Love for the Holidays Box Set

And Good Will To All-9

“You ready?” I asked as I walked into the living room on Christmas Eve.

Cecil had agreed to work for five hours tonight, which would be enough time for me and Mack to enjoy the party. I promised to bring back a piece of Jenna’s fruitcake as his reward.

“Yeah.” Mack fidgeted with the cuffs of the white shirt he’d borrowed from me. He wore a burgundy sweater over it. I was dressed in a similar fashion, but with a purple sweater and a gray tie over a light green shirt.

I touched his arm lightly. “It’s okay. Stop worrying.”

He took a deep breath and nodded. “You’re right. I’m being silly.”

Figuring that was the best I could do, I grabbed my jacket from the wrack near the door. Lonnie did the same. I locked the door behind us and led the way to my SUV. He’d left his car parked at the office.

The drive to Jenna’s took forty-five minutes. We didn’t talk much on the way, but it wasn’t a tense silence. I chose a classic rock station as background music.

“Do you—” Mack started to say, but I couldn’t hear the rest of his question, so I turned the music down.

“Do I what?” I asked.

“You think they’ll ask questions? About me?”

“If they do, it’s only because they care. They really don’t mean much by it. People around here…a lot has happened since you left. Factories closed, and some of the mom and pop stores have been replaced by big box alternatives up the road. So folks appreciate the young ones who stayed and especially those who come back. To them, it means the town still has something to offer.” I overtook a Buick going ten miles under the speed limit. “Anyone who returns is like the prodigal son or daughter.”

“Huh.” Mack nibbled on his thumb, something I remembered he used to do a lot as a teenager when he was thinking hard.

“You’ll see.”

Finally, we pulled off the highway and drove through some back streets to end up parking before a house lit up with Christmas lights, like all the others around it. Even I had to admit it was pretty, though you wouldn’t catch me dead with anything like that at my place.

A reluctant chuckle came from Lonnie. “Wow, they really like Christmas, huh?”

“Guess so.” We got out of the car, and I walked with him to the front door. “They do this every year. Jenna is always complaining about how long it takes to put up the lights. This would drive me crazy.”

Mack looked over at me as we stood at the front door. “Yeah, I remember now. You never got into the whole Christmas thing, did you? Your uncle had to make you help him with the decorations. Hell, for that matter, I haven’t had much of the Christmas spirit either, especially these last few years.”

“Yeah.”

I knocked on the door. Jerome opened it. Soft Christmas music mingled with the sound of happy voices in the room behind him.

“Heya, Charles!” He pulled me into a firm hug, then turned to my companion. “And Lonnie McDaniel, it’s good to have you back with us, for however long that is.” He gave Mack a hug, too, which Mack reluctantly returned.

“Uh, thanks,” Mack replied. Sensing his discomfort, Jerome stepped back and waved us on.

“Come in, come in!”

We entered the house, and Jerome took our coats.

The place was wall-to-wall people. I could see Jenna in the crowd. She looked up and waved us over. I greeted people along the way, re-introducing them to Lonnie as we moved slowly through the throng. Everyone remembered him, and they were kind and welcoming. I could feel Mack relaxing beside me as we went along.

Good.

Jenna embraced us, one after the other. “I’m sooo happy you made it, guys! Isn’t it great? I think the only person not here is Cecil.”

“Yeah, and he made me promise to bring him some of your fruitcake.”

“I have it in a container, ready and waiting.” She grinned at us.

“Thanks for inviting us, Jenna,” Mack added to my pleased surprise. He gave her a smile, which, while not at the wattage we were used to as kids, was enough to make her bat her eyelids at him.

“Of course, you’d be invited. You’re part of the family.” She leaned in to kiss his cheek. “We’re glad you’re here.” She stepped back and clapped her hands to get everyone’s attention. “Okay, folks, time for the pink elephant game!”

It took a minute, but everyone found a spot to stand around the room in order to watch the action in the middle. Before she kicked off the activities, Jenna told both of us that she had donated gifts in our names so we could participate.

We all took a number and waited our turn. Some of the gifts were beyond funny. I mean, what on earth would I use fake dog poop for? Or a Chia Pet? In the end, with lots of frantic trading and maybe a little bribery, I ended up with a desk version of an air hockey game, and Mack got a retro cell phone handset. We counted ourselves lucky, considering some of the other items that had been in play around the room.

Mack and I didn’t drink any of the punch since we’d been warned it was spiked, but we had soda. It was nice to see him open up a little, though he wasn’t quite as gregarious as he used to be. Maybe he’d get that back some day.

When it was time to go, I hugged Jenna, thanking her sincerely for having us over. Mack actually leaned in and kissed her on the cheek. She blushed and not because of the punch. Actually, she’d had a bottle of water in her hand for most of the evening, which I’d thought strange. I smiled to myself and took the plastic container that held Cecil’s fruitcake from her. We walked through the dwindling crowd to the door where Jerome met us with a thermos, also for Cecil.

“Happy Holidays to you, and I’ll see you on Monday.”

“Merry Christmas, Charles, and to you, too, Lonnie. Here’s hoping we won’t have any robbery attempts this year.”

“Fingers crossed!” I held mine up and winked at her before we grabbed our coats from Jerome after a round of handshakes, and left.

“Well, what do you think now?” I asked Mack as we drove back to the office.

“I…It went better than I expected.” He shifted a little in his seat. “The people here are the same, but not really. It’s not that folks aren’t still in your business, but I don’t mind it so much anymore. Maybe time has mellowed things out, too. Now, the gay thing?” He shook his head in wonder.

To his surprise, there had been a few same-s*x couples at the party, people we’d grown up with, too. I’d also informed Mack that everyone had known about us being together in high school.

“Surreal, right?” I said.

“You have no idea,” he replied.

When we got back to MyStorageHouse, Cecil was getting ready to go. I handed over the fruitcake, which he took with alacrity, along with the thermos of some killer eggnog prepared liberally with Kahlúa, according to Jerome.

“Thank you, Cecil. Much appreciated. Jenna and Jerome missed you. And,” I handed him a gift that Jenna had set aside for him, “this is for you, too. Happy Holidays.”

“Thanks, Charles. And Lonnie, welcome back, son. Merry Christmas to you both.” He clapped the man on the shoulder and then hustled out the door.

I turned to face Mack. “I’m gonna head home. I’m glad you had a good time tonight.”

“I did, Charlie. It means a lot to me, all you’ve done to make me feel welcome. You don’t know how much—”

He seemed to be trying to keep his composure. I couldn’t help it. I pulled him into a hug. Mack embraced me tightly in return, his face buried in my neck as a shudder went through him. It felt good to hold him again. I wanted to protect him, keep him safe from harm.

“It’s okay, Mack. I’m here. Everything will be better from now on, you’ll see.” I rubbed his back slowly up and down, giving him a chance to regain control of his emotions. I kept whispering promises in his ear, things that I hoped would soothe and give him hope.

After a while, he calmed down and stepped back, wiping his face and sniffling. I pulled my cell phone out of my pocket to check the time. It was midnight. For once, I could say the words without rancor.

“Merry Christmas, Mack.” I smiled softly at him. “Welcome home.”

He laughed. “Merry Christmas to you, too, Charlie, and thank you.”