Read Online Catch of The Day: Destiny Romance by Carla Caruso - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Carla Caruso
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slack. ‘Huh.’ Her two potential stories now looked pretty paltry in comparison. And they’d walked in off the street.
Olive turned back to her screen and sniffed. ‘I googled that last mag you worked at, too –
Slicker
. It looks like more of a rag.
Beach Life
’s going to be a bit bigger and glossier, isn’t it?’
Winnie silently fumed as she fired up her own PC. ‘Perhaps in size and design, but the readership numbers will be measly in comparison.’ She swiped at her mug, misjudging its location with her fingertips and knocking it over. Nice. Peppermint tea spilled all over her keyboard – and her thighs, where her skirt had hitched up. Ouch. She shot back in her seat. ‘Blast it.’
Rather than laughing meanly at her again, Olive jumped up, plonked a tissue box on Winnie’s desk and extended a hand for her keyboard. ‘I’ve got a hairdryer in my handbag. Might save it. You mop yourself down.’
Standing up to let the tea run off, Winnie unplugged her keyboard and passed it to Olive. ‘Thank you,’ she said in a small voice. ‘And sorry for coming across all heavy-handed before. Things have just been getting on top of me lately – new town, looming deadline and all. I shouldn’t have accused you of being slack just now. You’ve clearly been doing a terrific job – much better than me. You were even good enough to clean up this place before I arrived and sort out newspapers for me.’
Olive waved the keyboard in the air, and droplets of peppermint tea flew about the place. ‘No problems. And I shouldn’t have gone off like a bucket of prawns in the sun at you either. I just didn’t want your city-slicker superiority getting out of control.’
They grinned at each other. It was their first fight and somehow they’d emerged unscathed.
Olive rested her free hand on her hip. ‘You know, there’s this nice muntrie café nearby, called Sandy Grove. It’s set on a farm. Maybe we could go there for a bit of a brainstorming session. Drum up a few more story ideas? I know it’d be tough going it alone when you’re not from around here.’
‘I
love
the idea.’ It was too early to face the five emails from Eden the bridezilla already blinking in Winnie’s inbox – a blur of pink font and exclamation marks. ‘What kind of café did you say it was again?’
‘A
muntrie
one. They’re one of Australia’s oldest bush foods and look a little like tiny apples, but they’re actually berries. And they’re totally delicious.’
‘I’m salivating already.’ Winnie grabbed a wad of tissues and began drying off her thighs. ‘So why were you ringing a psychic, anyway?’
Olive busied herself plugging the hairdryer into a nearby power point. ‘Nothing important. Just life and stuff in general.’
‘
Okay
.’ Obviously Winnie had touched a nerve, but she decided to let it go for the moment. They’d only just smoothed things over.
With her gaze still averted, Olive gave the keyboard a few blasts of hot air, before pausing. ‘Oh, before I forget, I have to duck out to an appointment tomorrow afternoon. I’ll make up the time, though. The optometrist only visits here once a month.’
‘You wear glasses?’
‘Contacts.’
‘I had no idea.’
‘And another thing.’ Olive put the keyboard down for a moment to fish the work car keys from the desk drawer. She dangled them in the air. ‘Let
me
drive us to the café.’
Winnie had to smile. ‘Sure thing.’
Winnie sucked the creamy remnants of muntrie cheesecake from her fork. ‘So what about celebrities?’ she pressed Olive. ‘Anyone famous come from around here?’
The muntries tasted – addictively – like a blend of spicy apples and sultanas. Nearby, the berry plants covered rows of trellis like green carpet. Unfortunately, the endless treats Winnie was enjoying in Kingston didn’t bode well for fitting into her skinny jeans upon her return to Sydney.
‘Kingston
does
have one famous daughter . . . though
Olive turned back to her screen and sniffed. ‘I googled that last mag you worked at, too –
Slicker
. It looks like more of a rag.
Beach Life
’s going to be a bit bigger and glossier, isn’t it?’
Winnie silently fumed as she fired up her own PC. ‘Perhaps in size and design, but the readership numbers will be measly in comparison.’ She swiped at her mug, misjudging its location with her fingertips and knocking it over. Nice. Peppermint tea spilled all over her keyboard – and her thighs, where her skirt had hitched up. Ouch. She shot back in her seat. ‘Blast it.’
Rather than laughing meanly at her again, Olive jumped up, plonked a tissue box on Winnie’s desk and extended a hand for her keyboard. ‘I’ve got a hairdryer in my handbag. Might save it. You mop yourself down.’
Standing up to let the tea run off, Winnie unplugged her keyboard and passed it to Olive. ‘Thank you,’ she said in a small voice. ‘And sorry for coming across all heavy-handed before. Things have just been getting on top of me lately – new town, looming deadline and all. I shouldn’t have accused you of being slack just now. You’ve clearly been doing a terrific job – much better than me. You were even good enough to clean up this place before I arrived and sort out newspapers for me.’
Olive waved the keyboard in the air, and droplets of peppermint tea flew about the place. ‘No problems. And I shouldn’t have gone off like a bucket of prawns in the sun at you either. I just didn’t want your city-slicker superiority getting out of control.’
They grinned at each other. It was their first fight and somehow they’d emerged unscathed.
Olive rested her free hand on her hip. ‘You know, there’s this nice muntrie café nearby, called Sandy Grove. It’s set on a farm. Maybe we could go there for a bit of a brainstorming session. Drum up a few more story ideas? I know it’d be tough going it alone when you’re not from around here.’
‘I
love
the idea.’ It was too early to face the five emails from Eden the bridezilla already blinking in Winnie’s inbox – a blur of pink font and exclamation marks. ‘What kind of café did you say it was again?’
‘A
muntrie
one. They’re one of Australia’s oldest bush foods and look a little like tiny apples, but they’re actually berries. And they’re totally delicious.’
‘I’m salivating already.’ Winnie grabbed a wad of tissues and began drying off her thighs. ‘So why were you ringing a psychic, anyway?’
Olive busied herself plugging the hairdryer into a nearby power point. ‘Nothing important. Just life and stuff in general.’
‘
Okay
.’ Obviously Winnie had touched a nerve, but she decided to let it go for the moment. They’d only just smoothed things over.
With her gaze still averted, Olive gave the keyboard a few blasts of hot air, before pausing. ‘Oh, before I forget, I have to duck out to an appointment tomorrow afternoon. I’ll make up the time, though. The optometrist only visits here once a month.’
‘You wear glasses?’
‘Contacts.’
‘I had no idea.’
‘And another thing.’ Olive put the keyboard down for a moment to fish the work car keys from the desk drawer. She dangled them in the air. ‘Let
me
drive us to the café.’
Winnie had to smile. ‘Sure thing.’
Winnie sucked the creamy remnants of muntrie cheesecake from her fork. ‘So what about celebrities?’ she pressed Olive. ‘Anyone famous come from around here?’
The muntries tasted – addictively – like a blend of spicy apples and sultanas. Nearby, the berry plants covered rows of trellis like green carpet. Unfortunately, the endless treats Winnie was enjoying in Kingston didn’t bode well for fitting into her skinny jeans upon her return to Sydney.
‘Kingston
does
have one famous daughter . . . though
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