Chapter 1 #2
“After I got home from London, I didn’t want to just come home to Jasper Creek. I wanted a place away from family. Some place where people wouldn’t have a lot of expectations.” She tilted her head. “That probably sounds weird, right?”
“No, that makes all the sense in the world. So, what finally brought you back?”
“A force of nature called Little Grandma. She basically told me I was spinning my wheels, and I should come back here. She said I was basically just hiding instead of living. I don’t know if I agree with her on the hiding part, but she was right that I wasn’t moving forward, so I decided to come back.
” She shook her head. “I’m not making sense at all, am I? ”
“It makes perfect sense, child.” Miss Laverne patted her hand.
I couldn’t speak. So much of what she said resonated down to the soles of my feet. I’d been spinning my wheels, literally, until I landed here in Jasper Creek.
“Roxie told me just the other day how well you were doing over at her clinic,” Miss Laverne said, giving Joy’s hand another pat. Then she looked up at me. “She said Joy is a natural.”
“I love it there. I even got to see her operate. She’s amazing.”
“What do you do there?” I asked.
“I’m a kennel assistant, and it doesn’t get any better than that. I get to pet dogs and cats every day. I basically make sure they feel loved.”
I couldn’t help but chuckle at her enthusiasm. “I’m sure there’s more to it than that.”
“Well, sure, I have to keep them fed and watered and ensure that they don’t scratch their incisions.
Sometimes they’re coming out of sedation, and I have to really watch them.
Since I work the night shift, I don’t get to take them outside and play, which is a bummer.
But when they’re lonely or scared, I take them out of their cages for a cuddle. ”
“How did you get the job?”
“Little Grandma hooked me up. It was a little spooky. She had already talked to Roxie before I even mentioned I was a little dissatisfied with Nashville.”
I’d never experienced Little Grandma’s hocus-pocus, but it was legendary.
“What about you, Graham? Where do you come from?”
“What if I told you I come from a little town in Tennessee?”
Joy giggled. “It’s not polite to call a guest a liar, so I’d have to say you’re pulling my leg.”
“You’d be right. I come from Bangor, Maine.”
“You’re a long way from home.” Joy sounded surprised.
“I wandered a lot after I got out of the service.”
“Oh. When did you leave the service?”
“Four years ago. I landed here in Jasper Creek a little over two years ago. I’ve got to admit, it feels like home.”
Joy grinned. “Yeah, this place has a way of making people feel at home.”
“This town is filled with great people,” I responded. “However…” I glanced over at Miss Laverne. “It’s still not safe to leave your front door unlocked. We’ve talked about that. I worry about your safety when you don’t lock your door.”
“The door was unlocked?” Joy’s eyes were so wide, I could see the whites.
I nodded.
She swiftly turned her head to look at Miss Laverne. “Graham is right. That’s not safe. It doesn’t matter where you live. You need to protect yourself.”
“Child, I promise you, nothing bad would have happened. I normally keep it locked, but I knew Graham was coming and we’d most likely be in the kitchen talking, so we might not hear him. I wanted him to let himself in.”
Joy clasped her fingers together so tightly, her knuckles turned white. “That’s really considerate,” she said slowly. “But it still concerns me.”
Miss Laverne looked Joy over and frowned. “Honey, I can see this means a lot to you. Of course I’ll keep the door locked from now on.”
Joy gave her a slow smile as she blew out a long breath. “Thank you.”
“Joy, you accomplished in five minutes what I’ve been trying to get Miss Laverne to do for six months. You’re a miracle worker,” I teased. She blushed.
“I would love to take you out to dinner,” I ventured. “It’s the least I could do for easing my mind.”
“Uhhhm.”
“You probably know more about Jasper Creek than I do, since you grew up here. I’d love for you to show me around.”
Her cheeks got even redder. That was when I realized I was asking a nice girl out on a date. What was I thinking? Oh yeah, because of the kick in the gut I’d received in the kitchen.
“Uhm, I work nights,” she finally replied.
“Maybe lunch?”
“We could have lunch here,” she suggested.
“No, you kids need to go out and meet people,” Miss Laverne coaxed. “Graham has a lot of friends. Maybe he can introduce you to some of the nice boys at his work. They sometimes solve mysteries. Almost like the Hardy Boys.”
I choked on the sweet tea I was drinking.
“The Hardy Boys?” Joy asked.
“They were teenage crime solvers in my day. Those books were written at the same time as Nancy Drew.” Miss Laverne snapped her fingers. “I know. They solve mysteries like Jessica Fletcher on Murder, She Wrote. You know that show, don’t you, dear?”
“From reruns,” Joy nodded.
“Only the men are former special operations, and they might use weapons from time to time,” I said casually.
“Guns? Like pistols?” Miss Laverne’s eyes went wide. “Are they like the police?”
I winced. “They help the police.”
“Oh. That’s very interesting. I’ll have to ask Roan or Simon to show me their pistols up close. I’ve only seen rifles and shotguns.”
I sighed.
“Oh, but we were talking about you and Graham going out on a lunch date,” she turned to Joy.
“I don’t know, Miss Laverne. With me working nights, I’m still just settling in. Getting my footing.”
“Nonsense, you need to get out more. My goodness, child, a handsome man wants to take you to lunch, you go. At least that’s how it was in my day. Have things changed all that much?” she asked, turning to me.
I held up my hands. “It’s Joy’s prerogative. I don’t want to apply any pressure.”
Which was a total lie.
“Maybe some other time. I think I need to concentrate on work right now. You understand.”
Shit, shot down.
I couldn’t remember the last time that happened, especially after I’d caught her casting shy glances my way.
Well, I knew where she lived, and I knew where she worked. I guess I was going to have to play the long game.
“I totally understand, Joy,” I smiled. “In the meantime, I hope you’ll be baking the next time I drop by.”
“If you call ahead of time, sweetie, I’ll make sure she is,” Miss Laverne said.
“You know, you’re not very subtle, Miss Laverne,” Joy groused.
“Well, that’s a good thing, since I wasn’t aiming for subtle,” she laughed as she gave me a wicked smile.
As I drove away, one thought kept circling through my mind. It was an intuition that I tried to always listen to. My life had just divided into before and after. Before I saw Joy Magill pulling that cake out of the oven, and after.
I knew down to the soles of my boots that there was no going back. And I sure as hell didn’t want to.