AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Ignore your bad feeling and grab a box!”
Carrying the box outside, she waited for Merry to follow empty-handed or not, and was pleased to see her sister come from the back with a large box in her arms.
“Atta girl, Mer.”
“If I go to jail before my wedding, you’re fired as my maid of honor.”
“Harsh, but fair,” Holly joked, setting down the box to lock up her shop. It took a few minutes to unlock the door to the hardware store because it kept sticking, but when Holly twisted and pushed the door open, she smirked when no alarm went off. Even if someone saw them go inside, they’d just think the Winters sisters were doing a neighborly favor. No reason to be suspicious.
Once they made it inside, Holly lugged the box over to the window and set it down. “First we have to clean up this weak ass set-up.”
She removed the open toolbox and other power tools that currently took up the space Holly wanted to fill. When she shut the lid of the toolbox, a cloud of dust rushed up and down her throat, making her cough. Merry pounded her back until Holly was able to wheeze, “You’re going to break something, She-Hulk.”
“Hey, if you’re rude, I’ll drop a dime on you right now,” Merry said with a poke to Holly’s ribs.
“Or you can go back to the shop and get those other two winter boxes we didn’t use. I left them in the back room. Oh!” Holly snapped her fingers. “And my Santa Johnson.”
“We’re not putting that in the display window, are we?” Merry gasped.
“No, of course not. I have other plans for him.”
To Holly’s surprise, Merry didn’t refuse or try to talk her out of what she planned to do. Either she figured it would be futile or maybe Merry thought deep down Declan deserved a little razzing. “Fine, but only because I need the cardio.”
Holly chuckled as she opened up the box at her feet and pulled out a girl gnome with Christmas lights in her hair and a boy gnome dressed as a reindeer.
“Whatever you need to tell yourself, sister dear.”
Merry rolled her eyes and left Holly humming Taylor Swift’s “I Did Something Bad.” Holly unpacked one of each variously dressed gnomes and set them on the counter, eight in total.
“You ready to party?” she said aloud, picking up the Santa gnome and answering in a deep voice, “We sure are, Merry. We’re going to make that Declan rue the day he ever told you to turn your music down.”
“It’s official. I’m Thelma to your Louise,” Merry said upon her return.
“Maybe find two female criminals who don’t die at the end of the movie? Just a thought,” Holly said, loving that her older sister tried to talk sense to her even as she was aiding and abetting in the prank. While her siblings could make her crazy and vice versa, if she ever needed anyone to have her back, Holly knew it would only take a phone call and her family would be there.
“Idgie and Ruth from Fried Green Tomatoes,” Merry blurted, opening up her box. “They killed a man and lived…well, until Ruth got cancer. Damn. Nevermind.”
“First of all, that is not how the movie went. Sipsey killed Frank.” Holly waved an electric drill at Merry and added, “I’m going to tell Mom you couldn’t remember the plot of her favorite movie.”
“And I’ll tell her that her little princess is a burglar.”
“I’m rubber and you’re glue, Mer.” Holly blew her a kiss and went to put the last of the tools away.
“What is your vision for this display?”
Holly made it back up front and started searching through the drawers behind the counter, looking for scissors and tape. “Like a gnome Christmas party.”
“I thought gnomes were pagans.”
“That would be Druids. Or maybe elves.”
“I’ll go get that other box while you figure out which one,” Merry said, walking out the front door and closing it behind her.
When Holly pulled out the bottom drawer, lying on top was an upside-down photo frame. Holly flipped it over and stared at a younger version of Declan Gallagher wrapped up in the arms of a smiling woman who shared his deep-green eyes. His father stood next to them stiffly, almost like he’d been photoshopped in because his somber expression didn’t fit with the joy on the faces of mother and child.
The front door crashed open and Holly dropped the photo back into the drawer and pushed it closed. When she stood up, Holly laughed as her red-faced sister set the box she was carrying down with a heavy sigh.
“Whew, I’m going to sit a minute. That was a workout.”
