First thing the next morning, Lisa met Kevin at Daisy’s Country Store to talk through the project, do a quick inventory of the immediate repairs needed, and get things rolling.
“We don’t have a lot of time,” Lisa said. “I figure we’ll start with the safety issues and non-negotiables, then I’ll walk you through the space and share my vision and we can prioritize from there.”
“Sounds good.” Kevin dipped his head toward the beam in the middle of the room. “That’s a priority.”
“For sure.” She cringed slightly. “Any idea how much that’s going to cost?”
“I’ve got a guy who is really good with this kind of stuff. I texted him this morning. I’m hoping he can meet us out here sometime this afternoon and give us a price.” He cocked his head. “Hopefully, he’ll have some time to work on it.”
She held her hand up and crossed her fingers. “It’ll work out. I know it.”
A walkthrough of the store identified a leaky faucet and a few electrical issues, but for the most part it was a list of things that needed to be nailed down or tightened up. “It’s not so bad,” Kevin said. “Considering how long it’s been empty.”
“That’s great news. So if we can work smart and fast, clearing an area at a time, I can start staging as we complete the sections.”
“That sounds good.”
She turned her back on him and spread her arms out to the side. “Now, what I see is brightening the place up. White paint. Lots of it. We’ll paint out the long counter on the left side here. The whole thing. On the right side, we’ll just paint the bottom of the counter white, leaving the wooden tops to kind of pop against the white. The four wooden steps up to the second level. All white.”
“Agree.”
“The floors.” Her mouth twisted in disgust. “I’m not even sure what to do with them. They are such a mess.”
“Water-damaged, too.”
“Yeah. I’d thought we’d sand them and polyurethane them, but I think they are way past a quick sanding. They are almost black in some spots.” She winced at the thought of how long it would take to really fix them. She looked at him hoping for the best.
“What’s Plan B?”
She was afraid of that. She’d been hoping he might have an easy solution for the floors, but in her gut she’d known there wasn’t one. “Sand them enough to get them smooth, then paint white and black checkerboard.” She turned and pressed her finger to her lips. “Or I guess we could put down black-and-white tiles.”
“No tiles. That would be a nightmare to remove for the new owner. No short cuts either. Painting would be the better option, but we need to give it enough time to cure and it’ll need a couple coats of clear to withstand the foot traffic.”
“You’re right.” She appreciated the balance he brought to the plans. “We don’t have much time.”
“I have some heaters and fans that’ll help it dry a little faster. I think it would really look good and still give that old-time warmth you’re going for. We’d have to paint in the evenings, and let it dry overnight.”
“That would work.” What a relief. “Oh, and where the glass cases are damaged on the second level, let’s use wainscoting to cover that up. It’s a quick fix, but a good one. It’ll look nicer and offer storage.”
“Storage is always a selling point,” Kevin agreed. “You can never have too much storage.”
“Which brings me to the storage room. Let’s clear out as much as we can and give that room a quick coat of white. We’ll reload in boxes that are labeled so it looks roomy and organized.”
He followed her through the store as she relayed her vision, but he didn’t say much. Finally, they’d walked every inch of the store and come to an agreement on what needed to happen.
With the short list of what they needed to purchase immediately in her hand, and the long list tucked in her purse to review later, they walked out of the store. While they’d been planning inside, out here the local merchants had transformed the sidewalks and open space into something wonderful with kiosks and tented booths with all kinds of goodies and gifts. Festive instrumental music played from the speakers in the nearby gazebo.
Oliver had called Evergreen an almost-real-life-Santa’s Village. It really wasn’t so far-fetched an assessment this morning. All we need is Santa.
On the corner down from the Kringle Kitchen, Joe stood next to a colorful chalkboard sign with “Hot Cocoa” written on it. Set up like a hot chocolate bar, there were all kinds of goodies to snazz up the cocoa—everything from candy canes and marshmallows, to whipped cream and sprinkles. Joe poured piping hot cups from a red carafe to happy customers under his red and white striped awning.
Joe greeted Lisa and Kevin as they walked up. “Good morning! What can I get for you?”
Lisa eyed the display. “I would love a peppermint hot cocoa, please.”
Joe poured. “Right in on the Christmas spirit, good for you. And you, Kevin? What can I get for you?”
“Coffee. Just black,” he said.
Lisa sighed inwardly. Joe’s face fell, then he looked at Kevin like he’d committed a crime.
“Please?” Kevin said with a shrug. “What?”
“’Tis the season, Kevin,” Joe said. It had come out more of a scold than a salutation.
“Yeah,” Lisa chided. “Live a little.”
“Okay. Fine.” Kevin looked at the list of the things on the chalkboard menu. “Coffee with whipped cream, then.”
Joe finally smiled. “Caramel?”
“No.” Kevin glanced over at Lisa, who cocked her head and gave him an exaggerated nod. “Wait. Yes. Please.”
Lisa laughed. At least he’d taken the hint, although it had been far from subtle.
While Joe made their order, Lisa started rattling off the things on her list. “I want to get some decorations, and I would love to stop by a Christmas tree lot. Do you guys have one of those?”
“We have five.”
“You have five?”
“Yeah.” Kevin appeared to be very proud of that little fact. “It’s going to be a tough choice, but I’m probably going to push for the one my dad runs.”
Lisa enjoyed the playful small talk. “Ah. Yes. Your dad’s place is probably a pretty safe bet.”
“He’ll appreciate that.”
“Good. And you know what, I was thinking we could use a tree on the outside, and then a smaller one on the inside.”
Kevin’s eyes narrowed. “You don’t think two trees is a bit much?”
“Ambition is the key to success.”
He shook his head, and the look on his face said it all. He thought she was half nuts. He’d get used to her positive vibe eventually. Hopefully, sooner rather than later. Mr. Play-It-Safe would have to agree once she proved she was right.
Lisa paid Joe for the order.
“All right. Here you go.” He handed Lisa a cup of cocoa with marshmallows and a peppermint candy cane hanging over the side. “Merry Christmas.”
“Thank you. Merry Christmas to you,” she said as Joe handed the cup of coffee to Kevin.
“Thanks, Joe.” He took a quick sip as he and Lisa turned and headed back down the street.
“Now. First things first,” Lisa said. “We need a good window display. And supplies.” She swirled the peppermint stick in her cocoa then stuck it in her mouth.
“I’ve got a guy,” Kevin said.
“I knew you were the right man for the job.” Lisa followed Kevin to his truck, and they drove over to the local hardware store.
When they got out of the truck, Lisa pulled her green coat tighter around her as the wind picked up. Stacks of firewood lined the left side of the front entrance. On the right, forty-pound bags of ice melt were stacked chest-high next to a bin of snow shovels with bright red blades. She pulled the short list out of her pocket as they walked inside.
Evergreen Village Hardware was decorated for Christmas and cramped for space. Like most old buildings, the aisles were tight, making for a lot of excuse-me’s and side-passing one another.
Lisa led the way in, then turned around, walking backward to face Kevin. “Okay, so I’d like to get some pine garland, lots of white paint, and the wainscoting and…” She stopped in front of a set of tomato cages that had been decorated like Christmas trees. Only for ornaments, someone had decorated paintbrushes to look like Santas, elves, snowmen, and even a red-handled brush with a big black belt and gold buckle. “That is so cute!”
“Interesting.” Kevin didn’t sound nearly as impressed as she was.
They rounded the corner and came across two men talking. One of them, who looked astonishingly like Santa Claus on vacation, glanced their way.
“Oh. Ho ho. Hello. Nice to see you, Kevin,” he said.
“You too. Lisa, this is Phil, he runs the hardware store, and this is Nick, who plays Santa at the festival every year.”
“I can see why.” Lisa had never seen a better Santa in her life. Oliver’s assessment of Evergreen had proved to be completely accurate. “Nice to meet you, Nick.”
Nick had a twinkle in his eye. “What brings you two out on such a chilly morning?”
“Little project we’re working on together,” Kevin said.
“Sounds like my cue to leave you in Phil’s quite capable hands,” Nick said with a twinkle in his eye. He waved and left with a lift in his step.
The owner of Evergreen Village Hardware clapped his hand into Kevin’s. “Good to see you. How are you doing?”
“Great. Busy as usual. We’re working on the project to repair and stage Daisy’s to help Ezra sell it.”
“Hi, Phil.” Lisa shook his hand. “So nice to meet you.”
“What can I help you with?”
Kevin jumped in. “A ten-gallon bucket of white interior paint. Wainscoting. How much do you have in stock?”
Phil led them to the aisle with lumber, paneling and wainscoting. “I’ve got six sheets in stock, but I can have more in a couple of days if you need it.”
“We’ll take those six with us. We’ll need more. And the lady needs some fresh garland.”
“That’s outside in the garden area. Plenty of it. Pine. Fir. Cedar. Lots to pick from.”
Lisa clapped her hands, delighted that the store was so well stocked. It didn’t look all that big from the road, but inside they hadn’t wasted an inch of space. “Great.” She went outside and picked out garland, mixing it up with some long-needled pine roping and tighter cedar garland. Together they’d look nice and full. “We’re going to need a cart back here.”
“I’m on it.” Kevin went to get a cart and she started piling things together.
She couldn’t pass up a crate of pinecones for five bucks, then grabbed a couple cans of decorative snow flocking to go with them. You could never go wrong with snow flocking.
Kevin rounded the corner with the cart, putting his foot on the frame and skating it the last six feet. “You work fast.”
“I told you. Fast, but smart.”
“Right.” He started loading up her finds.
“See? Small stores are the best. Look at this.” She lifted a box and carried it to the cart. “Faux magnolia flowers. These will be a gorgeous addition. So much better than the expected poinsettias this time of year.” She plopped the box on top. “I’m going to grab a roll of fishing line if they have any. It is a must-have on these kinds of decorating jobs.”
Phil walked over. “Aisle four,” he said. “On the end cap.”
She dashed off and snatched a box. Waving it in the air, she caught back up with Kevin and Phil.
“Looks like you’re finding everything okay,” Phil said. “We’ve got the other stuff loaded in the truck already. Anything else I can do for you?”
“One more thing.” She lifted her finger and gave a flirty nod toward Kevin. “Phil, does the hardware store have a miscellaneous box?”
Phil gave her a wink. “Wouldn’t be a hardware store without one.” He called over to one of his helpers to load lumber for one of the other customers, then led her toward the back. Behind the counter in front of a wall full of tape measures, wrenches, and other hand tools, Phil lifted a series of wooden boxes up onto the counter. “Have at it.”
“Thank you. This is great.” Delighted, she started digging through one of the boxes.
Phil seemed to be getting a kick out of her delight, and Kevin hadn’t wasted a second before he dove in himself.
“Don’t you love how hardware stores have these boxes full of stuff they just don’t know what to do with?” Lisa said as she sifted through her box.
“Yeah, I try to raid these boxes wherever I go.”
She popped up and looked him square in the eye. “You do too?”
“Yes.”
“I love it. You never know what you’re going to find.” It amazed her how two people who were so obviously so different could have so much in common. She moved to a box of old picture frames, lifting one up and setting it aside.
Kevin pulled a small box toward him then looked up at Phil. “What are all these keys?”
“Well, we don’t know what any of them actually go to,” Phil said. “But you know every time you throw out a key, you find a lock that it might fit.”
Kevin lifted a large hand-sized key from the box. The dark bronze looked heavy and had an ornate “S” at the top. “What about this one?”
Kevin held it up, then looked to Lisa. Her eyes widened.
“Hmm. Had to have been here long before my day,” Phil said. “Anything you find here in these boxes you can have for a nickel apiece.”
They smiled at each other. Jackpot! This was exactly why she loved looking through these old junk boxes. “Are you sure?”
“Christmas discount.” Phil winked at Lisa.
This is my day. She reached across to shake Phil’s hand. “Deal.”
A lot less picky at this point, Lisa filled her hands with the old treasures, even piling a few things into Kevin’s arms. The picture frames would come in handy filling up the empty shelves in Daisy’s.
She rummaged through the box full of keys. “Can you imagine all the different kinds of things these went to?” If there were a story written for every one of these keys, she could read for years.
Satisfied that the one Kevin had found was the most unique, she gathered her bounty. “Ready to go?”
“Yeah. We did good.”
“Darn right we did.” She couldn’t have planned a shopping trip to be as fun as this. As she followed him through the store, she noticed how the muscles in his arms flexed as he carried their treasures. Her eyes on him, and not on where she was going, her hip caught the edge of a display, sending a stack of three-inch round peat pots bouncing to the ground.
She quickly gathered them, then quick-stepped to catch up. They made their way to the front of the store where Phil rang them up. As she got to the passenger side of the truck, she caught a whiff of the fresh garland.
It’s beginning to feel like Christmas.