Page 79 of Through the Snow Globe
Mrs. Guzman smiled back at her. She didn’t seem surprised at all. “I hope it sticks. Maybe it’ll be a white Christmas after all.”
“Maybe. I’m sorry, Mrs. Guzman, but I’ve got to go.”
“Yes, of course. See you tomorrow, dear. On Christmas!”
Diana hurried past the jingling sidewalk Santa and got into her car. She carefully placed the snow globe in the seat beside her and checked the time on her phone. It was one hour until Linus got off work. There would be plenty of time to get to him, but it would never be enough to say all she needed to.
Her phone rang from inside her purse. Right. Joann.
“Hello, Joann,” Diana said as she held the phone to her ear. It was getting easier to answer the phone with Linus’s mom. At least that was progress. Perhaps they could still be friends when December 4th was over, even if Diana never married into the Grant family.
“Oh, Diana. You answered,” she said.
“You sound surprised.”
“Well, I know you’re busy. I just wanted to invite you and Linus to dinner this weekend. Do you think you can spare an hour or two to come visit your future in-laws?”
Diana pressed a hand to her chest, wishing the Grants would in fact be her in-laws. She didn’t have active parents, but they might fill that void for her. “That sounds nice, Joann. We’ll be there,” she said, knowing the weekend she was referring to probably wouldn’t happen. Linus would be in a coma by then and all their hearts would be broken irreparably. “My mom was never really in the picture for me, Joann.”
“Oh? I’m sorry to hear that, Diana. I didn’t know.”
Diana glanced out her windshield, taking in the scenery around her. “I always wanted a mother like you, though,” she said, flipping the script.
Joann was quiet for a moment. “Well, I never believed blood was what bound a family anyway. And we don’t have to wait for the wedding either, dear.”
Diana’s eyes swam with tears. “That means a lot. Thank you, Joann.”
“Of course.” She sniffled on the other line. “Talk to Linus. We’ll see you this weekend, okay?”
“Okay,” Diana said. “Goodbye.”
She disconnected the call. Then she put the car in DRIVE and pulled onto Main Street. Linus was going to look at her like she had two heads, but she didn’t care. She didn’t care if all his customers thought she was out of her mind. She wanted to spend every last second she had left of this day together, whether it be fighting, kissing, or just staring into each other’s eyes. It didn’t matter. All she wanted was to soak up his smile, his face, his voice. She wanted to memorize all the things about him that she’d missed so completely over the last three weeks.
Diana pressed the gas pedal a little harder, edging over the speed limit as she raced toward Linus’s toy store, suddenly desperate to get to him. Tears gathered behind her eyes as she mentally prepared for this goodbye. The last goodbye. What kind of gift had Mrs. Guzman given her? This repeating day hadn’t done her or Linus any favors. Yes, Mrs. Guzman had told her that this day wouldn’t change anything, but how could Mrs. Guzman know that for sure? Especially since it had spun things around for Maria and Addy?
A few minutes later, Diana pulled into the parking spot closest to the store’s entrance. She turned off the ignition, but didn’t get out just yet. This was it. The next hour was all she had with the love of her life.
The little boy—Dustin—exited the store, carrying a bag.
Diana got out now and hurried over to catch him. “Hey.”
Dustin stopped walking. “Hey.”
“How’s your mission to be good going?” she asked, her breath making white puffs of air as she spoke. The air seemed to be colder and full of moisture.
“Not very well. I’m just a bad kid, so what’s the point?”
Diana stepped closer to him. “You are not a bad kid . . . What’s in the bag?”
Dustin hugged it closer to his body. “A doll. But I didn’t steal it.”
“If you had stolen it, it wouldn’t be in a bag, now would it?” It would be stuffed under his coat like it had been the first time she’d run into him.
“The man inside gave it to me. Mr. Linus.”
“Oh?”
Dustin offered up a small smile. “I’m going to give it to my foster sister. She wants one of these. I could never afford it on my own, but Mr. Linus told me that sometimes he likes to play Santa.”
