Page 6 of Snowflakes and Sparks

“No, I’m sure it was the one with that guy from Titanic,” another gazebo member stated.

I had to put a stop to this madness. “I’m sorry, but I’m not a Hollywood actress.”

Disappointment spread through the group.

“Then why are you here?”

“I’m here to temporarily run Got It Covered.”

Blank stares.

“Perhaps one of you lovely people could show me where the store is located?”

“So you’re going to be living in Claire Wilson’s place,” the lady in red said.

“It’s only temporary,” I repeated.

“You do know she died, right? Are you sure you want to live there? I heard the entire place is haunted,” she added in a whispered voice.

“Such a tragedy,” one of the gazebo members said, shaking his head. “Claire was a wonderful person and now that beautiful house of hers is filled with her lost soul.”

Were they being serious, or had I arrived smack dab in the middle of rehearsals for a town play?

“Thanks, but I’ll take my chances,” I said, hoping that someone would knock me unconscious right then and there so that I didn’t have to talk about dead people and haunted houses anymore.

Another wave of blank stares followed. I took it as my cue to walk back to the safety of my car. I still didn’t know how to reach the bookstore, but I wanted to get away from the ghost talkers as fast as possible. They were freaking me out.

Luckily, Doug came to my rescue once again and told me where Got It Covered was located.

“Did someone tell you how to obtain the keys?” he asked.

I nodded. “My boss told me that the family next door would give them to me.”

“Perfect. Well, have a nice day, Hollywood.”

I threw him a smile. “Thanks again, Doug. Although, my real name is Suzie.”

“Of course. I’ll see you around, Suzie,” he said.

I drove away, a handful of people watching me leave. Was this how it was going to be around here? My every move being watched and assessed by a group of superstitious townies?

I pulled up at the bookstore and my heart skipped a beat. The store was located on the ground floor of a cozy-looking house. A big shop window boasted rows of books and a couple of cute notebooks. The display looked dull, but I was sure I could fix that and turn it into something appealing.

A small staircase led to a tiny porch. The front door was located on the left of the building, a welcome mat placed neatly in front. The turreted window on the top floor was flanked by two bigger windows with drawn curtains. Those rooms were most likely where Claire’s ghost hung out, away from the prying eyes of her fellow townies.

I opened the trunk of the car and got my suitcases out. Wheeling them up the stairs to the front door sounded easier than it was. Granted, I was only going to be here for three or four weeks, so three suitcases seemed a bit over the top, but I had my reasons. Kate had given me a generous shopping budget for this work trip and recommended I go shopping at Snow Sports Apparel. I’d interpreted that offer asbuy their entire winter collection and then some. In my defense, my closet had nothing but summer dresses, shorts and sandals. None of those items would benefit me in a snow-covered town.

I left the suitcases on the porch and went to the house next door, where Kate had told me to pick up the keys.

The doorbell made a sound that reminded me of a song from one of those popular sci-fi movies. Star Trek? Star Wars? I racked my brain for the appropriate title, but nothing came to mind. Who was I kidding? I had never been able to keep the two movies apart. All I knew was that they were both located in space somewhere. Fantasy space, of course, not the real galaxy.

The door swung open and a broad-shouldered man stepped forward. He leaned against the doorpost and folded his arms, a smile teasing the corners of his mouth. A mouth I had thought of kissing many times before.

“Well, well, if it isn’t Suzie Stonebrooks,” he said. “So we’re going to be neighbors, huh? By the way, how did you get here? You didn’t drive through the snow and crash into something, did you?” he asked, looking over my shoulder to where I had parked my rental car.

I tried to speak, but nothing came out of my mouth. I averted my gaze from his big brown eyes and stared at my new furry boots instead, as if they held the answers to all life’s questions.

“What’s the matter, Suzie? Can’t speak? Oh, I get it. You have a letter for me, don’t you?”

---