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    A Graphically Designed Holiday
    A Graphically Designed Holiday
    A Graphically Designed Holiday
    Ebook67 pages59 minutes

    A Graphically Designed Holiday

    By Ren Holly

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    About this ebook

    Graphic designer Eli has harbored a secret crush on nerdy math teacher Lincoln since they were at school together, and he’s perfectly content with his unrequited feelings—until Lincoln requests a special handmade holiday gift: a dating profile with all the bells and whistles Eli can include, one that will be sure to find Lincoln a boyfriend for Christmas.

    Eli uses building the profile as an excuse to spend time with Lincoln, but will he be able to watch his friend find love with someone else?

    A story from the Dreamspinner Press 2019 Advent Calendar "Homemade for the Holidays."

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherDreamspinner Press
    Release dateDec 1, 2019
    ISBN9781644057919
    A Graphically Designed Holiday

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      Book preview

      A Graphically Designed Holiday - Ren Holly

      Table of Contents

      Blurb

      Dedication

      Chapter One

      Chapter Two

      Chapter Three

      Chapter Four

      Chapter Five

      Chapter Six

      Chapter Seven

      Epilogue

      About the Author

      By Ren Holly

      Visit Dreamspinner Press

      Copyright

      A Graphically Designed Holiday

      By Ren Holly

      Graphic designer Eli has harbored a secret crush on nerdy math teacher Lincoln since they were at school together, and he’s perfectly content with his unrequited feelings—until Lincoln requests a special handmade holiday gift: a dating profile with all the bells and whistles Eli can include, one that will be sure to find Lincoln a boyfriend for Christmas.

      Eli uses building the profile as an excuse to spend time with Lincoln, but will he be able to watch his friend find love with someone else?

      For my brother, who deserves nothing less than a prince for Christmas.

      Chapter One

      ELI SAT hunched over a wooden desk that was nearly as intricate as it was old, hastily wrapping up a design project so that he could dive into the weekend with no lingering responsibilities. The memory of the desk inheritance was still fresh in Eli’s mind.

      It had been a gift from his father, reluctantly passed down to him, as promised, when he had completed his degree in aerospace engineering. It was expected that Eli would continue the family tradition of launching satellites and developing exploratory spacecrafts, advancing our species and satiating our natural curiosity… as his father called it. And while that was all well and good, Eli found there was plenty to do right here on Earth.

      The ice caps are melting, his father had said as he perused the newest issue of Aerospace Sciences. "We have a garbage dump in the Pacific the size of Texas, and no one cares."

      I care, Father was Eli’s tired response, and he did, which was exactly why he had secretly procured a minor in graphic design. Perhaps the stretch between graphic design and the sorry state of the world was a bit far, but Eli liked to think that he had already begun to make a difference.

      During his time at Princeton, he had teamed up with the environmental students and launched an advertising campaign to reduce single-use plastics, encourage recycling, and spread environmental awareness. According to Eli’s calculations, his efforts, along with those of his colleagues, had spared the ocean thousands of pounds of garbage. It was a good feeling and the spark of his career.

      The Earth is doomed, his father had continued. Our only hope is technological advancement and space exploration.

      Well that theory is quite good for your business, isn’t it? Eli sagged against the doorframe of his father’s office. I, on the other hand, have a more optimistic view of our future. People can change. It’s not too late.

      Why are we even having this argument? His father pinched the bridge of his nose and took a breath. You have your aerospace engineering degree. Now it’s just a matter of choice. Will you work for my company, the university, or…? Eli’s father didn’t bother trying to come up with a third option. In his mind there were only two, and he had stated them explicitly.

      Actually, Eli said with forced brightness. I have already accepted a job offer.

      With whom?

      Eli hesitated, but only for a moment. He couldn’t afford to show any weakness to his father or he would be trampled. The company is called Welsh and Swann.

      A start-up? Eli’s father said the word like it was blasphemy.

      It’s not an engineering firm, said Eli, fighting a grin in spite of himself. His father, so enamored by the cosmos, was likely the only one in the entire country never to have heard of the largest graphic design firm in the United States. Even as the valedictorian of his class and with great connections, it had been hard to get the offer. I’ve decided to pursue graphic design.

      What? his father sputtered. His face ripened to deep plum color. This isn’t funny.

      I’m perfectly serious, Eli replied calmly. I’ll be moving to Washington DC at the end of the month.

      Why did you even bother to major in aerospace engineering? his father spat, still reeling from unspent emotion and shock.

      A lazy grin slipped onto Eli’s face. "It’s family tradition,

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