Page 10 of Just for the Holidays

Gary narrows his eyes at the grumpy cashier.

Loren twists her neck and holds a laser glare on Teddy while passing Gary's change.

“Thank you, Teddy,” Gary smirks, collecting his donuts and coffee, before traipsing back out the door.

“You know coffee is always free.” Teddy scolds after Mr. Butler is gone.

“I hate giving that man anything, for nothing.” She winces. “He’s a jerk.”

“We need him to keep coming. The free coffee is the only reason he does.” Teddy shrugs.

“Fine,” she pouts, dropping onto her stool and burying her nose in her book.

“incoming . . .” Teddy warns, nodding at the window.

“Fuck.” Loren snarls.

A frazzled blonde in a cropped puffer coat, high-waisted skinny jeans, and fur-lined boots jingles in with an army of six rambunctious kids trailing behind.

“Like those monsters need sugar.” Loren sulks.

“Hey Misty, how are you today?” Teddy charms.

“I need coffee, STAT… and Harry wants me to get butter rolls and blueberry pie for dinner tonight.”

“I got you! I made two blueberries, just yesterday,” he lies. He made them three days ago and forgot to take them with today’s food pantry drop-off—luckily.

He’s cut back from daily donations that Gram used to make, to just a few drop-offs a week. The funds from the house sale are drying up quickly, so he needs to be careful where the money goes.

“Perfect!.” Misty sighs at the center of a whirling tornado of children swarming the shop, circling her feet like vultures, pecking at her sleeves with screeches and cackles bouncing off the walls. ”Charlie! That’s enough! Jenny, stop biting your sister!” she fumes.

Teddy hurries to the fridge to gather one of the pies.

Loren turns away from the chaos and rolls her eyes as she grips a cup and trods over to the coffee pot.

Teddy plops the pie on the wrapping station and unspools a sheet of cellophane, tightly pressing it around the edges of the pie and dropping it into a box.

Loren finishes pouring Misty’s coffee and spins around to see the youngest of the Malcolm clan shredding the pages of her book.

“What are you doing, you brat?” she screeches.

Misty pulls her attention away from the other kids, rolling on the floor and climbing the stools. “Loren! I’m so sorry, I’ll replace your book.” her cheeks are crimson. “Paisley!” she scolds.

Loren slams the coffee on the counter and snatches the remains of her novel from the child’s hands.

Paisley Malcolm bursts into tears and wails a blood-curdling scream.

Loren spins on her heel with fury in her eyes. “I can’t do this anymore! I quit.” she spits the words at Teddy.

“Loren!” Teddy’s jaw drops.

The fed-up punk collects her paper carcass and stuffs it into her messenger bag, before stomping through the Malcolm clan—who are frozen in awe—and out the door.

“I’m sorry!” Misty whines.

Teddy passes the defeated mom her pie and bag of rolls on his way to chase Loren out the door, but she’s already rounding the corner.

Dammit!He jingles back inside.

---