Page 22 of A Bright Winter Season

Halfway down the aisle, Terrence noticed Vivian and stopped short. He stared at her for a few moments and then cleared his throat loudly. Vivian turned and blinked at him. For a moment, neither of them said anything.

Alexis watched the exchange, blinking, and then finally coughed gently.

“Good evening, Vivian,” Terrence said, seeming to recover himself. “Are you here to pick up materials to repair the vents?”

“No,” Vivian said shortly, holding back a sigh of exasperation. “I’m here to pick up supplies for The Lighthouse Grill. Other supplies. Not supplies having to do with the air vents.” She felt flustered, and she fiddled with the sleeves of her sweater, pulling one down to her wrist and pushing it back up to her elbow again.

Goodness,she thought.Are air vents all he ever thinks about?

“You are getting the vents replaced, aren’t you?” Terrence asked, his eyes narrowing a little.

“I most certainly am.” Vivian felt defensive immediately. “I may not be shopping for air vents right this minute, but that doesn’t mean that I don’t have the whole thing under control. I do. Even though I still don’t believe that it’s as urgent as you implied.”

“I can assure you, it is.” Terrence frowned. “Health and safety is no laughing matter.”

“I care very much about health and safety. I just don’t think that some slightly outdated air ducts pose any kind of a threat to anyone.”

Terrence shook his head. “Just make sure you get it done before the Christmas party. Remember, I’ll be coming back to verify that you’ve had the vents properly replaced.”

“I assure you, they will be done. We have the best man in town working on them.”

“I’m glad to hear that. I’ll be stopping by sometime before the party. Be sure to check your email.” With a nod that was probably meant to be polite but merely came off as stiff, Terrence continued on down the aisle.

Vivian watched him go, almost wriggling with indignation. “Did you see that?” she whispered to Alexis as soon as Terrence had turned around the corner. “Honestly, the nerve of that man! It’s not as though I have some kind of record of dodging the health department. You’d think I have some kind of warrant out for my arrest, he’s acting so suspicious.”

Alexis chuckled a little bit. “He does seem pretty tightly-wound.”

“I quite agree. He’s a rather insufferable man, in my opinion.”

“But look on the bright side—soon you’ll prove just how on top of things you are. When he shows up to check that the air vents have been properly replaced, he’ll see that they are. And I’m sure he sees places that need more things than that replaced or repaired all the time. Whatever his attitude is, I bet he thinks you’re running The Lighthouse Grill very well. Because you are.” She leaned over and kissed her mother’s cheek.

“Thank you, sweetheart. That’s sweet of you to say.”

They continued in their shopping, and Vivian kept an eye open for Terrence as they went. Just before they were leaving the store, she saw him again, standing in front of a rack of sponges.

He is an attractive man, she thought to herself.I have to admit that Alexis is right about that. But what an attitude he has!

She and Alexis made their purchases for the pub, and she focused on how nice it would feel to show Terrence the replaced air vents, proving to him once and for all how professional The Lighthouse Grill was.

CHAPTER ELEVEN

Hazel tapped her pencil against her chin as she stared into space. “What do you think? Should we hang up the kids’ Christmas art on that wall over the fireplace, or the one opposite from the front door?”

Alexis glanced up from her task of rolling silverware and smiled. “I vote for the wall opposite from the front door. That way people will be able to see the art through the windows whenever it’s dark outside.”

Hazel and Alexis were at the pub together, sitting at a booth. Since she had the day off, Hazel was working on some details for the community Christmas event, and Alexis was there doing small housekeeping tasks before her shift officially began later in the afternoon.

“Oh, you’re right.” Hazel scribbled a note down in the notebook that was open on the table in front of her. “Great idea.”

“Why thank you.” Alexis smiled and took a sip of her drink. Both sisters had festive beverages at their elbows—Hazel had a toffee gingerbread coffee, and Alexis had a cup of peppermint tea. “Oh, that’s good. I’ve been drinking mint tea almost all the time. It keeps me from being nauseous.”

“I used to do that when I was pregnant with Samantha! It definitely helped. It’s soothing too. Sometimes I forget just how relaxing tea can be.”

“It is, for sure. And the peppermint feels Christmassy right now.”

Hazel was about to ask her sister if she’d told Grayson about her pregnancy yet, but at that moment Jacob stepped into the pub.

“Hey!” Hazel called to him, waving. “Are you here to work on the vents or get lunch?”

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