Indy turns to me with the biggest smile. “Bubble, my dear, you’ve just gained yourself a two-week paid vacation.”
I frown and look around to see if there are any cameras, and I’m being pranked.
“I, what?”
“You know Tyler is turning one this Christmas, right? Tate says it’s time for us to take a family vacation. We’re not going anywhere, but we’re closing Spilled Beans, and he’s handing his work to his partner so we can spend time together.” His face becomes all dream-like. “Can you imagine sleeping in until six a.m.? Ahhh, bliss…so anyway, that’s happening. So you’re getting a paid vaycay.”
He says it like it’s final.
“Thank you. That’s really generous of you, Indy.”
And now I’m the one with the nervous energy. What will I do with myself for two weeks during the school break? Even Juju will only come for a few days.
I go back to the front of the coffee shop, and Mrs. Crawford stands and comes over to me, dangling a set of keys.
“My husband and I just had the best idea. How would you like to give your friend a true white-Christmas experience?” she says.
I’m feeling a little lightheaded and confused from Indy’s vacation news and now Mrs. Crawford talking about a white Christmas. Did I eat something earlier that didn’t agree with me?
“I don’t understand.”
“It’s simple, dear. We have a cabin by the lake in Stillwater. It’ll be sitting empty while we’re in Europe and the kids are in Florida. It’s yours for Christmas if you want it.”
I feel tears prickling the backs of my eyes, and before I know it, I’m hugging Mrs. Crawford.
“Thank you so much. That’s such a lovely gesture, and I promise I’ll take the best care of your cabin.”
She hugs me back, and I can barely contain my tears because she smells so comforting. This is the nicest thing anyone’s done for me in a long time.
Apart from Indy giving me a two-week paid vacation that I now get to have in a lakeside cabin. Squee!
5
COACH
“Come on,guys, two more laps. I can’t believe I’m barely breaking a sweat, and you’re dropping like flies. I’m supposed to be the old man here.”
“Yeah, Coach, but we’ve been playing for two hours,” Jackson complains.
“You should be warm enough for this run then.”
I’m running with the team. Something I enjoy occasionally doing after practice.
My career as a football player barely existed because I always wanted to be a coach, so after I had an injury that ended my playing days, I used it as a stepping stone after I graduated from college. It doesn’t mean I don’t enjoy playing.
I love being on the field and playing with the kids, especially when we don’t have any games scheduled, so it’s all just practice.
By the time we’re finished, I’m keeping a straight face, but I’m definitely feeling the workout in my muscles. After all, I have a good thirty years on these kids.
I’m glad the coaches have their own locker room with a shower because that’s exactly what I’ll need.
“Off to the showers with you all, and have a Merry Christmas. Don’t overdo it. Trust me. You’ll regret it on that first practice of the year,” I say as we walk back into the building.
“Oh, come on, Coach. It’s Christmas,” one of the kids groans.
“It’s also just a day.”
“You say that because you never had my mom’s meatloaf,” he grumbles. “Damn, I’m already feeling January in my body.”
