Christmas On Nutcracker Court (34 page)

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Authors: Judy Duarte

BOOK: Christmas On Nutcracker Court

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Josh supposed there was no argument there.

As they stood in the center of the canyon for a while, they watched the snow fall and tried to catch it on their tongues. They probably looked kind of dorky doing that, but Josh didn't care. Kids around here didn't see this kind of thing every day.

“Hey, dude,” a boy's voice calledâand not very nice.

Josh turned to see Ross “the Boss” standing near the creek, holding a shiny black skateboard and wearing what looked like brand-new clothesâshoes, jeans, a white sweatshirt.

Ross might have gotten more presents, but Josh had gotten a much better deal for Christmas.

“What are you doing out here?” Ross asked, his voice not the least bit friendly.

Before Josh could answer, Mikey popped off with, “We're walking our dog. He used to work for the military, sniffing out bombs and eating bad guys. His name's Killer, so you better not get too close.”

A grin tugged at Josh's lips. His baby brother was getting kind of smart these days.

Unfortunately, Josh didn't think Ross would fall for the killer-dog story, which was too bad.

Him being here right now was also lousy timing. Josh had been all happy and thanking God for the snow, then dumb ol' Ross had to show up and ruin a totally cool miracle.

“Yeah, well, you guys need to get out of here,” Ross said. “And take your wimpy dog with you. The Bushman Trail is part of my backyard, and you're trespassing.”

He was full of it. The canyon was city propertyâand it backed up to a lot of people's yards. But Josh wasn't going to challenge Ross.

“Whatever,” he said. “Come on, Mikey.”

About that time, Ross bent over and picked up a rock, no doubt planning to throw it at them. But as he wound his arm, his foot slipped. And just like in the cartoons, his legs went out from under him, landing him right on the muddy slope of the stream.

The look on his face was worth a hundred bucks, especially when he slid into the cold, muddy water.

Josh wanted to laugh and tease him in the worst way, which would probably be suicide, no matter how funny it wasâor how badly he deserved it.

Instead, he turned to Mikey. “Come on. Let's go home.”

As they trudged up the snow-littered path to the street, trying not to slip like Ross had, Mikey asked, “Do you know what I think?”

“What's that?”

“His guardian angel probably got sick and tired of watching him pick on people and gave him a big push.”

Actually, Josh wasn't so sure guys like Ross had a guardian angel. But if they did, angels probably weren't in the habit of pushing anyone around. Of course, he didn't know that for sure.

By the time they got home, the snow had stayed on the ground long enough to turn it a frosty white. Josh was going to call his mom and Max to the window, but before he got a chance, Mikey shouted out the good news.

At that, the adults went to check it out.

“I can't believe this,” Mom said. “Mikey prayed that it would snow. And while I knew it wasn't completely impossible, I really didn't expect it.”

“It probably won't last long,” Max said, “but it sure makes for a perfect Christmas, doesn't it?”

“I couldn't agree more.” Mom leaned into Max just a little, like they were good friends sharing a secret or some really good news.

“And you know what else?” Mikey said. “Ross âthe Boss' was giving Josh a hard time out in the canyon, but right before he could chuck a rock at us, he slipped and fell into the creek.”

At that, Mom stiffened as though she was going to run outside and check on him. “Is he okay?”

“He's fine,” Mikey said. “I think it was God's way of giving him a spanking.”

“His fall was just a coincidence,” Mom said. “But are you sure he's all right?”

“Yeah, but when his mother gets a look at how wet and dirty he is, he'll be in plenty of trouble with her.”

“Well, speaking of getting in trouble with Moms, you guys need to take off those dirty shoes and leave them by the door. Then wash up. Max and I are making hot cocoa and opening a box of graham crackers.”

It wasn't exactly a special treat, but it was the kind of thing a normal family might do.

How cool was that?

Boy, things really seemed to be coming together. God had answered every one of Josh's prayers, although not in the way he'd imagined.

So even if his mom and Max didn't get married, even if they had to move out of this house, and Ross never did become a decent kid instead of a jerk, everything was going to be okay.

As Josh was kicking off his shoes, he heard his mom say to Max, “I received the Christmas miracle I'd been praying forâhappy kids, loving hearts, good friends . . .”

“I know what you mean.” Max gave her hand a squeeze. “Some of us even received a miracle we hadn't been praying for.”

Ain't that the truth,
Josh thought. And he had a feeling that a lot of those kinds of miracles were still in the works.

KENSINGTON BOOKS are published by

Kensington Publishing Corp.
119 West 40th Street
New York, NY 10018

Kensington and the K logo Reg. U.S. Pat. & TM Off.

ISBN: 978-0-7582-7879-1

ISBN-10: 0-7582-7506-4

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