Page 146 of The Holiday Fakers
“What about Marv? Where does he go?”
“He used to go to his sister’s place in Missouri, but she died a few years ago. He always invited me, but I think it was more for protection, as she was a drunk and lived with about fifteen semi-feral dogs.”
“Jeez.”
“Yeah. I don’t know what he does now. Probably the same as me, just stays in his apartment and binge-watches shows.”
“There’s nothing wrong with that,” Piper says firmly. “But from now on, both your Christmases are going to look a little different.”
“You’re inviting Marv as well?”
“Yes. Mom already said he’s going to be with us, and I know his heart’s in the right place, even if his brain got lost yesterday.”
My own heart’s so full it’s pressing into my throat. “I love you so much.”
“And I love you too.”
“You do?”
“Only for about the last sixteen years,” she replies with a grin. “It’s old news.”
My smile is so big it makes my cheeks ache. “Well, it’s new news to me. Do we need to tell Lady Lovewatch?”
“I’m sure she already knows.”
A few weeks ago, all I could see in my future was work, but now all I see is happiness.
“I want to do everything Christmassy with you that I’ve missed out on since leaving Hideaway,” I say. “Roasting chestnuts, movies, midnight mass, ice skating, sledding?—”
“Sledding?”
“I bet you’ve still got the sleds your dad made when you were kids.”
She grins. “Yup. Think you can still handle Seller Hill?”
“Hell yeah.” I hold up my hand. “Last one to break their leg is a loser?”
She high-fives me as she laughs. “You’re on.”
A hundred years ago,there used to be a market at the base of Seller Hill, hence the name. Now it’s also known as Cellular Hill, since the top is the only place you can guarantee mobile reception.
After getting a sled from her folks’ garage, Piper and I take the salted path to the top and peer down the smoothest slope to the bottom.
“If we were alone, I might consider wussing out,” she says. “I haven’t done this since I was a teenager.”
The air is filled with shouts and excited screams as kids throw themselves down the hill.
“I don’t do my own stunts,” I say. “But the guys I know who do would love this. They’d go down headfirst.”
Piper shudders. “That’s the kind of thing Hudson and Mia might do. But only in an attempt to show the other up.”
“We don’t have to do this. We could just watch everyone for a bit?”
I put the sled down and sit on one side, patting the other for Piper.
She perches next to me, and I sling an arm around her, holding her close.
“I’ve had an idea,” I say.
