Page 261 of A Merry Mountain Christmas

Then Stella had walked in with Lurch, touching his arm, and they’d blown everything apart by announcing that the goose Jack had charmed three weeks prior was going to be part of their Thanksgiving dinner.

Maisie gasped in genuine horror, and Adalia gave her a confused look. “Who’s Diego?”

“The goose,” Maisie said softly, gesturing to the painting in Adalia’s hands.

“He’d outlived his usefulness,” Stella said matter-of-factly. “I have a new muse.” Then she gave Lurch an adoring gaze.

“Oh, my God!” Adalia shrieked and jumped backward as though trying to get as far away from the platter as possible, not that Jack blamed her. He might not be a vegetarian or even a pescatarian like Adalia, but he figured there were farm animalsand pets, and it was best not to mix the two. Besides, he’d been fond of the little guy.

“She cooked a goose?” Finn asked in confusion, looking from Adalia to Maisie. It was clear he didn’t understand the problem.

“Get that out of my house!” Adalia shouted, pointing her finger at the platter. She set the painting down, propping it against the cupboards, like she wasn’t so sure she wanted to touch it anymore.

River burst into the kitchen with Georgie right behind him. “What happened?”

“She cooked a goose,” Finn said, still not seeming to understand what all the fuss was about.

“Not justanygoose,” Adalia seethed. “The goose from her paintings!” She gasped. “Do you eat your goats too?”

Stella shrugged. “I believe in the circle of life,” she said haughtily. “Diego wouldwantus to have a delicious Thanksgiving dinner, looking at his portrait while we enjoy his bounty.”

“But younamedhim,” Maisie said, wrapping her arms across her chest. “You treated him like a pet. And now you want toeathim? Can you not see that this is massively screwed up?” She glanced up at Jack, her eyes glassy with unshed tears.

Was she thinking about Jack holding the goose in his arms? If not for Diego, he wasn’t sure he and Maisie would have ever had their night together.

“The goose that destroyed my old room?” River asked, and Georgie gasped.

River looked like he wasn’t sure how to react. Then again, Adalia had shown him the pictures. That goose had crapped on just about every surface in River’s old room.

“Get it out!” Adalia repeated, pointing to the back door. “Now!”

“What’s going on, dears?” Dottie asked as she walked through the back door into the now-crowded kitchen. “Oh, Stella. You made it.”

“These young folk are carryin’ on about me cooking Diego,” Stella said with a scowl. “But I think their ingratitude really stems from this one”—she gestured to Adalia—“worrying that I’m gonna try to steal her man.” She held up her hands in surrender. “I call a truce. Your man’s off-limits today.” She shot a dark look at Maisie. “I make no promises about yours.”

“Maisie’s?” River asked in surprise, then glanced at Maisie. “You have a boyfriend I don’t know about?”

“No,” Maisie barked, a little too quickly for Jack’s taste, then turned her attention to Stella. “I thought you’d claimed Lurch.”

“A woman can enjoy the company of more than one man,” Stella said with an upturned chin.

“So theyareswingers,” he heard Maisie say in a whisper, nudging River.

Everyone remained silent for a moment.

“This town is so freaking weird,” Iris said in disgust from the doorway. “This never would have happened in Chicago.” Then she spun around and flounced off.

“I’ve heard Chicago is a very dry town,” Dottie said absently.

Jack had no idea what that meant, and he wasn’t sure he wanted to know.

A cat shrieked out back, and Jack realized if Dottie was inside, then no one was attending the fryer. With Jezebel outside, having snuck out the front door earlier…

Oh shit. They didn’t need another dead pet at the party. Maisie would probably have a heart attack.

He raced out the back door just as Dottie said, “What’s the fuss? Diego played his role in the great circle of life.”

“That’s exactly what I said,” Stella agreed amidst a flurry of other comments.

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