Troping Through the Snow by Alexa Riley

“Gotta go.” I give her one last quick kiss. “Wish me luck.”

“Good luck,” she says, and I finally see the smile I was waiting for.

Once I get on the stage with the rest of the contestants, I see Tinsel has joined in on the auction. When Mr. Flynn calls her name, she walks out on the little makeshift stage and holds up her badge.

“I’m available to make arrests, or I can help you get away with a crime.”

“Tinsel,” I hiss, but Jack just shakes his head.

“I’m also willing to bring my husband along because he’s good with his hands as long as they're on me.” The crowd breaks out into laughter, and she shrugs. “It’s true.”

“Two pennies,” someone in the crowd calls out, and then it’s followed by several other offers in a row.

“Going once, going twice…” Mr. Flynn says, and when no one else makes a bid, he hits the gavel. “Sheriff Tinsel and her husband Jack are sold to Mr. and Mrs. Lemneski. Oh, and be careful, you two. The Lemneskis are known for being card sharks.”

Once Tinsel and Jack have exited the stage, it’s my turn to go up. The crowd claps, and a few people cheer as I wave to the residents I already know pretty well.

“Now we’ve got the pride of Troping, Mayor North!” Mr. Flynn says.

“Hey, everybody, like Mr. Flynn said, I’m Mayor North. I’d love the chance to listen to your ideas on how to make Troping a better place, and to also learn something new. I’ve been told I’m not a bad ballroom dancer but that I’m terrible at playing the piano. If you win me, I promise to bring along my beautiful wife so that when you get bored of me, she can step in and be her wonderful, charming self.”

The crowd makes a collective “aww,” and I see heads turn in Joy’s direction. She blushes, but I know how much the people here love her too.

“Do I hear five pennies?” Mr. Flynn says, and the bidding takes off quickly.

At one point, I’m pretty sure I hear Tinsel lower the bid, but too many people are laughing over it for me to be sure it was her.

When I look out in the crowd, I see Joy sitting beside an older woman I don’t recognize. The two of them are talking, and then I see the woman raise her hand to bid. Right after, Mr. Flynn calls the auction to come to an end, and the woman beside Joy has won.

I shake a few hands on the way through the crowd and make my way over to my wife. “North, this is Mrs. Ester, and she’s just moved back to Troping.”

“Welcome home, Mrs. Ester. It’s always nice to meet a new face,” I say and take a seat beside her. “And I’m excited to know what you think of Troping since you were last with us.”

“Oh, just call me Ester. I told your wife I lived here until I met my husband Oscar. We stayed for a few years, and then he joined the Navy. We traveled the world, and now we’re back to be closer to family.”

Just then, an older man comes over and holds out his hand and introduces himself as Ester’s husband Oscar.

“You know normally I’d be quite the jealous man if I walked in and saw my wife bidding on a younger man,” he says, teasing Ester. “But when I found out it was the mayor, I knew she made the right choice. You see, I was the mayor for a short time before we got married.”

“No way,” Joy says and taps my arm, and I turn to her and smile. “Can you believe that, North?”

“Now that’s a funny coincidence,” I admit.

“I was his secretary,” Ester admits, and Joy gasps. “When I heard about the young couple in City Hall that got married, I told my Oscar that the office was lucky for us so maybe it would be lucky for the two of you.”

“Specifically the spot in front of the fireplace,” Oscar half whispers to his wife, and I nearly choke.

Joy hoots with laughter as the four of us share this private joke and then we start to ask more questions. We spend hours talking about our lives and how we met, and there are lots of similarities between us. Oscar hired Ester to come work for him at the city after he saw her picture in the paper. She worked at the junior college as a typist, and that’s how he convinced her to take the job.

They worked together about six months before he finally proposed on a night a big snowstorm blew through Troping and knocked the power out. They had kids right away too and ended up having seven in total. It was inspiring to see their love and how long it’s lasted. The reason they live at the retirement community is so they can be close to family and around friends, but it’s clear that most of all, they just want to spend every moment together.

After we say our goodbyes and make a plan to come by on Thursday for tea, I take Joy’s hand, and we exit the community center. It’s a beautiful cool night with the fall leaves fading away and the first snow dusting the ground. Christmas is right around the corner, and I can’t wait to see what the holidays bring this season.

“You think you could handle seven?” I ask once we’re standing under the stars and I’ve got my arms around her.

“Seven of you? Hmmm.” She pretends to think it over. “Absolutely. But if they’re anything like their Auntie Tinsel—”

“One it is,” I tease and cup her face. “Have I told you how beautiful you are?”

“Not in the last hour.” She smiles up at me, and my heart aches with love.