The Christmas Lamp by Lori Copeland Read Free Book Online Page A

studied the miniature town laid out before him. Days like today made him wish that he had followed his dream and remained in the air force. Flying was his love, not spoiling the holidays for a pretty, brown-eyed woman who, if only for a moment, made him consider the cockamamie idea of taking money from snow removal to provide an ice rink.
    The committee appeared, and he mentally armed himself for another shoot-out. If their stormy expressions meant anything, he would need a bigger gun.

    Around five thirty, Roni glanced up to see Jake leaving his office. The committee had taken up half of his day arguing and he was behind on his paperwork, but the rink was out for this year. The cancellation fee would be minimal compared to the construction itself.
    He approached, yawning. “Are you working late too?”
    She nodded without glancing up from the computer. “End of the month reports.”
    She finished the report and pushed a key. In the back room the sound of a printer filled the office.
    “Done?”
    Gathering her purse and keys, she smiled. “All through. I’ll lock up.”
    “Do you have time to grab a burger with me?”
    “Can’t. Mimsy is waiting for her dinner, and I need to check on Ed.”
    “Ed?”
    “My elderly next-door neighbor. If I don’t watch him closely, he won’t eat properly.”
    “So, we feed Mimsy and Ed and then we’ll feed ourselves.” He knew he wasn’t high on her list of preferred dinner company, but she was a rational thinker. She knew that his decisions were sound.
    He trailed behind her, flipping off overhead lights.
    “Leave the one on in the mayor’s office for a nightlight,” she reminded.
    After she locked up they started toward her home. “What about your car?”
    “I’ll get it later. How late does the café stay open?”
    “It closed half an hour ago. Do you like Chinese?”
    “It’s okay.”
    “Mr. Wong’s always open late.”
    By now they were passing Steil’s Hardware. Jake suddenly paused, apparently caught by the window display. “Look at that.”
    Roni’s eyes fixed on the leg lamp, pleased that he’d noticed. “Yeah. I’ve been admiring it, but it’s outrageously expensive.”
    Jake bent closer to the plate glass window. “Expensive? Seems reasonable to me. I would pay more than thirty bucks in Springfield for a set of sockets like that.”
    Sockets . She might have known.

    The mild weather made for a nice outing, but then, Jake noticed that when he was around Roni life tended to be nice. She was good company, fun to be with, even though she made his job more difficult.
    A large, black-and-yellow-striped cat waited while Roni opened the back door. With a meow, the feline headed for her. Scooping up the cat, she hugged him warmly, and then set him back on the floor. “I’ll only be a minute.” She reached for a can opener and opened a small tin of cat food.
    Jake’s eyes roamed the homey kitchen. It had been years since he’d been in a house that reminded him of his early childhood. Linoleum on the floor, a green Formica table, and vinyl covered chairs; live plants sitting in the kitchen window over the sink. African violets. He’d seen the same plants on his mom’s windowsill. Through the doorway he spotted the front room with overstuffed sofas and chairs. Fringed table lamps and family pictures lined the wood-burning fireplace. He’d stepped back into a simpler era, a time when groceries were delivered to your back door and young boys on bicycles threw newspapers onto your lawn. Neighbors sat on front porches at night and visited. He imagined that if he sniffed he could smell pork chops sizzling on a skillet.
    “Ready to go?” Roni’s voice broke into his musings.
    “Ready. The cat’s food is starting to look good.”
    Laughing, she switched a light on over the sink, and they left the way they’d come in, through the back door.
    “We’ll check on Ed and then be on our way.”
    “I’m right behind you.”

    Later, over steaming plates of