Read Online 12 Days At Silver Bells House by Jennie Jones - Free Book Online Page B

long trek home. ‘And sandals?’
    â€˜You can buy all modern conveniences in Swallow’s Fall,’ Mrs Tam informed her with a smile. ‘So long as it wasn’t created or produced after 1990.’
    Kate grinned. Another great thing about the townspeople here. They didn’t seem to have any misgivings about their lot. ‘What happened to the B&B?’ she asked.
    â€˜It was hit in a big storm we had just over a year ago. The Cappers haven’t got the money to renovate yet.’
    â€˜What a shame.’ A pretty little house. Out of date décor inside, but it had a warm feeling. Even Sammy’s mother, the ferocious Verity Walker, seemed to calm down from her never-ending complaints when she stayed there.
    â€˜And what about the pub?’ Kate asked, aiming her ice cream cone at Kookaburra’s Bar & Grill across the street. It looked quiet. Dead. Lifeless. Closed. Thank God Jamie had rescued her Chardonnay.
    â€˜Shut for the moment. We’ve got a new owner though. A young man. He’s been here for the handover, gone back to Queensland to collect his things and promised us the bar would be open by Christmas. He’ll be resident number eighty-nine, you know.’
    Oh good. That saved Kate for taking up the position.
    â€˜And there’s Grandy.’ Kate said, looking across to Morelly’s Hardware store and the old man sitting on a bench out front. He was talking to a blonde teenager who had a pad or a sketchbook in her hand, and her foot on the tilted edge of a skateboard. Kate not only remembered Grandy, she felt she had the right to say she knew him. The grand old patriarch of Swallow’s Fall. The man had more sense than most people gained in a lifetime.
    Kate had been truly interested in the letter Sammy had sent her, detailing Grandy’s ninetieth birthday party and the ruckus of yet another feud about who was going to bake the cake and how many tiers it ought to have. If only Kate’s business world had been filled with such funny, abstract problems, she might not be in the position she was in now.
    â€˜Why don’t you go say hello, dear. He’ll be pleased as Midas to see you.’
    Kate put the paper wrapper from her now eaten ice cream into a rubbish bin. ‘I will, thanks for the ice cream, Mrs Tam. I’ll see you later.’
    â€˜Cheerio, dear.’
    Kate wandered across the street. Mrs Tam had been spot on with her Midas analogy. From what Sammy had told her Grandy seemed to have the ability to turn folly into sensible gold.
    â€˜What’s with the heat?’ she asked Grandy as she trudged up the stairs to the wooden walkway which supported the shopping side of Main Street. The pub, the grocer’s, Cuddly Bear Toy & Gift shop and Morelly’s Hardware store. ‘I thought the Snowies were supposed to be ten degrees lower in temperature than the rest of Australia.’
    â€˜Sun must have come out to welcome you,’ Grandy said. He lifted his cane and pointed the end at her feet. ‘Like your wellies.’
    Kate noted Grandy wore trainers. As did the young girl standing at his shoulder.
    â€˜Hello,’ Kate said, holding her hand out to the teenager.
    â€˜Hi. I’m Gemma Munroe. You’re Jamie’s girlfriend.’
    â€˜Oh, no.’ Kate laughed the remark away, but as this was the second person to remark on her girlfriend status, thought it best to quash all rumours now. ‘I’m not his girlfriend. He’s not my boyfriend. We only met yesterday. A mix-up in holiday arrangements.’ One she’d be seeking further answers to from Sammy. She looked at the sketchpad in Gemma’s hand.
    â€˜Oh, did you do those?’ she asked, pointing to the open page.
    â€˜I did. Not my best work though. I was just asking Grandy’s opinion.’
    Kate took the offered sketchpad and flicked through the pages. ‘These are amazing.’ Sammy had told Kate about one of the