Trent slid down the mirrored wall of the elevator, and crash-landed on the filthy carpet. He clutched the bowl of cranberry sauce to his chest like a lifeline and closed his eyes. This could not be happening. He was already late for the Thanksgiving dinner he didn’t want to attend, and now the elevator jammed, imprisoning him with a stranger dressed in a fuzzy Grinch onesie. “You okay?” the girl asked. She was beside him now, a pie nestled in…
Georgie hated her relatives. She stared out the bedroom window watching them arrive. It was easy to see everyone since there were no leaves on the trees. Wet and slick they covered the walkway instead. Uncle Tony was first in his sleek black car. The one he talked about all the time that made Mom roll her eyes. He’d scurried out and started for the sidewalk, but when another car rolled up the long driveway, he changed his gait to…
Janie’s fingers had just thawed out when the fighting began. The kids abandoned their beanbags, going toe-to-toe, screaming at each other about a marshmallow. The credits of the movie that had given her ninety-two minutes of peace scrolled, the quiet music at odds with the argument. So much for the park wearing them out. After two hours in frigid weather, she’d lured them home with promises of cocoa and a movie. They’d pelted down the slick sidewalk, the wind tugging…
Ensconced in a cocoon of blankets after a late afternoon swim, Vanessa grabbed Brad’s phone to check the time. It was easier than going to search for her own, which they’d discarded somewhere between the door and the bathroom of their honeymoon suite. Vanessa had waited patiently over the past few years as Brad hesitated, still grieving the wife he’d lost eight years ago in a car accident. He was the driver and lone survivor. She ignored the notifications while…