Beth’s Christmas Wish by Kimberly Wolkens

Christmas used to be Annie’s favorite holiday. This year she dreaded it. She tried to muster up even a tiny bit of enthusiasm, but it just wasn’t the same. Nothing had been the same since her best friend died last spring in a car accident.

Ambleside by Tim Fellows

The old man leaned on the wall and looked at the house. It was, he had to admit, not the prettiest house.

Shared Bodily Warmth by Thomas Tyrrell

Few things are bleaker than Dartmoor when the winter nights draw in like wolves around a campfire.

Paradise Lost by Rae Gee

The sixties were the best time to be alive. The sun never seemed to set. The music flowed like water and love fluttered through the air like butterflies.

Completion Date by Neil Fulwood

Nigel Hadley drove out to Samara House to meet the clients. They were late, so he sat in his car and listened to Radio 2 and thought about his life.