A Myrtle Clover Christmas

Chapter Nineteen

The next morning, Elaine called Myrtle first thing.

"Elaine? Need help with something?"

Elaine said, "I'm actually calling because I want to help you with something. You've been so great to drop everything and lend me a hand lately that I woke up today feeling like I needed to return the favor."

"Well, isn't that sweet! Not that you had to do that, of course. It's always a treat to watch Jack and helping with the Christmas pageant was very interesting." Myrtle fudged just a bit on the pageant.

"Regardless, I'd like to do it. Is there anywhere I can drive you today? That's one thing I do extraordinarily well—drive. I feel like I'm in the car half the day, anyway." Elaine gave a breezy laugh.

"Hmm. I hadn't actually planned my day out, but I was thinking yesterday that I'd like to buy Jack a red wagon for Christmas. All children should have a red wagon. Then he can pull it around the backyard and put acorns and sticks and such in there."

"I think that's really sweet, Myrtle. He'd love it. He's always picking up rocks outside and putting them in a place of honor in his room. So, the hardware store, then? I think I saw wagons for sale there."

Elaine pulled up in the minivan minutes later into Myrtle's driveway. Myrtle climbed in the front seat and turned around to beam at Jack, but Jack wasn't in his seat. "What happened to Jack?"

"Oh, he's playing with a friend of his at the friend's house. A playdate."

Although Myrtle was glad to hear that Jack had friends, she felt a little sad that he was old enough to have them and to go out on playdates.

Elaine drove them over to the hardware shop. The store was well over one hundred years old, with mainly the same family in charge of it. They stocked everything from seeds to baby chicks to tools. You could also pick up an old-fashioned soda like Cheerwine or Blenheim Ginger Ale.

The wagons were right up front, near the sleds. Myrtle said, "I think they're always overly optimistic about the sledding forecast. We haven't had snow here in forever." She paused. "Jack does have a sled, doesn't he?"

Elaine looked as if she might be concerned Myrtle would go over her Christmas budget. "He has Red's old one, yes."

Myrtle looked pleased at that. "That was a good sled, I remember . . . a Flexible Flyer. Although even Red didn't get to use it that often, with the lack of snow. All right, so we'll just get the wagon."

But before they could take it up front to get it checked out, a voice behind them said, "Hello, ladies!"

They turned to see Edgar standing there. "Good to see you both." He held up some towel rods. "I'm just picking up some things for Glynis's house. I've got to change things up a little while I'm there. Make the place my own."

Myrtle thought that was rather ambitious of him, considering the house technically wasn't his own.

He gave Elaine a wink. "This must be Red's wife, then?"

Elaine gave him a small smile, and Myrtle pressed her lips together in annoyance at Edgar. "Yes, this is Elaine. The police chief's wife." She said the last bit as something of a reminder.

"A pleasure to meet you," he said with a grin. He looked again at Myrtle. "And you look very nice today, Miss Myrtle."

"Why, thank you. And I'll be getting a new hairdo later, courtesy of your daughter. Faith always does a fine job."

Edgar said, "She's a nice girl, isn't she? Hope Faith will be less stressed than she was when I spoke to her yesterday. She was all tensed up and ready to snap my head off." He chortled at the thought.