“I wish I had that kind of faith in cards. Or fate. Or whatever that is.”
“I’m not sure it’s faith in anything but my own self, my higher self.” Bekka chuckled softly. “Tonight, I’ll show you. Let you see that it’s not hocus pocus, but focus and self-reflection.”
Mari nodded. “Okay. I’m in. I can’t say I don’t understand and then not let you try to explain it, right?”
Well, Mari could, but the fact that she wasn’t doing it made her feel ten thousand feet tall.
“This is the place, right?”
“It is. I want to find Bry something silly, maybe a puzzle or some such.” He needed more play in his life. Seriously.
Mari was in a very good mood considering the morning they’d had. “Where is your family?”
“Momma passed away about three years ago—breast cancer—and Daddy is remarried to a lady in Sweden. He left for vacation and never came back.” It had been great for him, and she had a new place to visit. Dallas was getting lonely, though.
“Wow. Do you see him? I’ve never been to Sweden; it seems like such a long trip.”
“I have, yes. It’s great. So beautiful. I’ve been twice, and it’s amazing.”
“I bet. Oh, puzzles. Look at these; they’re like sculptures.” Mari picked one up. “The Empire State Building. Cool.”
“Oh, that’s neat, isn’t it? And there’s the Taj Mahal!” Bry would love that, she thought. It would be a challenge, something beautiful.
“Very pretty. And different. And it would take him a while, which might be a good thing?” Mari picked up a smaller one that was a tiger and then another that was a perfectly round ball. “Hm. Something like this would work for my team too. I’ll think about it.”
“Bry’s not a big art guy, so a puzzle would be better.” She handed it to Mari, because she couldn’t crutch and carry.
“Got it. Are we going to sing on our sleigh ride? Seems like we should. I can’t believe tomorrow is Christmas already.”
“You know it!” She loved to sing, even if she wasn’t any good at it.
“We’re all warmed up for it after our stellar karaoke performance.” Mari chuckled. “Speaking of which, are you hungry? We should go get lunch after this.”
“I could so eat—you want burgers? Sandwiches? Pizza?” Or soup. Soup sounded perfect. “Maybe a nice soup with a piece of bread.”
“Ooh. Soup. Or stew. Or chili.” Mari grabbed a couple of the smaller puzzles as they moved along.
“Yeah. That sounds great to me. Tomato soup in a bread bowl.” She licked her lips and hummed.
Mari set the presents down on the counter, and the sales-clerk smiled at Bekka. “How sweet. She’s you’re hero, right? Carrying everything for you?”
“She was my hero before that. This just makes her a stud, too.” She did have a backpack to hold the things they needed.
“That’s me. I just need a cape and a muscle shirt.”
The clerk blinked at Mari who kept an absolutely straight face. “That’s a look.”
“Totally. The sequins make it.” Bekka could keep a straight face with the best of them.
“A sparkly cape? I’m in.” Mari’s fingers threaded with hers and held on.
“Excellent. I love the visual.” The shopkeeper winked at Bekka, making her chuckle.
“I don’t share, but, trust me, I do too.”
Mari laughed as they paid for their gifts, but Bekka noticed the blush anyway. Mari let her hand go so she could pack the backpack. Then helped her get it back on.
“You two have a Merry Christmas.”