Page 2 of Christmas Mittens Murder

Hayley opened her mouth to try one more time to offer a generous donation, but Reverend Ted spoke before she had the chance. “Your brother Randy’s business is also doing remarkably well, even during the off-season.”

“Yes, he’s got a fully stocked bar that comes in mighty handy during the cold winter months here in Bar Harbor when almost everything else is closed for the season.”

“And yet he was more than happy to offer his own Drinks Like A Fish holiday gift basket loaded up with some of his top-shelf booze, various cocktail mixes and shot glasses and all sorts of goodies and special trinkets. Wasn’t that thoughtful of him? Your brother has always been so public-spirited.”

Checkmate.

Hayley nodded, accepting defeat. “When do you need my basket?”

“Friday would be just fine,” Reverend Ted said without missing a beat. “Now, if you would be so kind as to have Betty bring me my check, I need to get back to the church. There is so much still to do before the big bazaar.” He finished the last forkful of Yule log cake, and then grabbed his napkin and wiped his mouth clean. “Can I give you a lift home?”

“Oh no, I’m not going home. I’m meeting friends at Drinks Like A Fish,” Hayley blabbed without realizing.

Reverend Ted nodded knowingly.

It finally dawned on her.

Too busy to make a gift basket for the Christmas bazaar but not too busy to drink with friends even while her restaurant was still open.

Not good optics at all.

“We’re celebrating. Liddy sold that mansion down on West Street that’s been on the market all year,” Hayley offered weakly.

“Well, please, don’t let me keep you,” Reverend Ted chirped, working hard not to show any judgment on his face but failing miserably. “I will see you Friday when you deliver your basket.”

Yes.

Friday.

When she would have the time to pull it all together was still an open question. But right now, her focus was on getting out of here before there was another crisis in the restaurant she would have to deal with, such as a dissatisfied customer, a lost reservation, a fire in the kitchen. She had seen it all this holiday season.

After waving good night to Betty and the waitstaff and extricating herself out from under the watchful eye of Reverend Ted, Hayley jumped in her car and sped over to her brother Randy’s bar, which was mostly empty at this late hour except for a couple of regular bleary-eyed fishermen at the end of the bar downing shots of whiskey and Liddy and Mona chattering on top of stools at the opposite end. Mona was guzzling her usual Budweiser from a can, and Liddy was sipping her typical cosmo.

Hayley hopped up on a stool next to Mona. “Sorry I’m late. I got hung up at the restaurant. Reverend Ted cornered me and talked me into—”

Mona interrupted her. “Donating a gift basket for the church Christmas bazaar. Yeah, we already know. He stopped by my lobster shop earlier today and asked me to do the same. I told him I was already going to hell, so why bother kissing up to the church? But that didn’t seem to stop him from pestering me! He just wouldn’t let up with the arm twisting until I finally yelled, ‘Uncle!’ So I think I got an old picnic basket in the attic I can use and I’ll throw in some gift certificates for lobsters and scallops and maybe a few touristy trinkets I sell in the shop like those cute lobster trap magnets for the refrigerator.”

“I think that’s adorable, Mona. You do you. But my basket is going to be the big grand prize of the raffle,” Liddy insisted.

Hayley cocked an eyebrow. “He got to you, too?”

“Oh yes. He showed up at my office yesterday and told me how much I smelled good, and I told him it was this very expensive new body lotion I got on my last trip to New York, Laura Mercier Ambre Vanille Soufflé Body Crème. Well, the next thing I knew, I was volunteering a gift basket full of beauty products and spa creams. So I win.”

“It’s not a contest, Liddy,” Mona growled.

“People who say that know they can never win,” Liddy snorted.

“She’s right,” Randy concurred as he delivered Hayley her usual Jack and Coke. “Besides, if anyone is going to win a contest on who can make the best holiday gift basket, it’s going to be me hands down.”

Hayley nodded. “He’s right. No one can compete with a basket full of booze.”

“I can!” Liddy cried. “I guarantee you my basket will get the most raffle tickets!”

The annual Christmas bazaar tradition was to set out a goldfish bowl next to each holiday basket and all the attendees would deposit one or more of their raffle tickets in the bowls for the drawing. Often people would buy twenty tickets at once and stuff them all in the bowl for the basket they really wanted, so the most popular basket was always obvious, given how the goldfish bowl next to it was overflowing with tickets. Hayley had reasonable confidence in her baking skills and felt that she would garner a healthy pile of tickets and be able to at least compete with Mona’s seafood and Liddy’s spa package, but Randy remained the wild card. She could see him walking away with it.

But with her healthy competitive streak, she was now willing to give it a try. And the unofficial contest for the most popular Christmas bazaar gift basket between the four of them was underway.

Chapter Two

---