Evergreen by Susan May Warren Page A

single-handedly managed to drive the last nail in the coffin of the live Nativity.
    “It’s over. The Westerlinds have sold all their goats and are moving to Florida. And there isn’t a bunny to be found in the county, let alone a sheep. And I’ve tapped out all the young couples on the Mary and Joseph list.” She set her head in the cradle of her arms.
    “Aw, c’mon. You can’t find anyone to stand outside in below-freezing temperatures? Shocker.” Ellie walked by, carrying a handful of hangers with angel wings attached.Edith and her hospitality crew had decked out the church for tomorrow’s live Nativity.
    “Maybe we should stick a doll in the manger, dress up a couple of mannequins, and make it all about the angels,” Ingrid said, offering a lopsided smile to Annalise, who had engineered the cookie drive and now assembled trays for the exchange.
    Annalise swiped a gingerbread cookie from the tray, handing it to Ingrid. “Have some sugar. I think you’re starting to get delirious.”
    Ingrid took the cookie. “I just want to leave town. Maybe I should have taken John up on his offer to go to Europe. It’s not sounding so crazy now.”
    “How is Amelia?”
    “Fabulous. Going skiing in Switzerland with friends over the holidays. I’m sure we would have cramped her style, tromping around Prague. But Paris would have been fun.”
    Maybe. The idea of standing in the frigid wind above Paris as they renewed their vows seemed more ironic than romantic, however. Their entire marriage had turned frosty over the past three weeks, thanks to her belief that she could somehow mother Romeo into wholeness. She should have learned her lesson   —she couldn’t even mother her own family into healing. She’d never seen her brood sofractured   —Casper in Roatán, living the life of a pirate on the Caribbean. Eden and Grace in Minneapolis, starting their own lives. Amelia storming Europe, and Owen . . . who knew where?
    Her last letter had come back Return to sender, address unknown . And he hadn’t responded to any of her Facebook messages. Only his recent phone call to Eden, and the confirmation that he had headed west to Vancouver to stay with some hockey pals, kept Ingrid from losing her mind.
    Please, Lord, let him be okay.
    “It would be a shame to cancel the live Nativity after John built that fortress.” Annalise added a cup of tea to Ingrid’s cookie therapy. “I think Mary might have preferred it over the stable Joseph found for her. Did I see baseboard patio heaters attached to the stable?”
    “Yeah. We used them for the deck, back when the resort hosted a Christmas open house. They actually keep the area pretty warm.”
    “And lights? And a new manger?”
    Ingrid nodded. John had thrown himself into the transformation of the rickety community prop, rebuilding it into work of art. She had to give him kudos for that. Even if he couldn’t fix their marriage, he could build her one mean stable.
    A regular Joseph.
    He’d even added a painted sign advertising the event for everyone driving by. An event that would be missing a holy family.
    As Annalise returned to organizing the cookies, Noelle brought her own cup of tea over. She wore a pair of jeans with a gaudy Christmas sweater. Ingrid eyed it, made a face. Noelle made a face back at her. “I found it in the back of the closet and decided to embrace the ugly-sweater trend.”
    “Hmm. Maybe don’t embrace it quite so heartily,” Ingrid said.
    Noelle laughed. “How’s Romeo? I didn’t see him in church last week.”
    “He’s angry. Sullen. Not talking to us. He hasn’t forgiven us for driving his brother away, as he puts in. And his mother isn’t helping   —she’s struggling through her treatment. Romeo called the social worker a week ago and asked to be moved. She said that she’d try to find him a new placement, but I think it’s probably not easy so close to Christmas.”
    She tried to deliver her report without her throat closing