A Christmas Peril (The Teacup Novellas - Book Five) by Diane Moody Page B

could you write down your
telephone number so I can call you when that happens?”
    As Marco
jotted his number on a scrap of paper, Abelina motioned for me to join her
beside Gary ’s bed. She held my hand and placed her
other hand on Gary ’s. I smiled, remembering how my mother
had done the same thing just a few hours ago. Abelina smiled at me then closed
her eyes. In her native tongue, I could tell she was praying. Marco joined us,
quietly sharing her prayer with me.
    Moments
later, they left. I returned to Gary ’s bedside and took his hand in mine. I felt
it immediately ‌—‌ the
heaviness that had shrouded me seemed to have lifted. And for the first time I
let myself hope ‌—‌ truly hope. I glanced over at the
tin of cannoli and smiled.
    “ Gary , Mrs. Bertolucci said God told her to
make those cannoli for you. And she said He wouldn’t have told her to make them
if you couldn’t eat them. Isn’t that something?”
    I
kissed his hand and set it back down. I made my way over to the tin, curious to
take a peek. But as I started to untie the homespun ribbon, I stopped and
peeked back at Gary .
    “Okay,
okay. I’ll save them for you. But just so you know, it’s a tremendous act of
sacrifice on my part. I’ll bet you those cannoli are absolutely divine.”
    As I
sat back down, an idea started to form in my mind. Why stop with Mrs. Bertolucci’s
Christmas cannoli? What if we celebrated Christmas here ‌—‌ right here in Gary ’s room? I looked around, my mind suddenly
racing with ideas. I dug a small notepad out of my pocketbook and started
listing them all.
    I
finished half an hour later just as Mr. and Mrs. Reynolds arrived.
    I
practically jumped up to see them. “I’m so glad you’re here! Wait until you
hear my plan!”

    “Hey,
Sis? What in the world are you smiling about?”
    I
snickered out loud as I threaded the satin ribbon to mark my place in the
diary. “Hi, Chad . Just lost in Lucille’s world for a
while. She’s come up with some kind of plan to have Christmas right there in Gary ’s hospital room. Crazy, huh?”
    Chad dropped his coat on the other chair and
sat on the edge of Mark’s bed. “I don’t know. Sounds kind of fun. We could do
that.”
    “What?”
    “Well,
face it, Lucy ‌—‌Christmas
is just a few days away. And unless your Sleeping Beauty here decides to snap
out of it tonight or tomorrow, I think Lucille might just be on to something.”
    I
stared at him, my mind already bouncing back and forth between a 1944 hospital
room filled with Christmas decorations and brightly wrapped gifts and the room
I was now sitting in. A row of floral arrangements lined the window sill,
including some wilted purple mums I didn’t have the heart to toss out. I’d
taped all the get-well cards Mark had received on the wall opposite his bed.
Otherwise, the room looked like every other hospital room I’d ever seen. Plain
and dull, and terribly depressing.
    I
looked back at my brother. “Y’know, I think you’re right. We could totally do this.”
    “Sure
we could.” He plopped his size-13 Nike on his other knee. “School’s out now so
I can be your gopher. Just tell me what you want.”
    I
stood up and stretched, realizing I hadn’t been out of my chair in a couple of
hours. “Good grief. I think my body has started molding itself to this lovely mauve
vinyl.”
    “Why
don’t you go home for a while? I can stay as long as you need me to. Go take
another soak in your tub.”
    “Thanks,
but I’m okay.” I wandered over to the window, looking out into the darkness. I
shivered, watching the trees bend sideways in the blustery wind. “Looks frigid
out there.”
    “Coldest
December on record. They’re saying we might actually have a white Christmas
this year.”
    “Seriously?
I can’t even remember the last time that happened.”
    “I
think you were still in diapers, if I recall.”
    “Diapers,
huh?” I pinched that tender spot between his neck and his shoulder.