I shot a look that way. In a moment of insanity that included two trips to town, I’d bought an inflatable snowman, a sleigh, and eight reindeer.
They lined the side of the yard closest to the road, the seven-foot tall snowman waving people in with his North Pole sign.
A line of cars snaked around the curve, and I straightened. “Ready for this?”
I inclined my head toward the tables set up in front of the house.
Ash smiled wide and rubbed his hands together.
“Oh, yeah. I’m ready.” He hurried over to the tables and spoke to the woman who emerged from her car.
The donation process was pretty straightforward.
People pulled up, unloaded their boxes, and signed a piece of paper for us.
No one ever wanted recognition for their donations, but we tried to keep a running list of people.
’Course, most of the names ended up being Santa, Mrs. Claus, or one of the eight reindeer.
I headed down to the tables to help Ash when the woman unloaded three boxes and went back for another.
“Wow.” A boy about seven years old hopped out of the second car and pointed. “Can I go see the snowman while you talk to them?” He bounced from foot to foot. “Please?”
“If it’s okay with you, my brother has a hot chocolate station over there. He can keep an eye on your son.”
I offered the opportunity with my best smile and hoped for some kind of peace between us and the townspeople.
We’d had our scuffles through the years, but they’d always come through for the Christmas drive.
I needed a successful run this year to make up for all the bullshit we’d been through with our rivals.
The woman looked me over, a dimple of concern high in her forehead.
Finally, she nodded. “Sure. That would be great. I have quite a few things to unload.”
“I’ll help… if you don’t mind.” At her second nod, I followed her around to the back of her SUV.
She pulled a giant box of brand-new clothes toward her and hugged it to her chest. “It’s really wonderful that you’re doing this.”
I grabbed the next box and used it as an excuse to move away from her and the storm of emotion her words caused. “I’m glad we’re able to help.”
“You don’t see that very often from…” Her cheeks flushed as she trailed off. “Well, you know.”
“Yeah.” I bit back a sigh. “I know.”
We walked a fine line with our masquerade.
More people emerged from their vehicles.
Some I recognized as people on our list, people we kept track of and planned to help with the donations we collected.
Others came to sightsee.
A few lookie-loos wanted a peek at the big, bad motorcycle club. And that was okay too.
Getting people here was half the battle.
A group of five kids ran in front of me, and I lifted the box over their heads and laughed as they tore through the snow and into the giant bounce house Colt had insisted we needed.
