Sheila raced back and forth toting the pretty packages and piling them near the door. “I feel like I should have worn my black leggings and sweatshirt,” she said. “Hurry! Go. Go. Go.”
He laughed at her silly antics. “You went bonkers. What all did you buy?”
“Mostly practical stuff for the family, but toys for each child, socks, mittens, the works. Okay, bonkers. Yes, just call me bonkers.”
“Is that it?” He double-checked the car.
“Yes. Come on. Let’s get out of here.”
He hopped into the driver’s seat and smashed down on the gas pedal so hard they kicked up dust all the way out.
Sheila held her breath until they cleared the driveway gatesand got back on the main road. “Thank goodness.” She couldn’t stop laughing. “That was so exciting.”
“It was!” He tapped the steering wheel, humming “Dashing through the snow…”
Lights swept the pavement ahead of them. The car passed them going toward the castle house.
“That might have been them,” he said.
“You think?”
He held his hand up for a high five. “Mission accomplished.”
Chapter Twenty-six
“That was a blast,” Sheila said as they drove back toward town. “My heart is still pounding.”
“I’m worried you might be cut out for a life of crime. Fast cars and getaways and all that.” Tucker gave her the once-over.
“Don’t you worry about that. I’ll always be one of the good guys.” She crossed her heart. “Promise.”
“I’m glad to know that.” He looked at his watch. “I think we could head over and get to work on the boxes if you like. The folks bringing in all the food to be packed up should have cleared out by now.”
“That sounds great. We can get an early start,” Sheila said. “Let’s head that way.”
“Do you want to stop and switch out to my truck?”
“No. We can drive this. We don’t need to move anything, do we?”
“Nope. Everything will be right there at the fire station.”
“No reason not to just go straight there, then. I’ve been looking forward to this all day,” she said. “Take me to your leader. Wait. No. You’re the leader.”
He laughed. “I suppose I am.” He drove to the firehouse, and parked her car around back by the second-floor entrance to the community room.
They walked upstairs, and he held the door for her, and then moved past her to turn on the lights. “Sorry it’s so cold in here. I’ll bump up the heater a couple degrees. They must have had the doors open while they were bringing in the supplies.”
“That’s okay. It’ll warm up.” She jogged in place.
Cardboard-box flats lay in a neat stack with a yellow band around them.
On the other side of the room, cases of food lined the wall, filled with all the makings of a full Christmas dinner, from stuffing to green beans to jellied cranberry sauce, and everything in between.
“This is alotof food,” she remarked.
“We have a lot of families in need. Our town is small, but the county is big. It’s been a hard year for a lot of these people. If it weren’t for this effort, they might go without. You’d be surprised this food doesn’t go as far as you’d think.”
“Let’s be sure that won’t be a problem this year.” Sheila took off her jacket and hung it over a chair. “Where do we begin?” She rubbed her hands together, looking like she was hoping it would warm up fast.
