Total pages in book: 30
Estimated words: 29018 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 145(@200wpm)___ 116(@250wpm)___ 97(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 29018 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 145(@200wpm)___ 116(@250wpm)___ 97(@300wpm)
90s Christmas pop music floods through the speakers per the girls’ requests. Despite the fact it’s neither Jaye nor mine’s favorite, we suffer through for their sake.
The shit you do as parents, am I right?
Having my preplanned stop lingering in the front of mind, I find myself checking my phone more often again.
Too often given the suspicious glares I’m tossed from the passenger seat.
“We’re gonna stop by the Harry’s Hardware closer to the office,” I announce as I take the exit. “We need a couple magic logs for the fireplace, and I know they’ll be closed by the time we’re done with dinner.”
No one seems phased by my statement filling me with the first ounce of relief I’ve had all day.
Keep your toes crossed someone has some idea about Jedd’s whereabouts.
At the store, I try persuading everyone against going inside, yet Henz magically has to pee, which means Rainne also has to pee, which means Mom has to go in because only she can take them to the restroom when we’re out as a family.
I would if they’d let me.
On our way in, just on the other side of the sliding glass door monitoring the carts, is the face I was starting to fear we’d never see again.
“Welcome to Harry’s Hardware!” Jedd joyfully greets per his job requirement.
“Jedd!” the girls shriek in tandem rushing over to hug him.
Jaye’s gasp almost isn’t heard over Rainne’s interrogating when he squats down to be eyelevel, “What are you doing here?!”
“Where’s your gluitar case!?” Henz quickly follows up. “Did you lose it?!”
“It’s in my closet,” he casually answers while letting the girls fix his crooked Christmas hat and jingle bell necklace. “They don’t let me bring it to work.”
Their jaws drop in tandem, yet it’s my youngest that squeaks, “You work here?!”
“I do.” His eyes briefly cut up to mine prior to answering them. “I have a job and a phone and one day real soon I’ll even have my very own place to put your pictures up in.”
“Ohmygod!” my daughters shriek in unison, frightening a few customers passing by. “Santa did it! Santa did it! Santa did it!”
I do all the heavy lifting just to let the asshole get the credit. Again…the shit we do for our kids.
All of a sudden, Jaye curls her body tightly against mine, arm wrapping around my lower back as she realizes what my secret work project really was.
Jedd does his best to play coy. “And what exactly did Santa do?”
“All that stuff!” Henz answers on unnecessary jazz hands. “We wrote letters!”
“Oh yeah?” He continues to engage, doing his best to warmly wave to customers coming and exiting. “Asking for what?”
“You to have all of that stuff, silly billy,” Rainne girlishly giggles during a sassy headshake.
Jedd sweetly smirks and begins nodding in understanding. “You didn’t ask Santa for toys? Just for me to have somewhere to work?”
“And live,” Henz states with a set of finger guns.
This is why we don’t let her have so much sugar. She turns into an exercise in overacting.
“Well thank you both for that,” he states to them prior to tossing another brief glance my direction. “And thank Santa for me too if you see him, okay?”
“We’ll add it in our thank you cards when we get home,” Rainne swiftly promises.
“Jedd’s probably gotta get back to work, angels, so how about you two go potty with Mom while I go grab those fire logs?”
They both happily agree, hug him once more, and promise they’ll start bringing him pictures here instead of where they used to see him. He politely waves to my wife, and I wait for them to be completely out of earshot before losing my shit.
“Why the fuck haven’t you been answering your phone?”
Jedd answers post repeating the required greeting. “Phone’s dead.”
“Why didn’t you charge it?”
“I’ve been at work.”
“All goddamn day?”
“Yeah, actually.” His gaze latches onto mine. “I typically charge it in the morning while I shower and shit, but I got a call fuck early that begged me to come in way before my shift. They were shorthanded – people evidently hate to work Christmas Eve – and needed the extra hands. Figured more money was better and that coming in when needed like a superhero would look good to management when it comes time to move me from part time to full time.”
Nodding at his point is instantly done.
“My cell is completely dead, man. I had to use the front desk phone to call an Uber just to get here.”
Another wave of relief that he didn’t bail hits me hard in the chest. “Where’d you get money for an Uber?”
“The money I’d typically use for lunch.”
“Jedd-”
“Don’t worry, man. They’ve got complimentary ‘ish here for the employees all day and I’ve got ish in my fridge at the hotel, plus the popcorn if I get the munchies. Oh! Thank your father-in-law again for me for the plate of leftovers. Can’t remember the last time I had lambchops and those whipped potatoes with chives are almost too good to be true.”