Chapter 2
CHAPTER 2
LIGHTING UP THE NEIGHBORHOOD
Annette
N ow that my rush of alarm is subsiding, I can see in the darkness there have been clues all around me that this man is putting up Christmas lights—he wasn’t sneaking onto my roof, even though that’s exactly what it looked like.
The police officer parked out front is halfway across the lawn to us, the lights on his car still flashing, when Reese’s car skids to a stop just behind his. That daughter of mine is going to pop another tire if she keeps coming at curbs so fast.
She leaps out and races across the lawn, passing the officer, calling out, “ Mom ! Are you okay? Is someone hurt?” When she reaches us, she adds, “ Hammy , I told you not to fall off the ladder! Mom , you weren’t up the ladder, too, were you?”
Spark barks, happy as ever.
“ You know this man?” I ask her.
She nods. “ This is Hammy from Outside the Bubble Club .”
Reese’s roommate, Charlie , catches up a second later. She crouches beside the man, putting an arm around his shoulders. “ And he’s my honorary dad.”
“ We’re doing service projects,” Reese says, “and we decided to put up your lights because I know how important it is to you.”
“ For the record,” the man tangled with me says as he motions with arms strewn in lights toward the flashing red and blue on my house, “those are not the lights I was trying to bring to the season.”
The nice thing about being on this earth for a little over five decades is that you no longer get as easily embarrassed as you did in your younger years. But apparently, accusing a man who’s trying to help of being a thief, your dog knocking him off his ladder, falling onto your rear, and getting tangled in a mess of lights—while wearing a pencil skirt, of all things—is enough to do it. My face is probably as red as Santa’s suit. Hopefully , everyone assumes it’s from the cold.
Reese begins untangling the Christmas lights trapping me as I apologize to Hammy . By the time Reese offers a hand to pull me to my feet, I’ve said “ I’m sorry” using about every phrase possible. It’s a bit of a rambling blur, but I might’ve even said, “ My bad,” and “ Oopsie - Daisy ,” two phrases I’m sure I’ve never said in my life.
I pick up Spark and cradle her to my chest. Once my dog and I are no longer tangled with him, Hammy has no problem at all hopping to his feet.
“ So …” a voice behind me says, “ I take it everything is okay?”
I whirl around to face the officer, who I somehow completely forgot about. Even with his flashing lights bouncing off my house, my neighbors’ houses, and the snow that covers everything. I apologize to him, too.
Once the officer is pulling away, I say, “ Give me a minute to change,” then I grab my suitcase and my puppy and head into my house. As soon I shut the door behind me, I close my eyes and take in a slow breath. I can’t believe I thought that man was breaking into my house! I blame it on the fact that I was just on a full flight, seated between a kid watching Home Alone and a man watching Die Hard .
I change into warmer clothes and snow boots and head back out to join the awkward situation. I stand at the base of Hammy’s ladder and feed the string of lights up to him as Charlie untangles the mess we made by getting trapped in them. Reese is handing clips up to Hammy and frequently voicing her worries that he might fall again.
I have to admit I’m glad I took the earlier flight home and got assigned this task because I have a great view of Hammy’s backside. And it’s a really nice backside. Especially for someone his age. Not that I know how old he is. By his face and hair, I’m guessing he’s in his sixties. Maybe even sixty-five. But his physique is of someone closer to my age who likes to stay fit and active.
It hits me that this might be the first time I’ve checked out a man’s backside since Bryce . Reese will be so proud! She’s been trying to nudge me toward dating again.
And there’s more to check out than just Hammy’s looks—his movements are mesmerizing. Each time he repositions the ladder, he places it so perfectly that it never needs adjusting. I’ve never heard someone climb up and down a ladder so silently before. And he has such incredible balance that he never holds onto the ladder or house—he just attaches clips and lights quickly and seamlessly.
He’s one capable man. And so willing to help. It’s been a long time since I’ve had that in my life. “ So , Hammy ,” I ask, “how did you get so good at working atop a ladder?” Maybe he has a career in home construction.
He twists to look at me and says with a wink, “ Oh , that’s from my covert infiltration training as a top-secret government spy.”
I can’t help it— I laugh heartily. I’m glad he’s already viewing my accusing him of thievery through the lens of humor. I appreciate that.
“ What do you do for a living?” he asks.
“ I work at a promotional products company.”
“ She doesn’t just work there,” Reese says, “she’s an executive.”
Hammy’s eyebrows rise. “ Impressive .”
I shrug as I work a minor tangle out of the lights. “ It’s a byproduct of working at the same company for over a decade.” Well , that, and working my tail off.
“ Is your company Merchify Your Brand ?”
This time, my eyebrows shoot up in surprise. “ You know us? Usually , people don’t.” I tap a finger on my lips. “ Let me guess. You know because of the secret spy thing.”
An expression flashes on Hammy’s face that’s hard to read. “ Yes . As a spy, I’ve often found that promotional sunglasses are great for going undercover at beach resorts, especially when they’re comically large ones. Espionage and sunbathing overlap more than you’d think. Oh , and those glow-in-the-dark key chains are surprisingly handy for marking covert drop locations at night.”
“ And let me guess. You get the branded magnets for securing mission blueprints to the fridge in the spy lounge?”
“ I didn’t realize our secret was out. Did you also know that we use custom mouse pads and spy logo mugs as consolation prizes for operatives who get stuck with desk duty?”
“ I didn’t . But I heard you use the branded lip balm before tense negotiations because chapped lips—”
“—are the real enemy,” we both say at the same time. I can’t help laughing. Hammy is so fun to talk to. “ We’ve been missing out on so many customers by not marketing to spy agencies! I’ll have to talk to our sales department.”
“ You might double your profits.”
Hammy and I smile at each other for a moment before he climbs down. As he’s moving the ladder to the next area, he says, “ Actually , I work for a business solutions company where I do a lot of graphic design and corporate branding. I create the images, and I recommend our clients order their promotional products from your company.”
A smile spreads across my face. I’ve worked tirelessly at Merchify Your Brand . Meeting someone who’s been recommending us to their clients is like spotting a unicorn in the wild.
Mostly because of Hammy’s efficiency, we finish much too soon. Reese sends us to the sidewalk in front of my house, does a dramatic countdown, and then turns on the holiday lights. We all clap and cheer. I even get a little teary-eyed. Lights are one of my favorite things about Christmas , and I didn’t think I’d get to see them on my house this year.
Not only do I want to thank everyone for making my house look so festive and beautiful but I want to talk more with Hammy , so I invite everyone in for hot chocolate. I get Spark food and water first since she’s been so patient. As I’m opening my cupboards and fridge to get ingredients, I say, “ I have a recipe I made when my kids got together with friends to sled down Doomslide Summit .”
“ I loved that place,” Reese says wistfully before adding a much more robust, “ I survived Doomslide !” as she throws her fist into the air.
I loved the place, too, because of how much happiness it brought my kiddos. I find the recipe to make sure I haven’t forgotten anything over the years. Whew ! I’m not missing any ingredients.
As I’m pouring milk into the pot, Reese comes over and I say, “ I can’t believe you set this all up. Thank you.”
“ I can’t believe you came home early.” She pops a chocolate chip into her mouth.
“ Today would’ve been less embarrassing if I’d kept my original flight, that’s for sure.”
Reese grins. “ Well , you’ve been saying you want more excitement in your life.”
“ Not in the form of me accusing ‘ Santa’s Elf ’ of being a Grinch !” Although , chatting with Hammy did start to fill my empty need-for-excitement bucket.
“ You don’t have enough excitement in your life?” Hammy asks.
I shrug. “ I haven’t done anything simply for fun in so long. Between running a business and running a family, I didn’t have anything left for fun.”
“ We should change that,” Hammy says. “ How about the two of us sled down Doomslide Summit tomorrow night? It’s supposed to snow in the morning, so there’ll be fresh stuff waiting for us. We’ll pack the most fun into one night as possible.”
A smile spreads across my face. I’ve never wanted to date just for entertainment. But going on a date with Hammy for pure enjoyment is something I can’t pass up. “ The most amount of fun possible? Obviously , I have to say yes.”
Hammy smiles. “ It’s a date, then.”
I turn to stir the hot cocoa and smile. A date. I’ve got myself a date .