The conversation exhausted him. “Can we talk about something, anything, else?”
“Fine.” Phoebe sipped her drink then set the can on the end table. “But don’t say I told you so when it all falls apart.”
He chose to ignore the last comment muttered under her breath. For whatever reason, Phoebe had a deep distrust of Deena, which he found unfair. Her only interaction with her had been the night she’d arrived and few people were their true selves after a day of travel. In his humble opinion, Phoebe would do well to show Deena grace.
The movie started, and he let himself get carried away in the plot. It wasn’t bad for a chick flick, or maybe he needed the distraction that badly. Occasionally, stole a glimpse of Phoebe. She seemed preoccupied, and he wondered if it was about Deena or something else. When the movie ended, he carried his empty bowl and can into the kitchen, washed the bowl, and then dropped the can in the recycling bin.
He climbed the stairs without saying goodnight to Phoebe. Why couldn’t she be happy for him? Could it be jealousy that he’d caught the attention of a superstar? He didn’t think so—he’d never seen Phoebe show interest in a celebrity’s life or care about what they wore or the latest gossip.
The only explanation he could think of was that she was cranky over being stranded in the storm and not having access to her own bed. When he’d first moved back in with his parents, there had been an adjustment period until it became his home again. That had to be it. She’d been out of her element tonight like Deena had been that first night.
Chapter Nine
Phoebe held one end of the string of lights while Darla walked with the other end until the entire strand was unwound. “Should I plug them in now?”
“Go for it,” Darla called from the hallway.
She gripped the plug and inserted the prongs into the outlet. The multi-colored bulbs lit up her office with Christmas joy. “They all look good from here. How are the ones out there?”
“Perfect.” Darla appeared in the doorway. “This is the first time since I’ve been here we haven’t had to hunt down which bulb affected the entire strand.”
“Thank goodness for small miracles.” Phoebe laid down her end of the strand, careful not to hit it against her desk or chair. With her luck lately, she’d knock a wire just right so they wouldn’t connect.
“Remind me again why we're decorating two weeks before Thanksgiving?”
Squatting down, Phoebe rummaged through the tote of decorations and pulled out her favorites to go out first. “Jasper Properties always sees an influx of rentals for Thanksgiving, and they have an unconscious expectation to see businesses decorated for Christmas.”
Darla winked. “Which you don’t mind at all.”
“Nope.” Phoebe grinned and stood upright. “I volunteered to dress up our properties as well.”
“When do you have time for that?” Darla shook her head and picked up one of the nativity sets.
She shrugged. “I’ll fit it in somehow. Ted’s paying me extra. Little does he know I would have done it for free.”
“Need any help? I have tomorrow off with no plans.”
“Sure.” She handed Darla a snow globe. “I have to go shopping in Farthington first. We’ve never decorated the rentals before, and I need to pick up some.”
“Can we stop by the dollar store while we’re there? I need to buy a bunch of items for our holiday project.”
“Oh man, I completely forgot about that.” Phoebe bit down on her bottom lip. “Do you know what they need the most of?”
“Someone donated all the puzzle books we need and lotions. When I talked to Ana on Sunday, she said no one had turned in a single shampoo yet or tissues. It’s early, though. We’ve only promoted it for two weeks.”
“I can’t get all the tissues, but I’ll buy a bunch while we’re at the store.” A thought stopped her. “Did anyone volunteer to get the bags?”
“Those are coming out of the church’s outreach fund.” Darla pulled pieces of the artificial tree from the box. “Pastor Gray told Ana that if we don’t receive the donations we need, he can allot more to us to cover the rest.”
Phoebe’s heart warmed. “Pastor Gray is great. I can’t believe he’s retiring soon. His replacement has big shoes to fill, but I believe he’s up to the task.”
“Will it be weird to have your brother-in-law as the Pastor?” Darla attached the base and fluffed out the bottom section of branches.
“I don’t think so.” She bent down and found another string of lights buried in the massive tote. “Elijah’s a good man with a heart to serve.”
“He’s so good with Alice.”
“They adore each other. Even if they aren’t biologically connected, they are undoubtedly father and daughter.” She pointed to the tree. “You might want to wait for that.”
