Snow: A Gentry Boys Christmas Story Read online

  Con had stopped whistling and was squinting at the code machine. I saw him nod to himself and then make his way over.

  “Code came up as spark plugs,” he said. “I turned off the engine light for now. You don’t have to get it done today but I’d be happy to do the job for a flat fee of fifty bucks.”

  I raised an eyebrow, realizing the amount he quoted was far less than we should be charging but Con shot me a look and I understood. The car was an older model and the women carried worn, shabby purses. They were almost certainly among the legions of snowbirds that made their way down here from northern climates to escape the brutal winters and from all appearances these two didn’t have a lot of money.

  As soon as Elsa gave Conway her blessing to get the job done he went right to work. I watched as my brother bent over the vehicle’s guts and carefully started poking around. It wouldn’t surprise me if he quietly fixed a few other things for no charge while he was in there.

  “Are you the Brothers Gentry?” asked Elsa’s companion.

  “We are,” I answered with pride. “I’m Stone and that’s my brother, Con.”

  She smiled gently. “That would explain the sign. There’s sure something to be said about working with family, isn’t there? You’ll never be able to trust anyone more. Elsa and I ran a small bookstore together for thirty years.”

  “Our daughters own it now,” Elsa piped it up.

  “That’s great,” I said because it was great and because I didn’t know what else to say.

  A sudden gust of frigid wind rattled the front door, even blowing it open a few inches before settling down. I was just thinking the other day that the door could use either a solid repair or better yet, a replacement. It shook in the wind and often failed to stay shut if not closed securely. I stepped around from behind the counter and walked over to the door, pressing until I heard a click.

  The two women were sipping their bottled water and watching me. Conway had moved on to whistling ‘Jingle Bell Rock’.

  Elsa set her water down and frowned. “You know, I’ve been wintering in the Phoenix area these past eight years and I can’t remember cold like this. The radio even said there might be snow.”

  “Snow,” sighed her sister. “Just in time for Christmas.”

  Elsa crossed her arms. “Helen, remember we left Vancouver three weeks ahead of schedule and over the objections of the family, because we wanted to avoid snow.”

  Helen rolled her eyes. “You wanted to avoid the snow. You insisted we leave early even though we always wait until after New Year’s.”

  Elsa shivered. “I’m just not sure these bones could withstand one more blizzard.”

  “Blah, blah, blizzard,” scoffed Helen and then said something else under her breath that I didn’t catch.

  “I don’t think you need to worry much about blizzards,” I said, trying not to laugh out loud over their sisterly squabble. “The most you’ll see is a few wet flakes trickling out of the sky. I’ve lived in the desert my whole life and we just don’t get snow here.”

  “I’m sure you’re right, Stone,” Elsa said graciously.

  Conway called me over then, sounding like he needed my help but I knew better. He just wanted to show me a few technical details and save my pride at the same time. I didn’t mind learning from him at all though. He’d always had a knack for everything motorized, ever since we were kids.

  I watched my little brother give the old car a final once over before he was satisfied enough to close the hood. A sappy gush of affection washed over me as I thought about how Conway would be a father any day now. I could hardly believe it.

  As soon as Elsa and her sister were on their way I decided to take inventory. Conway made a face and said we didn’t need to take inventory because we hadn’t even been in business that long. However, he’d been acquiring parts and tools willy-nilly. It seemed someone ought to be keeping track.

  “You and Evie still going to Cord’s on Christmas Eve?” Conway asked, scribbling on an inventory form after looking over a shelf of supplies. I’d have a hell of a time making sense out of that later when I tried to add it to the master spreadsheet but I wasn’t willing to make a big deal out of it at the moment.

  “That’s the plan,” I said, counting the number of clamps that had been rather haphazardly stowed in a drawer. “Unless of course we’re sitting at the hospital waiting for something important to happen. I swear, dude, I jump four feet in the air every time your damn cell phone rings.”

  “Tell me about it,” Conway snorted. “Doctor said yesterday we might be in for a wait though. I told you first babies are often late and anyway Roslyn’s not showing any signs that zero hour is approaching.”

  “Well, look on the bright side; Tadpole’s got to come out some time.”

  “True. Never heard of anyone taking up permanent residence in the womb.”

  “So,” I said slowly, watching him out of the corner of my eye, “you really ready for this?”

  Conway stopped and stared off into space for a moment. A slow smile spread across his face. “Yeah,” he said softly. “Yeah, I’m ready.”

  “Great. If you’re ready, then I’m ready.”

  “You?” he laughed. “What the hell do you need to be ready for, Stone?”

  “Well, I figure I’ll be babysitting sometimes. Changing diapers and all that jazz.”

  “Since when do you know how to change diapers?”

  “I don’t yet. But then neither do you.”

  “Sure I do. Roslyn has me practicing on a bag of flour.”

  I tried to picture Conway carefully diapering baking supplies. “I bet the flour is a bit more cooperative than the real thing.”

  He thought about that for a minute. “Maybe. But last night the bag opened up and leaked all over the changing table so it’s got a few disadvantages. Damn stuff got all over me, all over the floor. I had a time cleaning it up.”

  “Hey Conway, you realize the baby might leak something other than flour on you, right?”

  “You don’t say.”

  We looked at each other and cracked up.

  “You know,” I said, “Evie keeps pumping me for names. I think it has to do with some monogrammed arts and crafts shit she’s dying to make. I don’t think she believes me when I say you won’t spill the goods.”

  “That’s right, I won’t,” Conway said cheerfully. “So quit fishing.”

  Around eleven thirty a middle aged guy in a black suit walked in, asking if we could manage a quick brake pad replacement and oil change on his Lexus while he was on his lunch hour. Conway jumped at the chance to put away the tedious inventory inspection and I started trying to translate his chicken scratch into something legible. Deck said that we ought to be religiously tracking all assets and like everything Deck said, that made total sense to me. After all, he and Cord had run a successful tattoo parlor together for years so he knew a thing or two about running a business.

  The whole time The Suit waited for his car he stood right outside the door and yelled into his cell phone. He came across as one of those men who barked and howled whenever he opened his mouth. After a few minutes I felt pretty sorry for whoever was stuck on the other end of that phone.

  When Conway called him back in and brought the keys around, explaining that he’d given the car a complimentary wash, The Suit only nodded vaguely in thanks. He paid with cash and was already yelling into his phone again before he got behind the wheel.

  It was lunch time and my stomach was starting to rumble. My wife, who always had impeccable timing, surprised us by stopping by with bags of Chinese takeout.

  “You drove all the way here from downtown just to bring us food?” I asked Evie after I kissed her good and hard. Conway was already diving into a carton of sesame chicken.

  She smiled up at me sweetly. “I was on my way home anyway. The office closed early. And guess what?” She poked me playfully. “I don’t have to go back until the day after Christmas.”

  I s
lipped my arms around her small waist and pressed her close. She drove me crazy. Always had, ever since that first time I danced with her in the moonlight and felt the electric connection between us. Evie was my soul mate, my muse, my everything. She exhaled with a happy little sigh, the same kind of sigh that would exit her sweet lips just before she drifted off to sleep in my arms every night.

  “Don’t worry,” I whispered in her ear. “I’ll find a few filthy ways to keep you occupied in the coming days.”

  She kissed my neck. “It’s all I want for Christmas,” she purred.

  Evie wanted to stop by and check on Roslyn before heading home. She’d bought a box of cupcakes from some specialty bakery by the ballpark. These cupcakes were unique. According to a local news segment, eating two of these cupcakes would induce labor. Apparently heavily pregnant women all over the valley had been flocking there in the hopes that the rumors were true.

  “Make her eat every damn bite,” Conway joked.

  I laughed at him. “You’re awful eager for that diaper changing crash course.”

  He looked at the floor and smiled. “Just ready for the next chapter, that’s all.”

  Evie walked over and kissed his cheek. “Good thing,” she said, “because ready or not, the page is about to turn.” She paused in front of me and pressed a finger to my lips. “Don’t be late tonight, lover,” she whispered meaningfully and then sashayed her cute little ass out the door.

  “I won’t be,” I said, my brain already running wild with plans.

  The rest of the afternoon was pretty dead so around three o’clock Conway suggested that I take off early.

  “And how are you going to get home?” I asked.

  Conway gestured to a tarp-covered object in the far corner of the garage. “I’ll take the Chevy. Been meaning to take it for a test drive around the neighborhood.”

  Con had sold off his car collection, even trading in his tricked out Mustang for a more staid SUV. But he’d kept this battered 1957 Chevy that he’d towed out of a junkyard about a year ago. It still looked like a mess on the outside but he’d gotten it running for the time being until he could tackle the more tedious restoration work. It was his dream car, his fantasy project.

  “You’re the one with the pregnant bride at home,” I argued. “If anyone ought to take off early it’s you.”

  “Nah.” Conway waved a hand. “I just talked to Roslyn ten minutes ago. She said she was going to take a nap so apparently Evie’s cupcakes didn’t do the trick. Besides, if someone pops in here and asks for a full set of brakes are you going to know how to take care of it?”

  “Good point,” I mumbled. Conway was training me and every day I felt a little more comfortable under the hood but I still had a ways to go before I’d feel right tackling big jobs on my own.

  Nonetheless I felt a little guilty taking off, so half an hour later I was still straightening papers that didn’t really need to be straightened and dusting off the immaculate counter for the sixth time today.

  “Go home!” Conway bellowed as he pulled the tarp off the Chevy.

  “Fine,” I growled. “Am I picking you up in the morning?”

  Conway popped the hood. “No need. I’ll drive myself back since Roslyn will have a fit if I leave the Chevy parked in front of the house.” He patted the car fondly. “She’ll be a beauty when she’s finished but right now she’s a bit of an ugly duckling.”

  I had my hand on the doorknob. “Call me if there’s any news.”

  He grinned. “Naturally.”

  On my way home I impulsively stopped by a flower shop and picked up a bouquet of red roses. Evie was standing barefoot in the kitchen when I walked through the door. She was reading the back of a cake mix box and the puzzled look on her face turned to delight when she saw me. She jumped into my arms, kissed me until I was hot and bothered enough to bust out of my pants and then pulled back so she could fuss over the flowers.

  “Do that later,” I growled when she started rummaging around, looking for a glass vase. I was following her around the kitchen, keeping my hands on her the whole time.

  “Just a minute,” she said as she reached for the cabinet over the sink.

  Suddenly I wasn’t in a patient mood. Standing directly behind her, I slid both hands under her black skirt and then inside her silky panties. Evie melted immediately, forgetting about flowers and other distractions as she sank against me. In two seconds flat I had her at my mercy, working my fingers inside of her as she arched her body and breathed hard. I could have had her right here in the kitchen and indeed I’d already done so, more than once. But in this room the options were limited to lying on the cold tile floor or backing her against the refrigerator. Frankly, neither one was ideal.

  When I spun her around she stepped out of her panties and jumped on me eagerly, skirt bunched around her middle, legs around my waist.

  “Kiss me,” I whispered. I carried her to the couch with our mouths glued together.

  My jeans were in the process of being shoved down past my knees and I was all over her in a fever, trying to get access to as much skin as possible as she straddled my lap. Sliding inside of Evie was as exquisite as it ever was and I pushed her to ride me hard and be careless about it. We rocked together in a perfect rhythm for what seemed like eternity. She moaned and shook when she came. Then she whispered my name and I covered her mouth with mine as I moved her hard and came harder.

  “I love you,” I told her as we pressed our foreheads together in the afterglow.

  A contented smile spread across her face. “You know I love you too.” She shivered and snuggled close. “Can you believe how cold it is outside? Maybe we should turn the heat on.”

  I yawned. “Going to get even colder tonight.” I leaned across the couch, grabbed a fluffy throw blanket that Evie liked to cuddle up with in the evenings and carefully covered her with it.

  “My prince,” she gushed as she reached for the television remote.

  I pulled up my jeans and curled my arms around Evie, burying my face in her hair. She smelled like vanilla and sugar.

  “Oh!” she exclaimed suddenly. “It’s a Wonderful Life!”

  “It sure is,” I agreed, pushing my hand between her legs.

  “The movie, wiseass. Look, it’s just starting. We are so watching this. We are watching the shit out of this. Stone, don’t even think about moving a muscle until the bell rings and the angel gets his wings.”

  I didn’t know what she was talking about. “Huh?”

  “Just watch,” she said, and rested her head on my chest as I stroked her hair and stared at the black and white movie. It did look familiar so I must have caught a few scenes over the years but I’d never sat down and watched the entire thing.

  As George Bailey agonized over remaining in his small town where it looked to me like he had a damn nice life, I felt my mind wandering. Evie’s words to Conway had been stuck in my head ever since she uttered them.

  “Ready or not, the page is about to turn.”

  Indeed it was. And I for one couldn’t wait to see what came next.

  CHAPTER THREE

  CONWAY

  It was tough to keep my attention focused these days. After Stone finally took my advice and left for the night I found myself pacing the floor of the garage and checking my phone every thirty seconds instead of working on the old car like I’d intended.

  If Roslyn hadn’t yawned constantly when I’d called earlier, insisting she was going to take a long nap, I would have been calling her every ten minutes. It wasn’t that I had a bad feeling or anything. I just didn’t like being away from her and I wanted to hear her voice.

  Finally at ten minutes past five I decided to give up and pack it in. Technically we didn’t close until six but there hadn’t been any traffic in hours and since only a few shopping days remained until Christmas I thought it was unlikely I’d see any more customers today.

  Darkness had already settled outside, turning everything instantly colder. I
double checked that the back bay was locked, turned off the lights and flexed my cold fingers a few times before heading out the front door. But as soon as I was outside an icy feeling rolled up my spine and it didn’t have anything to do with the temperature. Instinctively I reached under my shirt but the gun I’d grown used to carrying when danger was an everyday possibility wasn’t there. In fact I’d stopped carrying it months ago, a choice which seemed awful foolish right now.

  The parking lot was empty except for the old Chevy I’d brought around to the front shortly after Stone took off. About fifty yards away was an old brick strip mall of storefronts that included a secondhand clothing store, a check cashing place and an insurance office. The lights were still on at the first two and I didn’t see anything at first glance that would account for the tense feeling that gripped me. Yet I’d spent so many years finely tuned to danger that I knew better than to ignore it.

  I kept an eye out as I locked the door and crept over to the Chevy. I thought I heard a cough from the north side of the lot but the only thing over there was a boxy dumpster. If anyone was around it was probably just some poor homeless soul looking for a place to settle down until morning. Last week Stone had said he found some trash and a ratty old blanket folded up in the brush just beyond the parking lot, as if someone might have been camping out there. A twinge of sadness struck me at the idea. Temperatures were expected to plunge below freezing tonight. No one should be stuck outdoors on a night like this.

  “Hello?” I called as I stepped around to the other side of the car. I reached for my wallet, knowing I only kept a few twenties in there but I could stand to part with them in the spirit of the season. “Look, I’m not gonna call the cops or anything. Just wondering if you could use some help.”

  “Con!”

  The sound was more of a hiss than a shout. I wondered if my imagination might be responsible for turning that noise into my name but I didn’t think so. The unease I’d felt as soon as I stepped outside returned tenfold.

  “Who the fuck are you?” I barked as a few of the unsavory acquaintances that populated my old life came to mind. There was nobody in particular to worry about but when you spend years dealing with rats and snakes it’s not always easy to outrun them. These past months I’d suffered some moments of concern that something about my past would come back to haunt me. I’d said nothing about these worries to Roslyn, or to Stone.