Tidings of Joy

by Shanna Hatfield

  By the time he finished that, it was dark and cold outside, but he still had four strands of lights left. He took them to the backyard and draped one strand over the top of Pete’s enclosure then trailed the rest on the hooks attached to the back porch.

  He plugged in the cords, flipped on the power strips and stood back as lights illuminated the exterior of the house.

  A squeal from inside drew his attention to the window. Joy tapped on the glass and smiled at him. He waved and hurried up the porch steps. Bacon nearly tripped him when he opened the door, so he stooped down and picked up the puppy before making his way into the family room.

  Joy stood at the window, balancing on her crutches as she kept her injured leg tilted back so it didn’t touch the floor. She glanced over her shoulder at him.

  The fragrance of her, of shampoo and that just-out-of-the-shower fresh scent, filled the air. Her damp hair glistened in the light as he moved across the room. “I forgot about the lights until I was halfway home. I hope you don’t mind I dug them out of the garage.”

  “Are you kidding, Drew? This is incredible. I really didn’t expect you to hang them for me, but thank you for doing this. When my stupid knee is healed, I’m really going to have to think of something awesome to do for you in return.”

  He shook his head and set Bacon on the floor. “That’s what friends are for, right?”

  At her nod, he pointed toward the front of the house. “Did you look out front?”

  “You mean there’s more?” she asked, wide eyes filled with excitement and anticipation.

  “Here,” he said, grabbing the throw blanket off the couch. He draped it over her head and around her shoulders then picked her up. Her crutches fell to the floor and Bacon busied himself sniffing every inch of them.

  Drew carried Joy out the front door and into the yard so she could see the lights.

  “Oh, it’s spectacular, Drew! Thank you so much!” She hugged him and kissed his cheek.

  Since he wanted so much more than that, he ignored the voice in his head urging him to kiss her like there was no tomorrow.

  “You’re welcome, Joy.” He let her look another minute before he carried her back inside to the family room. He set her down and helped her balance on one foot as he handed the crutches to her.

  “If you want any of the other decorations brought in and set out, let me know.”

  “No, Drew. You’ve done far too much already. I’m sure you’re tired and cold and ready for a rest.”

  She smiled at him with something glimmering in her eyes that almost made him beg to stay. But he didn’t.

  Instead he took a step away from her, from the nearly irresistible temptation she presented. “If you change your mind, I’m happy to help.”

  “I know, Drew. You’ve been so good to me and I’m so grateful for your friendship. It means the world to me.”

  Yep, she was giving him the friendship speech so it was definitely time to leave.

  “Okay. Well, I’ll see you later. Call if you need anything.”

  “Good night, Drew.”

  “Bye, Joy.”

  Drew hustled back out to the Jeep and went home to sulk. Two hours later, Drake gave up trying to tease him into a better mood.

  For the first time since Joy injured herself, Drew didn’t make it a point of talking to her when he delivered her mail the next day. He just dropped it in the box and went on his way.

  When he checked his messages on his lunch break, he found two texts from her. The first told him to have a great day. The second thanked him, again, for putting up the lights and invited him to come in when he left her mail for a cup of hot chocolate.

  Although he would have welcomed the hot drink, he couldn’t bear the thought of being around Joy and not kissing her, touching her, confessing how much he loved her.

  So he stayed away.

  Saturday, when he left the mail, she must have been watching for him because the front door opened before he made it halfway down the walk. Bacon ran out, barking and so excited to see him that his whole backend wagged.

  Drew hunkered down and gave the puppy several scratches behind his ears and rubbed him under his chin. Bacon tried to climb up in his lap, so Drew picked him up and continued petting him as he walked up the porch steps.

  “Would you like to come in for a break? I made some hot chocolate or, if you have a minute, I could make coffee.” Joy offered him a bright smile.

  That smile, her glorious smile, made his heart flop around in his chest. It hadn’t even been forty-eight hours since he’d seen it and he’d missed it, missed her, so badly his chest ached.

  “I really can’t today, Joy, but thank you. Rhett needs some help this afternoon, so I’m trying to hurry so I can finish up before it gets too late.”

  “Oh, sure. No problem,” Joy said, although she sounded disappointed.

  Drew set down Bacon and then handed her mail to her. “Did Pete like the lights on his house?”

  “He did. And he loves those shavings you put back there for him to play in. He and Bacon spent an hour yesterday rolling around in them.”

  Drew grinned. “I’m glad it keeps them both occupied.” He took a step back and saw Pete peeking over the fence. He walked to the end of the porch and stretched his arm over the top of the fence to pet the donkey. “Stay out of trouble, boy, and make sure Joy behaves herself.”

  The donkey brayed which made Bacon bark and Joy laugh.

  “I better go. Have a good weekend, Joy.” Drew started down the steps, but she called to him.

  “I made this for you,” she said, holding out a brown paper lunch sack.

  “What is it?” he asked, retracing his steps and accepting the bag.

  “Just something my grandma always made at Christmas time. She used to mail a bunch of it to us.”

  Joy balanced on her crutches, waiting for him to look in the sack.

  Drew opened it and saw four resealable bags full of the snack mix Mrs. Cooke always made. He tugged off his glove, opened one of the bags, and took a bite. His eyes closed as he savored the treat he’d always enjoyed getting each holiday season from the elderly woman.

  “This is exactly like your grandma used to make,” he said, digging a handful out of the bag and eating it with enthusiasm. “Mmm… so good.”

  Joy giggled. “Thank you. I found her recipe and decided to make it. Mom and I tried to make it, but it never turned out like Grandma’s.”

  Drew chuckled. “My mom attempted to make it multiple times, too, but it never turned out the same. Thank you for this.” He planted a kiss on Joy’s forehead, yanked on his glove, and jogged down the steps.

  Despite his determination to take a step back from Joy, he longed to turn back around, wrap her in his arms, and never let her go.

  He grabbed another handful of snack mix, happily munching it as he made his way to the next house on his route, pondering the best way to proceed with Joy.

  Unable to arrive at any answers, the more he thought about what to do, the more confused he grew.

  With a promise to help Rhett, though, he didn’t have time to dwell on the multitude of questions racing around his head. The moment he got off work, he rushed home and changed his work clothes for warm clothes, then went with Drake to Rhett’s neighbor’s place.

  The last time any mention had been made about the neighbor, Rhett had given Drew a rather vague answer. Now, he wanted them to help hang lights on the house. When Drew met the neighbor, a beautiful blond-haired woman about his age who could have passed for a model, it became crystal clear why Rhett wanted their help.

  His friend appeared as besotted with Cedar Haynes as Drew was with Joy.

  Rhett warned them all not to mention to Cedar he lived next door, though, making Drew wonder what game Rhett played. From his recent experiences with Joy, he could sympathize with his friend, but sensed impending disaster with the deception.

  As he strung lights along the porch eves of the old Victorian house, he decided
the early snow must have held some sort of potent love potion that only affected the male population in town. If he wasn’t mistaken, his brother seemed to be suffering from the same symptoms, although Drake had been oddly quiet about the woman who’d turned his head.

  Rather than speak up and share his thoughts with his friends about romance and the torturous, wondrous misery that accompanied the endeavor of falling in love, Drew quietly hung the lights. As he worked, he considered if there was anything he could do to get Joy to see him as more than just a friend.

  When she kissed him back the other night, it sure didn’t seem like she was kissing a friend. No, that seemed more like two lovers who’d found each other after years apart. Maybe it was that silly romantic tale she’d concocted that first night they’d watched the snow fall outside her bedroom window that made him think such fanciful thoughts. At any rate, it did make him feel marginally better to see he wasn’t the only one suffering from the trauma of love.

  Much to his surprise, Cedar, as she insisted they call her, invited them to stay for dinner. Drew was a little wary of trying the appetizers she made, but the mouth-watering smells of whatever was in the oven convinced him to stay.

  The appetizers were good and he joined his friends at her table for delicious pizza and good conversation. She even served thick slices of chocolate cake with whipped cream for dessert, accompanied by rich, dark coffee. They were almost done eating the cake when Lolly, Rhett’s camel, peered in the windows as she sashayed across the back porch.

  “Dude. You should put a leash on your camel,” Drake said, without thinking.

  Drew froze with the last bite of cake halfway to his mouth as his loose-lipped brother shot Rhett an apologetic look.

  Cedar left the room in a huff after making it clear to Rhett she never wanted to see him again.

  Quietly and quickly, Drew helped the other men clean up the kitchen before they all went out into the cold.

  On the way back to their apartment, Drew jabbed Drake with his elbow. “Nice job on messing things up for Rhett.”

  “Just shut up, Drew. I didn’t mean to say anything. Besides, Cedar would have found out eventually that Rhett lived next door. I don’t understand why he didn’t tell her who he was in the first place.”

  Drew shrugged as he parked in the carport at their apartment. “Love makes you do a lot of stupid things.”

  “That’s for sure,” Drake grumbled as he got out and unlocked their door.

  For the first time since Joy had turned his world upside down, Drew gave his brother a studying glance, noticing he looked as miserable as Drew currently felt.

  If love was a plague, then Faraday seemed to be in the midst of a horrible epidemic.

  Chapter Eight

  The fragrance of roses and Christmas filled Drew’s nose as Joy’s unique scent wafted around him. His heart beat in double-time as her silky black hair brushed against his cheek, further tantalizing his senses. When she bent over him, he could see yearning and invitation glowing in her gorgeous dark eyes. Then she pressed a sweet, alluring kiss to his mouth, one that spiked his temperature and made him reach out to her.

  A pillow struck him abruptly in his face, startling him awake and yanking him from his dreams of the woman he loved.

  “I don’t even want to know what you’re dreaming about, bro, but your alarm didn’t go off and you are going to be late if you don’t hustle,” Drake said as he stretched his long arms above his head.

  “Thanks, man.” Drew sat up and glanced at the clock beside the bed. Drake wasn’t kidding. He’d literally have to hit the ground running if he wanted to make it to work on time. “Why didn’t you wake me up sooner?” He tossed an accusing glance at Drake while pulling on his work pants and grabbing a pair of wool socks.

  “You know I never get up as early as you do, mostly because there’s only room in this cracker box apartment for one of us to get ready at a time. I came in here as soon as I woke up and didn’t hear you banging around like you usually do.”

  “I don’t bang around,” Drew snapped as he rammed his arms into the sleeves of his work shirt on his way to the bathroom. He hastily brushed his teeth, applied deodorant, and gave his hair a quick swipe with a comb. On the way down the hall to the front room he buttoned his shirt. After slipping on his coat, he shoved his feet into his work boots, grabbed his keys, and tossed a testy, “bye!” to his brother.

  Drew didn’t bother warming up the Jeep. Instead he drove to the post office with the window down since he hadn’t taken time to scrape the frost off the windshield.

  The nip in the morning air made him shiver as he parked and jogged across the parking lot to the back of the building. In his haste, he failed to see a patch of ice until both feet hit it and he went sliding toward the door. He spread his legs, trying to maintain his balance and almost did the splits as he slammed into the wall.

  He didn’t move for a moment, assessing if any damage had been done. The fact he remained unscathed made him expel a long, grateful breath before he unlocked the door.

  “What was that loud thump?” Marlene asked as she sorted mail in the back room.

  “I slid on the ice and hit the wall,” he said, removing his coat and hanging it by the door then clocking in right on time.

  Drew hurried over to the mail waiting to be cased before he could load it in his LLV and begin the day’s deliveries. He and Marlene worked in silence for a while until Drew’s stomach loudly rumbled.

  Marlene glanced his way. “Skip breakfast?”

  He nodded. “Yeah. My alarm didn’t go off and Drake woke me up about five minutes before I ran out of the house.”

  Marlene laughed. “You’ve never once, in all the years you’ve worked here, been late. I think it would have been okay if you took time for breakfast.”

  “And ruin my perfect record?” Drew asked, tossing her a grin. “No way!”

  His co-worker pointed in the direction of the table they used for taking breaks. A basket of fruit rested in the center of it. “One of our customers brought that in yesterday. Help yourself.”

  Drew snagged a banana while he continued to work. Marlene always arrived thirty minutes before he did to meet the mail truck that left all the mail for the day. She sorted the parcels and mail for the post office boxes while he took care of the mail that would go out on his route. Two sisters, Sandy and Marcia, took turns delivering the rural route. They usually came in an hour after Drew arrived.

  Normally, the smell of Marlene’s strong coffee greeted him the moment he stepped inside, but he hadn’t noticed it that morning.

  “Is there coffee?” he asked as he balled the banana peel and made a perfect shot into the garbage can across the room.

  Marlene shook her head. “No. I used the last of it yesterday and completely forgot to bring in more this morning. Guess you are out of luck today.”

  Drew nodded and got back to work, wondering how his day could get worse. He bent over to lift a tray of first-class mail and heard Marlene burst out laughing behind him.

  “What’s funny?” he asked as he straightened and glanced over his shoulder at her.

  “Looks like you split your britches, Drew,” she said, pointing toward his backside as she continued laughing. “Nice undies for the holiday season.”

  Heat seared up Drew’s neck and burned his ears. Marlene was old enough to be his mother and happily married, but the embarrassment of her spying the blowout in his pants stung all the same.

  It was a running joke in his family for his mom to buy him and Drake underwear for Christmas each year. They’d long ago declared underwear something you got if you were on Santa’s naughty list. Just to prove a point that her boys were always teetering on the edge of that list, Barbara Miller annually gifted her boys with the most obnoxious underwear she could find.

  The bright red briefs Drew currently wore were last year’s gag gift, festooned with a picture of the Grinch on the rear. He wouldn’t have worn them at all except he hadn’t fou
nd time to do his laundry. It was wear either the Grinch or a pair of boxers emblazoned with Papa Smurf in a Santa hat. Left without much choice, since he happened to be down to the last two pairs of clean underwear he owned, he went with the Grinch.

  He set down the tray of mail, turned so his back was to his case, and felt along the seam of his pants. Sure enough, it was ripped all the way from the waist to the intersecting crotch seam.

  “Run home and change, Drew. I’ll cover for you.” Marlene motioned toward the door.

  “No, I’ve got this,” Drew said. He pulled his shirttails out so they covered his exposed caboose then grabbed the stapler and headed to the rest room. He whipped off his pants, stapled the seam together, and pulled the pants back on.

  His temporary fix was a bit uncomfortable, but it would get him through his route. With the stacks of mail and piles of parcels, it was going to be a long day for both him and Marlene. Neither of them had time to waste while he went home and tried to find a semi-clean pair of pants to wear. He might have to beg Drake to do a load or two of laundry for him if he didn’t finish his route until late again tonight. Last night, it had been past seven when he finally got home. By then, he was half frozen, starving, and exhausted.

  “Please tell me you did not just staple that seam together?” Marlene asked, doing her best not to laugh again.

  “I won’t tell you if you don’t ask.” Drew dropped the stapler on Marlene’s desk and returned to work.

  By the time he had his mail ready to load in his rig, the staples were poking in places staples should never reach, but he ignored them and continued working.

  He gratefully accepted a to-go cup of coffee from Rhett when he stopped to deliver mail at his friend’s mechanic’s garage, since it was one of the first places on his route. He’d only driven a block from there when old Mrs. Burnside ran a stop sign and he slammed on the brakes, spilling coffee all over the dash where he’d set it while he grabbed mail for his next stop.