“It is,” Mabel said firmly. “Just come on in and draw a name. It’ll only take a second. Someone might already have yours, you wouldn’t want to get a gift and not give one, would you?”
“Well… no,” Imogen admitted, following the women in with a look on her face that said she thought her best friend and Mabel might have gone a little crazy from the holiday stress.
“It’s really not that big of a thing,” Vanessa insisted as the three women headed into the toy store. “It’s just a fun little thing Mabel and I came up with.” She waved a hand as if it were no big deal. “Very casual, very low-key.”
“It’s a nice way to spread a little holiday cheer around the community,” Mabel added, trying to sound convincing. “Nothing fancy or expensive, just thoughtful little gifts between neighbors.”
Imogen still looked uncertain. “I don’t know… I’m so busy with the shop right now, especially with this magazine feature coming up. I’m not sure I have time to?—”
“Oh, but it’ll be so much fun!” Vanessa interrupted, a little bit too eagerly. “And really, it’s just one small gift. I’m sure you could find something perfect without much trouble at all. I haven’t drawn yet, maybe I’ll get your name,” she added, and Mabel shot her a look.
“It’ll only take a second,” Mabel said quickly, as they ushered Imogen inside.
Vanessa had already swapped the bowl that everyone else in town was drawing from with the jar they’d prepared specially for Imogen, a tartan ribbon tied around it to really sell the idea that it was the normal, festive jar that everyone was picking from. To any casual observer, it looked like a perfectly normal name-drawing setup.
“There are a lot of slips left,” Imogen said as Mabel grabbed the jar and handed it to Vanessa. “I thought you said everyone was doing this.”
“Well, they are,” Mabel said firmly. “We’re still getting the word out. Like catching you on your way out!”
“Here you go,” Vanessa said, presenting the jar with a flourish. “Just reach in and grab one.”
Imogen looked between the two women, clearly sensing that something was slightly off about their behavior but unable to put her finger on exactly what. “Are you sure this is a real thing? Not just something you two cooked up to distract me from stressing about the photo shoot?”
“I’m insulted that you would suggest such a thing,” Mabel said, trying to look hurt while simultaneously fighting back laughter. “We would never resort to such underhanded tactics.”
Vanessa nodded solemnly, and Mabel could see that she was struggling too. “Never. We’re pillars of the community. Paragons of honesty and straightforwardness.”
“Right,” Imogen said dryly. “That’s exactly what people plotting something would say.”
“Really,” Mabel insisted. “I even had George pick a name, in case he feels well enough to participate.”
Imogen looked at them for a moment longer, then shrugged, reached into the bowl and selected a slip of paper. Without looking at it, she folded it and tucked it into her coat pocket.
“Aren’t you going to see who you got?” Vanessa asked, trying to contain her excitement.
“I’ll look at it later,” Imogen said. “I need to get home and get Katie settled so I can get back to planning. I’ve got about a million things to do before this photoshoot next week.”
Mabel and Vanessa watched in slight dismay as Imogen headed for the door. They’d both been excited to see Imogen’s reaction to drawing Lincoln’s name, and if it was what they’d thought it would be.
“But don’t you want to know—” Vanessa started to call after her.
“Thanks for including me,” Imogen said over her shoulder. “I’ll figure out something nice for whoever I drew.”
And with that, she was gone, leaving the two women staring after her.
“We did it!” Mabel said triumphantly, once Imogen was in her car and well out of earshot. “Operation Christmas Valentine is off to an excellent start.”
“Is that what we’re calling it?” Vanessa laughed. “I can’t believe we actually pulled it off. Both of them have each other’s names now.”
“So what do you think will happen when they figure out they have each other?” Mabel grinned. “This will push them in the right direction, right?”
“Honestly? I think they’re both too stubborn and cautious to make a move without a little more nudging,” Vanessa replied. “This might not be enough. They might get each other a gift card and call it a day. Especially since Imogenisso busy.”
Mabel’s eyes gleamed. “More meddling?”
Vanessa nodded, clearly all in by this point. “Definitely more meddling. But subtle meddling. The kind where they think everything is happening naturally.”
Mabel grinned. “You really are my granddaughter. I’ll start brainstorming.”
