Page 29 of A Christmas Duet

At another booth, they shared a box of kettle corn, and from another, Jay purchased her a T-shirt with the name of the festival and the year on the front.

“This is fun,” Hailey said, and she meant it. Over the years she’d been to countless Christmas events that far outclassed this smaller Podunk celebration. And yet, the feeling, the atmosphere, was completely different. This was small-town America at its best. Neighbor greeting neighbor, friends exchanging wishes of good cheer, an innocence of sorts that was missing in Portland. The ambience was unlike anything Hailey had ever experienced. If she could wrap that feeling up, she would, as it was one she wanted to hold on to for a good long while.

“I will wear this T-shirt with pride,” she said, genuinely touched by Jay’s thoughtfulness. “I hope you bought one for yourself, too.”

Jay chuckled. “I couldn’t resist. The funds go toward expanding the town’s library.”

Library? What library?

Hailey had driven around town a few times and had yet to see any building that resembled a library. “I didn’t know Podunk had a library.”

“They don’t yet. Not a building, at any rate. What we have now is inside the barbershop, which is attached to the hair salon.”

“The barbershop, really?” Well, books were books, so she guessed it didn’t matter where they could be found.

“It started as a joke when Abel, the only barber in town, couldn’t keep up with customer demand. Men often sat around for an hour or so before it would be their turn. It’s better now that his son has become his partner. Until Junior came alongside his dad, folks in town knew it would be a long wait.”

“What about Lovely Lather? A lot of women style men’s hair.”

Jay shook his head. “Men around these parts want a barber, not a stylist,” he explained.

“Why not?” That was archaic thinking. “Are the men in Podunk afraid the stylist will wrap their head in curlers and perm solution?”

Jay laughed. “No. Men on this side of the state like to be men. It’s apple pie, guns, and the American flag in these parts.”

That was pure foolishness to Hailey’s way of thinking, but she didn’t say so. “Okay, now my curiosity is up. What led to the barbershop lending books?”

“It all started with Pete, who farms around here. He claimed in the time he had to wait for a haircut, he could read an entire book. It became something of a joke. Next time Pete was in town, he brought along the latest John Grisham novel and left it for the next patron. Soon there was an accumulation of thrillers, spy novels, and science fiction.”

A library that had started with a joke.

“Not to be outdone,” Jay continued, “the stylists at Lovely Lather added titles they thought women would be more inclined to read: romances, women’s fiction, cookbooks, and the like. Soon the shelves were bursting with books of every genre. The kids’ section was by far the fastest-growing. Books were overtaking the space.”

Hailey could imagine that happening, as if it became a competition between the two sides.

“After Mom was elected mayor, she reached out to the state for funding for a real library. It took some grit, but then, if my mother is anything, it’s determined. She got the state to agree to pay half the cost if the town could raise the rest. Last I heard, every store in town has contributed in one way or another.”

“That’s wonderful.”

Thelma walked up from behind them. “Jay and his band gave us a big push, donating the proceeds from one of their shows toward the building.” She slapped Jay across the back. “The singing is about to start. You need to be there.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

Thelma headed toward the gazebo, and Jay and Hailey followed. “The singing?” Hailey asked. Earlier she’d heard the woman with the twin boys mention a songfest.

“A few folks in town get together a couple times a year to provide the music for special events.”

A small tidal wave of people formed a half-circlearound the park’s gazebo. Hailey heard a little girl ask, “When will Santa arrive?”

“After the singing.”

“I don’t want to sing. I want to see Santa.”

“He’s coming, I promise.”

Hailey smiled at the exchange between the parent and the child, recalling her own excitement over Santa as a youngster.

Jay and Hailey were able to get into position near the front of the gazebo.

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