Unforgettable Christmas - Gifts of Love (The Unforgettables Book 3)

by Mimi Barbour

  “No, but he isn’t an early riser. He doesn’t live too far from here. I’ll pop in and make sure nothing happened to him.”

  Kay tilted her head to the side, asking ‘huh?’

  Jay saw her confusion, so explained. “Lumpy had money in his pocket yesterday and the prospect of more coming his way if you found a generator for him. He may have gone on a bender. I don’t think he’d fall down drunk and get hurt, but it wouldn’t be a bad idea for someone—me, not you—to check on him. I’ll be right back. Go on inside and get warm. I just made some coffee and there’s half a box of donuts. Help yourself.”

  Jay jumped into his twenty-year-old white 4WD Dodge truck that now sported red, green, and blue hood and fenders, and left the parking lot, the trail of foggy exhaust following behind him like a tail on a kite.

  Kay let herself into the shop and poured herself a cup of coffee, grabbed one of the apple fritters from the donut box and a paper towel, then made herself comfortable in the duct-taped office chair. She shoved aside the opened and unopened mail, parts boxes, and shop-rag wrapped oily parts, clearing a space to put her caffeine-and-sugar breakfast. She had been too nervous and excited to eat earlier when she saw an email from her father’s friend in her inbox. ‘Here’s a great deal for you. Don’t go too skinny on it! There’s plenty of room here for you to make a good chunk of change. Have a merry Christmas, Uncle Vern.’

  He wasn’t her real uncle, but Vern had been looking out for her since she could remember. Actually, now that she thought about it, Vern had been the one who started her on her way to being an entrepreneur. ‘You’ll never make much money working for someone else. Find out what folks want, make sure you have the sale, then get it for a good price. Mark it up a bit and make darned sure the customer is happy with the product. If something goes wrong, you gotta stand behind it, even if you lose a few bucks. Your business depends on a good reputation. People will forgive an ‘Ah, shoot!’ if you own up to it. Start making excuses for shoddy goods or service and you’ll never get that customer back. And believe me, he’ll tell all his friends about you, too. Now, if you do him right, he’ll tell his friends about that, too. And remember, no matter what you do with your life, folks are going to see you as a woman first. Sometimes that can be to your advantage, other times, it’s a liability.’

  Yes, she had taken Uncle Vern’s words to heart. When her job working as a parts buyer for a contracting company meant being laid off for six months out of the Alaskan year, Kay had decided to start her own business. She had found the right niche, too. Small companies, especially those in remote areas, weren’t getting the customer service they needed. A few ads in the right places also got recurring small orders from village governments who were happy to have someone willing to gather up goods all around Anchorage, put them into a flat rate box, and mail them to the Bush. She did learn very early to get paid before shipping, though. Taking charge cards had saved her bank account. Small local governments weren’t too quick to mail out checks.

  Yes, she’d only been self-employed for one year, but she wouldn’t have it any other way. Plus, now she had that money from the hit and dash driver. She really couldn’t call it a hit and run event since she’d been paid for the damage, but the driver did seem to be in a big hurry to leave.

  Kay took another sip of coffee, then pulled out her mobile office: her smartphone. She used her laptop at home for most of her work, but she could at least keep up with emails with her phone.

  After reading both of her legitimate emails, she started browsing her junk file, passing over those that didn’t interest her, finally getting lost in downloading the free e-books of the day from several of the promotional sites she had visited months ago.

  She was deep into a romantic suspense story on her Kindle app when she heard the door slam and felt the cold air whoosh past her.

  “Sorry. I didn’t mean to slam the door. A gust hit it.”

  Jay snorted and amended his statement. “No, I really did slam it. That jerk went and got himself another DUI! That’s fifteen according to the clerk downtown! Lumpy won’t be going anywhere for a long time. Do you happen to have the contact information for that miner? I’d hate for you to lose the sale because he couldn’t keep away from the booze.”

  “Um, no. Lumpy was playing it real close to the chest.” Kay snorted in derision. “I’m sure if I had put out, he would have shared everything.”

  “Including herpes. He’s not a clean man.”

  “Oh, my! Thanks for the warning, even though I didn’t plan on getting close enough to catch a flea, much less an STD! Do you know if they allow visitors at the jail? Maybe I can find out something. I mean, we did have a verbal agreement to share the profits 50-50. Hopefully, he’s man enough to stand on his word.”

  “You can try,” Jay said, leaning against the bolt bins. “Just remember to tell him that if you can’t follow through on this sale for him, he’ll get 100% of nothing. I’m sure he’s never said anything around you, but he doesn’t trust women.”

  Kay snorted. “People who don’t trust aren’t trustworthy. But from what little you’ve shared with me, it wasn’t necessarily the woman’s fault.”

  “That’s neither here nor there. Lumpy tends to hang around barflies who’ll do anything for a few drinks and a warm place to sleep. When he’s passed out, a few of them have helped themselves to whatever they can grab, which is usually cash.” Jay shook his head and changed the subject. “Go ahead and get down to the jail, but make sure you have your ID and remember to take your Leatherman out of your purse before you go in. Oh, and it wouldn’t be a bad idea to have a contract ready for him to sign, giving you equal share of the profits for the generator sale.”

  “Got you beat on that one! I drafted a contract even before I found the generator. But thanks for the reminder about the knife. I would have forgotten that one. You’ve got my number, but I don’t have yours.”

  Jay shook his head. “Don’t have a cell phone, don’t want one.”

  “Okay, then I’ll call here if I need anything.” Kay looked at the bulldozer at the back of the shop. “Looks like you’re almost done there. I’ll stop in at the contractor’s office and pick up the check for the parts while I’m downtown. Is there anything you need while I’m out?”

  Jay paused for a moment to take in Kay’s beautiful dark green eyes, her lips parted slightly in anticipation of his response. Did he need anything? Oh, to have the guts to tell her the truth! That a few minutes, hell, a few hours, of skin-on-skin time with her would be all he needed… Instead, he said, “I’m all set here. For now,” and added a wink.

  Maybe one of these days she’d see him as a man, not as a young, greasy mechanic who worked for a fast-talking drunk.

  ***

  After signing in, showing her drivers license, and letting the desk officer know who she was visiting, Kay was finally able to relax in the waiting room. Sort of. It reeked of industrial cleansers and hopelessness, but at least she was on the outside and could leave whenever she wanted. It wasn’t as if she’d be spending the holidays here, even as a visitor. Just get the contract signed, and Lumpy would be out of her life forever.

  “Kay Miller?” the officer called out into the waiting room.

  As she got up from the molded plastic chair, the static electricity held onto her woolen scarf. “Just a minute,” she said nervously, and turned back to retrieve the last gift her grandmother had made her. “Yes, sir, officer sir,” Kay stammered. “I’m Kay Miller.”

  “You can go in there and talk to your friend on the phone. The clerk said you had a paper you wanted him to sign. We have a notary here if needed. Just hand it to the her before you sit down.”

  Kay slipped the one-page document into the steel trough and waited while the clerk looked it over. “This is it? No power of attorney papers?”

  “No, ma’am. This is strictly for a business transaction that was started…” Kay wanted to say, ‘before he went out drunk driving and blew it,’ but ins
tead, cleared her throat, “That was started yesterday.”

  “Hmph! Most women come in here with a fistful of papers, wanting to get their man to sign over power of attorney to them so they can go and sell his cars and property and stuff while he’s in the slammer.”

  “Oh, no! I’m not his girlfriend or wife or anything like that. We’re just business associates.”

  “Well,” the dark-skinned matron said with a sigh of genuine relief, “That’s good to hear. Lumpy spends more time in here than he does out. Watch out for him. He’s slick and could talk the pelt off a grizzly bear if he wanted.”

  “I’ll be careful. If you can witness his signature on this, though, I’d appreciate it. I don’t want him coming back at me down the road, saying that I forged his name.”

  “That’s my girl. I’ll be right around. Go ahead and sit in front of him in the other room. You’ll be able to see him behind the glass, but you have to use the handset for him to hear you.”

  Lumpy was waiting for her in his orange jumpsuit, leaning toward the half-inch thick plexiglass window, all giggly and smiles like Santa was paying him a visit and had a sack full of toys.

  “Hey, there, little lady! I knew you’d come see me! I was telling all the guys in here that I had the cutest little girlfriend.”

  Get the paper signed first, then set him straight on relationship status. Kay took a deep breath for composure, then looked up and found her opening line. “What happened to your head? Looks like a butterfly bandage that maybe should have been stitches.”

  “Oh, that,” he said and reached up to the gash above his eyebrow, wincing at his own gentle touch. “I wouldn’t let them stitch it. They said they’d have to give me a shot to numb it first, and I won’t let nobody stick a needle in me. I’m pure that way. Never a shot in my life! But anyhow, you should see the other guy!” he boasted, his chest puffed out in pride.

  “Okay, as long as it doesn’t get infected. Anyhow, I need to get the name and phone number of the buyer for that generator. I didn’t want you to think I was going to go around you and take your sale, so I wrote up this contract. It says we split the profits 50-50 from the sale. I just need you to put in the client’s name and contact information, sign it, and then I can go ahead and get the ball rolling.”

  Lumpy took the contract from the prison clerk. “Thanks, Louella. My, my, you’re looking nice today.”

  “Save it for someone who’ll fall for your sweet talk, Lumpy. Just look over the paper, and if it satisfies you, fill in the blanks and sign it so this lady can get on her way. You only have a couple of minutes, and then we’re shutting down for lunch.”

  “Who stepped in your grits, Louella?” Lumpy asked sarcastically, then backed down when he saw the clerk wasn’t in a joking mood. “All right, all right. Let me see.”

  Lumpy studied the paper, following each sentence with his index finger as he read it. “Hmm… It says you’re buying the generator for $29,000 and selling it for $40,000. I think you can get at least fifty grand out of it.”

  “No, I can’t. I want to get this over and done with,” she said with an unexpected sharpness in her voice. She leaned forward to emphasize her point. “If there wasn’t another gen set in the state, that’d be one thing. The Cat dealer has one for $48,000 and I know they’re negotiable. Get the sale now and you can have your share in just a few days. Or whenever you get out. After all, 50% of $11,000 is better than 0% of $50,000, which is what you’d get if you got greedy.”

  “Ah, you’re probably right. Ain’t she a cute little gal, Louella?” Lumpy said, then bent to scribbling on the paper. “What is the date, anyhow?”

  “November 22nd. Do you need to know the year, too, lunkhead?”

  “Now, Louella, why do you talk so mean to me? Of course, I know what year it is! It’s just this time of year, the days go by so quickly.”

  Louella took the paper from him, signed her name, and stood back. “Now you got two more minutes and then this place is locking down. Say what you want and be quick about it.”

  The clerk looked through the security glass at Kay, rolled her eyes, then shook her head and frowned before leaving through the secured exit.

  Kay smiled weakly at the silent comment about her business partner’s character.

  “Now that’s what I want to see! I want to see you smile at me again. Go ahead, give me a great big smile like you’ll give me when I get out of this joint. You know, they never should have arrested me. I mean, it wasn’t even my car, and I’d only had a couple sips of wine with a great big dinner. How was I to know I was going the wrong way on a one-way street when they pulled me over? The signs had snow all over them. That and I couldn’t let that jerk I ran into get away with calling me those names!”

  “I don’t know anything about what happened, Lumpy. I just came in to make sure you weren’t hurt, which you were, and that we got this sale going so you’d have money once you got out. Jay said you were charged with a DUI which means you’ll probably need a lawyer. The profit from this may not cover all your expenses, but it’s a start.”

  The loud obnoxious blare of the klaxon signaled that their meeting was over. “Be careful in there. I’ll be in touch,” Kay said, then hung up the phone and stood up.

  Lumpy, evidently wanting to say more, took the phone from his ear and pointed it at her.

  “Yes,” she drawled into the phone.

  “I love you. And I’ll make this all right when I get out of here.”

  Suddenly, the broad body of Louella was between Kay and the security window. “He’s getting obnoxious, isn’t he?” she said. “Don’t worry, he can’t hear me, but be careful: he can see your face. Just wave your hand and get the heck out of here. You don’t belong in a place like this, and he does.”

  “Thanks, Louella. You’re right. I’m going right home and scrub my ears with soap and hot water. Just listening to him gives me the willies.”

  ***

  Kay bundled up with coat, scarf, and gloves before leaving the warmth of the jail into the arctic blast of yet another incoming storm. She didn’t use her key to remote start her car, though, until she was standing right next to it. The Anchorage Jail parking lot should be secure, but it was still in a rough neighborhood. A running car without a driver would be too much of a temptation to some, even if it was to just sit inside of it and get warm.

  Pulling out her notebook and scanning over her to-do list, Kay saw that the only thing left today was to get paid by the owner of the bulldozer in the shop. “Cool! Just a few blocks away.”

  Evidently Jay had called first, because the woman at the front desk not only knew who she was when she walked in, but had the check waiting for her. “The boss said he sure appreciates the quick turnaround. We’ve already had a lot of snow, and there’s another storm front coming in. Looks like the skiers and snowboarders are getting their prayers answered.”

  “And the truckers, too. There’s enough snow to haul for all of them this season,” Kay added. “If there’s anything else you need for the yellow tractors, let me know. I don’t know if the boss knows it or not, but just for the record, I don’t do trucks.”

  The receptionist laughed. “I don’t blame you. The problem with fixing trucks is that then you have to deal with the truckers! Believe me, I know enough about that. I get to give them their checks, too. You wouldn’t believe the stories I hear!”

  “I’ll take your word for it. Stay safe if and when you go out. Oh, and watch out for the intersections. They’re especially slick.”

  Kay walked over to her car, made sure she was out of sight of the contractor’s office, then did a mini version of her happy dance, waving her hands in front of her chest as she neared her car. “Save the full dance until you get on solid, non-slippery ground. Next stop, the bank, then the grocery store. I’m going to load up on salad bar stuff and to heck with how much it weighs! I may even make a second container just for fruit and desserts!”

  Chapter 6

  The next day


  “Hello, Yardley. I got you some treats. Here, I’ll put them on my glove.” Jay brushed off the deck of the small Caterpillar D3 bulldozer with the back of his work glove, then took it off, laid it palm up, and sprinkled a few kitty snacks into it. “You don’t seem too afraid of my voice. Now maybe you’ll get used to my smell, too.”

  ***

  Jay walked around to the front of the shop and noticed Kay’s little red Sonic parked in front of his bay, the passenger side all bashed and battered.

  “What happened to your ride? Take a corner a little too fast and get a bit cozy with a light pole?” he asked when he walked in and saw Kay waiting for him at his desk.

  “Nope. Believe it or not, I was sitting at a four-way stop when some jerk came skidding through. He slammed onto his brakes, spun around a time or three, and slid into me. I was stunned, but okay. He scared the hell out of me when he came up to my side of the car. I had rolled the window down to ask if he was okay and then, bam! He wouldn’t let me out. He said he couldn’t take the points on his license and threw $1000 through the window to cover the damages.”

  “A thousand bucks won’t even come close to fixing that. It might cover a partial paint job, but not replacing panels or pounding out dents and dings.”

  “Well, actually $500 was to cover my deductible and I think the other $500 was hush money. I can’t be without the car, though. If I file against my insurance, they’re going to want to know what happened. I don’t know what to say or do, so I guess I’ll just drive around with my Alaska winter edition modification. I can use the money to pay down my credit cards a bit…”

  Kay stopped her story when the jingle bells tied to the door knob jangled, announcing that someone had come in the front door. “Hey, Jay! Got my dozer ready yet?”