Read Online We Need a Little Christmas by Sierra Donovan - Free Book Online Page A

“The other guys just . . . left me holding the goose.”
    While the other seniors were doing something innocuous like toilet-papering houses, Scott and a couple of his friends had been thinking big. And talking bigger. So they’d kidnapped the rival school mascot, the goose of Mount Douglas High.
    And ended up setting it free.
    â€œIt wasn’t my fault,” he protested. “When we got it back to Tall Pine High, we were going to put it in the principal’s office. Two birds with one stone, so to speak.”
    Liv started to laugh.
    â€œBut when we got into the principal’s office and opened the cage, that sucker fluttered out so fast, right for the door, like he’d been waiting for that moment all his life . . .”
    â€œAnd you didn’t think to close the door behind you first?”
    He slapped the steering wheel. “That was Dane’s job. He had one job .”
    She was laughing again. It felt good to hear her laugh.
    â€œAnd who in the world knew the thing could really fly ? I figured he had his wings clipped.”
    She tried to get her breath. “So, you had how many accomplices?”
    â€œThree. You’d think four guys could’ve handled one goose. Ron was standing lookout, fat lot of help he was—”
    â€œBut you were the only one who got in trouble.”
    â€œCode of honor. I didn’t name names. It was my car they picked up on the security cameras, and the picture was pretty fuzzy . . . but I was a lot taller than the other guys. It was pretty obvious.”
    â€œThe clown car. I remember.”
    Six-foot-four by the time he was sixteen, and he’d picked an orange VW bug for his first car. He had to admit, it was partly the ridiculousness of the size that had won him over. It was also a car he could afford on his salary from the local burger joint—and he’d been told Volkswagen Beetles were easy to work on.
    â€œYep. I took the rap. They almost didn’t let me walk at graduation. My folks finally talked them into letting me work it off by doing landscaping work for Mount Douglas High over the summer. But you don’t know the worst of it.”
    Scott glanced at her, and of course she was watching him.
    He said, “People hold me personally responsible for the goose population at Prospect Lake.”
    â€œWhat? There were always geese at that lake. One of them chased me when I was four.”
    He nodded. “Still. Whenever that happens to anyone around here, they let me know one of my geese went after them. Now, am I wrong? You have to have at least two geese to make more geese. Unless I kidnapped a pregnant goose. And the Mount Douglas goose was male.”
    â€œHow do you know?”
    â€œWell, his name was Harold, for one. And I heard they made sure to get a male goose, because who wants to hassle with the eggs?” Scott shrugged. “I did my homework. You can’t say I didn’t case the crime scene.”
    They reached the turn onto the main highway, the one that had brought them from the airport. This time Scott continued up the mountain. The next town, Mount Douglas, was nearly an hour away.
    â€œHow far is it?” Liv asked. “I don’t want to be gone too long.”
    He sensed a little tension returning as she twisted in her seat, as if to look back at the responsibilities she was leaving behind.
    â€œIt’s not much farther.” He slid a glance her way, enjoying her puzzlement and the slight element of mystery.
    They were leaving Tall Pine proper behind, as the businesses alongside the highway grew farther apart. They passed a lumber yard, an ancient gas station, and the town’s one and only car dealership. Then, open fields on either side of them. Last night’s snow, still pristine and unbroken, shimmered in the late morning light. Scott squinted, wishing he’d brought his sunglasses.
    Liv showed a fresh interest in the world outside her window. She