickly to see Mabel standing behind the bar, a grin on her face, eyes laughing.

“Don’t you fret, honey,” Mabel said, waving dismissively.

In disbelief, Tali turned back around to see the smirking face of her best friend.

“Cass!” she sputtered. “What the—what?”

“Hey stranger,” Cass grinned.

“What the hell are you doing here?”

“Surprised?”

“Beyond surprised! I can’t believe you’re here!”

“Not just me,” Cass grinned, her black ringlets springing as she wiggled her head, pointing down below the table. “I have a very grumpy friend here too, who apparently hates airplanes with a fiery passion.”

“Sushi?” Tali squeaked, running over and falling to her knees by the table to see that there was, indeed, a fat and unhappy-looking cat in a carrier under the table. She stood up and threw her arms around Cass, practically falling into her lap. “This is amazing. You’re amazing. How long are you here?”

“Just until the day before New Year’s, sadly. Had to hit up the parental units to afford the airfare. They accepted on the condition that I come to the annual New Year’s party. I was hoping not to have to see them until Passover, but for you, I am willing to endure many things. And since we’ve been playing phone tag for like a month, this seemed to be the best way to catch up with you.”

“Has it really been that long?” Tali asked. So much had been happening lately, and time seemed to be flying by.

“Yes. It really has. What’s been going on, babe?”

“Oh, you know. Not much. It’s a tiny town, as you’ve seen and—”

“Liar!” Cass shrieked, eyes going wide. “Oh, hon. I knew you were holding out on me about something, but now I finally see it. Tell me all about him. Right now.”

“About whom?” Tali asked innocently.

“You’re seeing somebody! I knew there was something different about you the moment I saw you, and now I totally know what it is. Four years I watch you steadfastly feel nothing, for no one. And then you find someone, and you don’t tell me? I could kill you. I still might. But first, tell me everything!”

Tali grinned sheepishly and slid into the booth beside her.

Telling her everything was close to impossible, but it had been way too long, and Cass was the best listener in the entire world. She confessed as much as she could about Cole. His secrecy. The town’s opinion of him. The murder. She left out all the werebear details, but other than that, was as honest as she could be. When she pulled out her phone and showed Cass a picture of him—a gorgeous one that revealed his abs and perfect Adonis belt, and his dark bedroom eyes—her friend literally slumped right over in her seat muttering, “Holy fuckballs.”

She even went into, briefly, the drama related to him and Hudson.

“Wait? So Hudson’s coming to Christmas? Don’t we hate Hudson?”

“No,” Tali sighed. “No. We don’t. I mean, I don’t. And I hope you won’t. But uh, Cole and Hudson kinda hate each other, for reasons I don’t fully understand, and it’s going to be the most awkward thing on planet Earth and you literally have no idea how glad I am that you, my beautifully and socially-adept friend, are here to help mitigate the total disaster it was shaping up to be.”

Cass laughed. “Wow. It sounds like there is a whole lot more to this story and I want to know it all. You are not working tonight, or tomorrow. My suitcase is 30 percent wine, and 30 percent chic yet practical winter clothes for you. Take off that apron and let’s go back to your place. Now.”

Tali grinned, got to her feet, and shook her head. “You are insane. And the actual best.”

“I know,” Cass said. “Now get moving. Sushi’s hate-o-meter is definitely about to break. Let’s get him out of there. And then hide in another room for a while.”