Sealed With a Kiss

  ***

  Tank listened to the person who was speaking to him on the phone, then hung up. “There’s been a change of plans. We’re not going to Walmart.”

  Bella’s mug of hot chocolate clattered against the table. “But we have to. I haven’t finished making dad’s Christmas present.”

  Rachel looked up from the table. “What’s happened?”

  “Christmas is what’s happened. Walmart is packed with people. There’s a line of shoppers halfway down the store waiting to pay for what’s in their carts.”

  Pastor Steven bit into a slice of Mrs. Daniels’ gingerbread loaf. “It happens every year. The week before Christmas is crazy wherever you go.” He looked at Bella. “What do you need to finish your present? I might have some extra supplies here.”

  Bella leaned back and pulled a crinkled piece of paper out of her pocket. “I need pink foil, some double-dot jewels, sticky red jewels, glitter sticks, and some more cardboard sleighs like the ones Rachel found the other day.”

  Pastor Steven frowned. “It sounds like fun, but I don’t have any of those things here. What if you visited one of the specialty stationery stores in Bozeman? They might have what you want without having to go to Walmart?”

  “We might not even need to do that,” Rachel murmured. She looked at Tank. “I know a craft store that sells the scrapbook supplies that Bella needs. Would you take us there?”

  He looked at Rachel. His intense stare told her that he wasn’t impressed with her suggestion.

  Bella walked around the table to Tank. “If I don’t find what I need I can’t finish dad’s present. It will only take a few minutes. Can we please go to Rachel’s store?”

  Rachel glanced out of the kitchen window. “It’s not snowing anymore. We can rush into the store, buy what we need, and be back in your SUV before you know it.”

  “John’s not going to like it. I’m sorry, but the answer’s no.”

  Rachel thought fast. Bella really needed the supplies and she knew this would be their last chance to do anything in town. “I know John wants us to be careful. I wouldn’t have suggested the store if I didn’t think it was safe. What if I went into the store and you stayed in your vehicle with Bella? I could phone ahead and order what we want. It will be twice as quick. All I’ll need to do is pay for the scrapbook materials and leave.”

  Tank looked at Bella. She used her big brown eyes, silently pleading her case better than any adult Rachel had ever seen.

  Tank glanced at Pastor Steven, then back at Rachel. “Okay. But if we get there and it doesn’t look safe, we leave straight away. Where is the store?”

  “On Main Street, beside Angel Wings Café. It’s called Crafty Crafts.”

  Tank raised his eyebrows. “You’re kidding me.”

  “It’s a great name.” Rachel had known the store’s owner, Kelly Harris, since eighth grade. She was a good friend and loyalty ran deep in Montana. “Kelly turned a musty old building into the prettiest craft store in Bozeman. Scoff all you like, but a lot of people buy their supplies from her. But craft supplies aren’t the only thing she sells. She has the best selection of local artists’ work in Bozeman, and she runs workshops teaching people how to paint.”

  “She sounds like a saint,” Tank grumbled.

  “She’s better than a saint.” Rachel walked across to her bag and took her cell phone out. “She sells what we need. You’ve just made one little girl very happy.”

  “The only thing that matters is that Bella’s daddy is happy when we get home. Otherwise, both of us might be looking for new jobs.” Tank looked across at Bella and his hard-as-nails face softened.

  Rachel couldn’t think about John at the moment. Kissing him last night had been the most reckless thing she’d done in months. And recklessness, she’d learned, always came at a price.

  She turned her phone on and searched through her contact list for Kelly’s number. “How did you know that Walmart was busy?”

  “I have my sources,” Tank said as he pulled his own cell phone out. “I just hope my sources can get across town before we arrive at the craft store.”

  Rachel held her phone to her ear and waited for Kelly to answer. Buying the scrapbook supplies was important. Bella wasn’t creating a run-of-the-mill Christmas present. It was a heart-wrenching, emotional present that might make John realize how his daughter felt about him.

  And if that didn’t work, Bella could always bake him his favorite cake and hope for the best.