Page 19 of A Little Merry

As soon as I unlocked and opened the door and turned on the light, I stopped myself from entering the room. The colorful paintings were everywhere, even hanging from the walls. Dozens of them. There were more than I’d even imagined… well over a hundred, in all different sizes. I never really took the time to look around the room before. I would just lean my latest against another painting or the wall and leave.

I took a step back. “How crazy are you? One night with that pixy vamp, and you’re willing to share your soul? People will laugh. Your best friends will abandon you. The entire town will ridicule you. Besides, these are crap. They show no talent whatsoever. No fucking way.”

I flipped the light switch off, slammed the door shut, and was just about to lock it, scolding myself for even thinking I would pull some of them out into the light of day, when the doorbell rang.

I knew it would be Lucas to help with bringing the paintings down, and I hadn’t even sorted them out yet.

“Shit. Like he has time to wait around for me,” I said, then I yelled out to him, “Be right there!”

I headed over to the door, trying to think of the appropriate apology, and when I swung it open, Merry stood in front ofme, grinning while holding two cups of what I assumed was hot coffee and a small, white bag.

“I brought coffee and muffins. Let’s get this party going,” she said. “The festival starts in a few hours, and we still have to set up your entire booth.”

My body reacted to her with a warmth I couldn’t explain. As if sunshine was standing in my doorway, waiting to come inside.

“Wait. Where’s Lucas?”

“He’s on his way, but first, I wanted to make sure you liked your surprise. Because if you don’t, he and I can take it away.”

I took the coffee and the muffin bag and set everything down on the small, round table next to the front door, then I pulled her in close.

“You took a big chance. I thought about tossing it over the side of the building.”

“And me with it, right? So, did you? And do you want me to leave?”

“No and absolutely not. Not now and not ever, but how the hell did you even get it all up here and decorated?”

“Noelle helped… of course, I made sure you were covered before I let her walk past you.”

“Thanks for that. That woman scares me.”

She giggled, and my dick reacted. I was hooked on this ball of ridiculous joy and couldn’t be happier about it. “She’s harmless and turning into a good, dependable friend. So, what about your paintings? Are they ready to go? I’m here to help as much as I can.”

“They’re too fucking dark for a Christmas Art Fair. You’ve ruined me, you know that, right? You’ve fucking wrecked my dark, bad-ass soul.”

“Does that mean you don’t have anything to sell? We can always set up a booth for Connor’s coffee and baked goodies, instead. He could use a little Christmas cheer, as well. In someways, I think his heart is caught inside one of your brutal, dark towns.”

I took her hand in mine. “He might very well be but come with me. I want to show you something no one else has ever seen.”

She followed me to my locked room, and when I opened the door, she instantly covered her face with her hands, as tears flooded her eyes. I didn’t know if I should hold her or close the door.

“This is all for you. I think every time I painted one of these, I was painting it just for you, only I didn’t know it. Still, I always felt as if there was somebody out there… someone in this big, wretched world who would tell me it was okay. Tell me that these paintings stood for something good, something we could all believe in.”

“I feel like I just walked into a miracle. They’re so bright and cheerful,” she said as she walked around the room, gazing at my art. “I love them all. They’re beautiful, truly beautiful.”

I kissed her, and my world lit up like I was my teen self, back in Chicago, filled with hope and dreams before I was told these were fluff and had no meaning.

She’d changed my entire life, and we were just getting started.

Merry 6

“Who did these?” Lucas asked, as he gathered up some of the framed paintings of Cricket all decked out for Christmas with happy folks walking along the decorated streets. There were a few other paintings of just the shops all aglow. “I thought you were showcasing your work.”

“This is Ethan’s work,” I told him, tingling with excitement. I could hardly believe there were so many happy paintings in just one room. It had to be some kind of Christmas miracle.

He glanced over at Ethan. “No, this isn’t. What the fuck, bro?”

Ethan gazed down at the floor, smirked, then looked Lucas squarely in the eye. “They’re all mine. I just never showed them to anyone before.”

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