Page 14 of Under the Mistletoe
“I made my car into a bed.” She giggled, revealing a gap where her front two teeth had been. “Get it? A car bed. You aren’t supposed to sleep and drive.”
“That is funny. Let me get your photo.” Devin took a snapshot of the two girls holding up their cars. “Now you need to go to one of the stations with an adult, and they’ll help you make it fast.”
“Will you help us?” Vicky blinked at Devin with a wide smile. “Please.”
Piper’s gaze bounced between Devin and Logan, who stood a few feet back as if waiting to talk to her. Piper sent Devin a knowing look, then handed her the box of cars. “Actually, I want to help you girls.” She reached for each of their hands. “My name is Piper, and I’ve been waiting to see some super creative cars. Yours are amazing.”
And with that, the three wandered away.
“Here, let me.” Logan took the box from her. “Where do you need these?”
“On the table by the door.” She motioned but then ended up following him there. She started pulling out the cars one by one, lining them up on the table. “I made these in case kids come for the race but don’t have a car.”
“That’s a great idea.” He held up a gray one. “Is this supposed to be a shark?”
“It started that way. I’m not really an artist.”
“I think it’s great.” He set it down and picked up another.
Mrs. Smith appeared in the doorway, slightly out of breath, her gray bun askew, and a backpack in each hand. “If only I could capture some of that energy of those girls, I could be rich.” She laid a hand on Devin’s arm. “You certain I can just drop them off? I don’t want it to be too much for you, but I could use the day trying to clean up after having the whole family at my house yesterday.”
“Absolutely, that’s what this is for.” Devin took the bags. “We have plenty to keep them busy, including pizza for lunch, until the race starts at twelve thirty. It’ll probably be over about two.”
“I’ll see you at twelve thirty. I know they’ll want me here for the race. We are so blessed to have you.” A twinkle filled Mrs. Smith’s eyes for a moment before she headed to the door.
And this was why Devin couldn’t let this program fail.
Logan added the last car to the table. “Where do you want me?”
“You can sit at one of those stations.” Devin motioned to that table. “I assume you know your way around the weights and graphite.”
“Yup. I remember.” Logan looked like he wanted to say something, but before he could, three kids she didn’t recognize walked in the main door. Maybe they were the Barlows. She had talked to Mrs. Barlow this week on the phone but had yet to meet any of them.
All three had dark-blond hair, green eyes, and a face full of freckles. The oldest boy was about ten and was all legs and arms. He had short hair and a glare that probably meant he didn’t appreciate being here. Either that, or he hated the matching red Christmas sweaters they wore. Probably both. A girl a few inches shorter and few years younger had long hair past her shoulders and was doing her best to hide behind the oldest. Devin guessed the youngest to be about five, and he wore his red reindeer sweater like a badge of honor. He seemed to be barely containing his energy as his eyes darted around, not really landing on any one thing.
Next came a young couple who appeared a little reserved about being there. The woman had short red hair, and the man wore a long, trendy beard and suspenders.
Devin extended her hand. “Are you the Barlows?”
“They’re the Barlows,” the oldest boy stated, then pointed to his siblings and himself. “We are the Wallises. I’m Easton.” He turned toward his sister trying to hide behind him. “Alani.” Then he tapped his brother on the head. “Tyce.”
Devin had recently learned that the three kids had lost both of their parents a year ago in a car accident, and with no extended family, they had ended up in the system. Her heart just broke for them, but she was so glad the Barlows had jumped at the opportunity to adopt them. The transition would be a challenge, but she’d help them in any way she could to make it through it.
“I’m Heather, and that’s my husband Jack.” The woman shook Devin’s hand, but the introduction didn’t seem to settle any nerves. “I’m so glad you reached out. This whole process has been…a lot.”
“Well, I’m here to support you through this transition in any way I can.” Devin turned her attention to the kids. “What do you think? You want to race cars today?”
“Theys already have cars.” Tyce pointed to some other children arriving with cars in hand.
“They is plural, Tyce.” The father bent down to help the boy with his coat. “It doesn’t get ansat the end.”
Devin took a step toward Tyce. “They do have cars that they made a few weeks ago. But”—she pointed to the table of cars Logan had set out for her—“we have extra cars for special friends like you who didn’t have a chance to make one. Do you want to pick one out?”
Tyce’s face lit up as he stepped forward and scanned the table. “I want one that looks like a race car.”
Devin took a step toward the Barlows. “You’re welcome to stay or come back about two.”
Heather and Jack exchanged looks. Emotional exhaustion seemed to cling to both of them. Finally, Heather looked back at Devin. “We’ll come back.”
