Jingle all the Mitchell Way: a holiday novella(7)
“You wouldn’t have it any other way.”
Just then I saw the swinging door to the living room coming ajar. Two little girls ran while screaming, being chased by their aunt who was pretending to be a cat. They clung to both my legs once reaching me, acting as if she were really going to harm them. “Dude, leave my girls alone or I’ll sick a big dog on you.”
Reese rolled her eyes. “Big dog? You’re more like a cute Pomeranian. You can bite ankles, but not do much damage.”
There was a lot I could have said to come back at her, but one look at my wife told me I better behave. “Girls, pretend to be big dogs. Go get her!”
They looked at me with their bright brown eyes and matching dimples for a brief moment, contemplating if my idea would work. Then, almost at the exact time, I watched them go after Reese, chasing her back into the other room.
Amber had her hands on her hips, giving me a look of approval. “You really want that pie later, don’t you?”
“You’re damn right, I do.” I smacked her lightly on the ass. “I’m going to clean out the fryer. If you need me I’ll be outside.”
When I walked out of the house I finally felt as if we were going to pull Thanksgiving dinner off without another major catastrophe. For once, things seemed to be looking up, instead of turning to complete shit.
Chapter 4
Jake
I hadn’t thought this completely through. Was I really willing to trap myself in a small metal living space for an entire month? Would Amber even go for it?
Since it seemed like Reese was on board, I decided in some ways I still owed Jax for betraying his trust so long ago. Sure, everything turned out better than either of us could have imagined, but the road to redemption had been rocky.
At any rate, I’d already arrived at the motorhome business in hopes of being able to make Amber’s dreams of being in a movie a reality.
An older man came walking out a side door of the house located next to the business. He was patting down his white hair as it blew in the wind. With a hand extended, he stopped in front of me. “Welcome to RV World. I’m big Joe.”
“Hey, Joe. I used to attend school with your son, Joe Jr. We played football together.”
“I remember. You and your brother were a force to be reckoned with. It’s a shame you didn’t go pro, son. You both had potential.”
“Yeah, well life kind of happened instead. Speaking of which, that’s sort of the reason I’m here. I’m sorry to come on Thanksgiving, but we’ve run out of options. You see, my sister-in-law is a model.”
“Yeah, I know the one.” He snickered. “Small town. Everyone knows everything.”
“True. The thing is, she’s been offered a part in a movie, but she and my brother have twins girls, and the schedule would take her away from them for a month. I’m not real sure how this is going to play out, but my fiancée and I thought if we could rent an RV we’d be able to keep them together for the holidays.”
He rubbed his chin as if he was considering my idea. “I don’t normally rent RVs.”
Just when I was about to feel defeated, he reiterated. “But I know your daddy, and his for that matter. You come from good people, so I’m sure I’ve got something on this lot that will get you where you need to go. You sure you’re not interested in buying one of these? I’ve got a great one that’s been sitting here for a year.”
I shrugged. I’d never much thought about it. It would be nice to camp with the family while still having the luxuries of home. The women wouldn’t bitch as much, and us guys would have time to relax. “I suppose for the right price I could be.”
I wasn’t a fool. Anything that sat on a lot for a long period of time had to have defects. “What’s wrong with it?”
Nothing. I’m obligated to tell you about the previous owners. A husband and wife purchased the motorhome to travel to Florida for the winter months. They picked the RV up on a Thursday and headed out that following Monday. They got about twenty miles down the road and the old man had a stroke and passed away. In light of what happened, his wife returned the unit. It seems that the news of someone dying behind the wheel has prevented anyone from purchasing it. It wouldn’t be right for me to keep it a secret.”
“How much of a discount are you willing to give me to take it off your hands?” I was intrigued. Jax might be freaked out about it, but I couldn’t have cared less. One man’s loss was my gain. If this guy was willing to take off enough money, I’d be interested in owning.
“Let me show you the motorhome. If you like it I’ll show you some comparisons and then we’ll talk money. How’s that sound?”
“I’m sort of pressed for time. I need to be back before dinner, and I’m sure you don’t want to spend the day here.”
“We’ve got some time,” he reassured me. He wanted the sale, and I was hopeful we’d be able to work something out.
We spent two hours touring each trailer on the lot, starting with the used unit. In all honesty, I didn’t know the first thing about motorhomes. We’d camped out of a cabin my whole life, and the idea of being able to pick up and drive away was appealing. I knew we’d get a lot of use out of it. The more I looked at them, the easier my decision of buying one was becoming. Against Reese’s judgment, I fell victim to my own bad habits and took the plunge into ownership.