Page 45 of A Winter Thaw

“I don’t think Shep will want that,” Elaine said, laughing.

“No, I don’t think it would go well with the brown sweaters and khaki pants that he always wears,” Audrey teased, making Elaine snort with amusement as they kept walking.

“Look,” Elaine said, picking up a butter dish shaped like a femur. “He could bring this out at Halloween.”

Audrey let out a squeak of distaste. “Ugh, it shouldn’t be out ever. Talk about ruining someone’s appetite!”

“Or what about this?” Elaine held up a plate that had a picture of a singing tomato on it. “This has plenty of artistic flair.”

Audrey chuckled. “Listen, I know you’ve helped Shep find his sense of humor, Mom, but I don’t know that he’s ready for a totally off the wall gift like that.”

“It’s not off the wall. It came off this table here.”

Audrey groaned over Elaine’s silly joke, and Elaine gave her a sideways hug, chortling.

“Come on,” Elaine said. “Let’s go where all the real treasures are.”

They reached the section of the antique store that held the baking and cooking supplies and began to look around in earnest. Audrey had a feeling that if they did find anything for Shep in the antique store, it would be in that section. Elaine seemed to think so as well, because she was rummaging through everything with a determined look in her eyes.

Audrey was staring at a cookie jar shaped like a chubby cat and wondering if Shep might like it or not when she heard Elaine say, “Hmm!”

“What?” Audrey asked curiously. Her mother was standing with her arms crossed, her head cocked to one side. She was peering intently at something, and as soon as Audrey saw what it was, she laughed out loud. “You’re not really thinking of that, are you?”

“I think I am.” Elaine’s expression was a mixture of surprise and delight. “I know it’s goofy, but I really think Shep will like it.”

The item in question was a crock pot that featured a picture of the Grinch, scowling, wearing an apron, and wielding a spoon. It looked to be perfectly functional, and clean, but it was so odd that Audrey could hardly believe her mother was seriously suggesting it.

“Are you sure?” Audrey stepped closer to the crock pot. “I mean, it looks nice, but…”

“I know you’re thinking there might be something better, but I really don’t think so.” Elaine sighed. “I’m at the end of my rope here. I’ve been looking and looking for ages, and this is the first thing I’ve found that I think might be right. Shep said once that he’s never owned a crock pot before, so this is perfect because he really should own one. And the Grinch picture is hilarious—he knows he’s an old grump so he’ll get the joke and it’ll make him chuckle.” She put her hands on her hips, squinted at the crock pot for another second, and then nodded. “Yes. I like it. I’m going to buy him this.”

“Okay.” Audrey laughed as Elaine triumphantly picked up the crock pot and began to carry it toward the front of the antique store. “Are you going to have to check a second bag to bring it home, though? It won’t fit in your suitcase, will it?”

“Yes, I probably will.” Elaine’s enthusiasm was undaunted. “It’s okay, it will be worth it.”

They made their way to the front of the antique store, where Elaine paid for the crock pot, and the proprietress wrapped it up in tissues and newspaper.

“Enjoy.” The woman smiled at Elaine. “This is a really fun one. Is it a Christmas present?”

Elaine took a deep breath and let out a sigh of satisfaction before answering. “Yes, it is.”

“For someone with a great sense of humor, I’d say.” The proprietress handed her the wrapped crock pot inside a large bag. “They like the Grinch?”

“Oh, something like that.” Audrey bit back a laugh. “Thank you very much.”

Elaine and Audrey stepped back out into the snowflakes. Elaine held the crock pot close to her chest, hugging it tightly as if it were a precious thing. Audrey wrapped an arm around her mother.

“You finally did it, Mom. Do you feel ready for Christmas now?”

“Oh boy, do I.” Elaine’s smile was radiant. “Coral Sands, here we come! I think this is going to be the best Christmas any of us have had in a long time.”

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

“Are you excited, Puddle? Are you?” Michelle looked down at the puppy, who was sitting expectantly and wagging her tail wildly as if she knew what was happening. Michelle and Puddle were waiting at the gate at the airport, ready to welcome Elaine and Audrey home. Michelle had arrived at the airport a whole hour early, since she was impatient with excitement. She’d bought herself a boba tea and wandered around with Puddle, browsing the gift shops and expectantly checking the arrivals board.

Finally, she’d seen that Elaine and Audrey’s plane had finally landed, and she and Puddle had parked themselves at the gate entrance. It had already been twenty minutes, and Michelle was starting to feel just as wiggly as Puddle looked.

Gosh this is taking a long time, she thought. Are they even off the plane yet? I know sometimes it takes a while for people to be able to disembark.