Read Online Annie's Answer by Pam Andrews Hanson - Free Book Online

I’ll probably browse a while.”
    As often as
she’d been to the mall, she had a moment of confusion, forgetting whether to go
right or left. Her sense of direction was never very good, and the cozy
conversation between her mother and Nathan had thrown her off balance. He was
an employer, not a personal friend. She didn’t want to forget that.
    “I think the
jewelry store is this way,” he said, coming up beside her and gesturing at
sporting goods store on the left.
    Biting back a
response, she fell into step beside him. The sooner she completed Mattie’s
request, the sooner she could go home.
    The jewelry
store was empty except for a bored looking middle-aged man standing behind the
counter, staring out at the people passing by. He perked up when Annie and
Nathan come up to him.
    “How can I
help you folks today?” he asked, adjusting the  lime green bow tie he was
wearing with a pale blue dress shirt and a gray plaid jacket.
    Taking out
Mattie’s box, Annie showed him the watch. “I’d like a new battery for this.”
    “Did you buy
it here?” he asked with an expectant smile.
    “No, I’m
bringing it here for a friend,” Annie said.
    “I’m sorry,”
he said, his smile fading. “We only install new batteries in watches we sell.”
    “Why is that?”
Nathan asked.
    “It’s store
policy,” the clerk said with a smug expression.
    “I’d like to
speak to the manager,” Nathan said.
    “I am the
manager. Installing batteries is too time consuming. Our first priority is to
help customers with their purchases.”
    Pointedly
looking around the empty store, Nathan took his billfold from the back pocket
of his jeans.
    “No,” Annie
said, quickly realizing he was going to offer the man extra money for performing
the simple task. “Sir, I don’t know about store policy, but this watch belongs
to an elderly woman who recently lost her home in a tornado in Iowa. She was
only able to salvage a small number of her possessions. This watch is one of
them, a gift from her late husband. Can you imagine how your mother would feel
if she lost almost everything she owned?”
    “Well, that is
unfortunate.” The man stammered but didn’t reach for the watch lying on the
counter.
    “I work in the
advertising department of the Westover Weekly News, so I know how important a
good reputation is to a business like yours.”
    “Is that a
threat?” He didn’t sound very sure of himself.
    “No, but this
is. If you can’t do this simple thing to ease an older person’s pain, I plan to
spend the rest of the afternoon in front of your store, telling everyone who
even approaches the entrance how you treat people.”
    “That really
isn’t necessary,” he said, angry but defeated. He took the watch to the back
part of the store.
    “The kitten
has claws,” Nathan said so softly she barely made out the words.
    “No wonder his
store is empty,” Annie said, choosing to ignore Nathan’s comment.
    Apparently
changing a watch battery did take a little time, but Annie stood her ground by
a counter filled with gold chains and gemstone rings. She wished Nathan would
stop glancing over at her as though she’d just grown an extra head.
    “Well done,”
he said at last. “Aunt Mattie would be proud of you.”
    Did that mean
he approved of her tactics? Or had she embarrassed him by insisting on a small
service from the uncooperative clerk? After what seemed like ages but was
probably only five minutes or so, the jeweler returned and placed the watch on
the glass-topped counter in front of her. She’d forgotten all about having it
cleaned if it didn’t work, so she picked it up, hoping to hear a tick-tock
sound.
    “Battery
watches are silent,” he said in a voice that would have embarrassed her if he
hadn’t proved to be a jerk. “It’s working just fine.”
    “Thank you,”
she said for lack of anything else to say. “How much do I owe you?”
    The battery
was more expensive than she’d expected, but she handed over