Flirting with Fireworks. Teresa Carpenter
Читать онлайн книгу.
Make sure to tell Mayor Strong how you feel, and I’ll save you an appointment at the fair.” She waved her goodbyes to Mrs. White and Mrs. Davis and strolled for the corner that gave access to Cypress Street.
The pretty day added to her joy in the morning. Blue skies, the scent of fresh-cut grass on the air, and a breeze playful enough to lift the hem of her navy-and-turquoise paisley skirt made her think of home.
An odd reaction, when the only home she’d ever known had four wheels and an awning. Maybe she was enjoying these days in Blossom City a little too much. The place, the people, they were getting to her when she knew better than to let herself care.
“Missy. Yeah, Missy, over here.” An age-roughened voice hailed Cherry from a few feet away.
She followed the sound and found two elderly men in overalls and plaid shirts seated on a bench at the edge of the park. Both men had gray hair, though one had more than the other. But then he had more of a paunch, too. Each claimed an end of the bench with a two-foot space separating them. On the sidewalk exactly half way between them sat a tobacco-stained coffee can.
As she neared them, she saw the biggest similarity was the twin sparks of deviltry deep in their eyes. These two had seen a bit of trouble in their day. And caused a little, too.
“You’re the carnival gal, yeah?” The taller of the two waved her closer. “The fortune-teller? We want our fortunes told. I’m Dutch, that there’s Buster.”
Hands on her hips, she assessed the two characters. If she gave them half a chance, they’d have her running in circles. “Sure. I predict, a new coffee can in your future.”
“Huh. No news there.” Buster revealed his skepticism. “Bea over to the BeeHive gives us a new can once a week.”
“Now hold on. No way she knew that. Seems to me we got the real deal here.” Dutch rubbed his hands together. “Go on, do your thing.”
Cherry hid her amusement. “Gentlemen, exactly what do you want to know?”
Both men looked to the left, then to the right.
“There’s a conspiracy to get us moved off our bench. Damn Moral Misfits,” Dutch whispered loudly. “We’ve been sitting on this here bench longer than some of them been around. They got no call to be buttin’ their noses in where we sit.”
“No call.” Buster agreed.
“What we want, Madam Peacock, is for you to look into your crystal ball and tell us how to get the damn Crappy Committee off our backs.”
“Well now. I don’t have my crystal ball with me, but let’s see what I can do.” Ceremoniously, Cherry circled the bench three times.
“Yeah now, gal, you’re making me dizzy. You got something to tell us or what?”
Nothing special happened by circling except to give her a chance to think, to feel. Unfortunately, the two men had built up too many shields through the years for her to read them. Which meant falling back on body language, and good sense.
Конец ознакомительного фрагмента.
Текст предоставлен ООО «ЛитРес».
Прочитайте эту книгу целиком, купив полную легальную версию на ЛитРес.
Безопасно оплатить книгу можно банковской картой Visa, MasterCard, Maestro, со счета мобильного телефона, с платежного терминала, в салоне МТС или Связной, через PayPal, WebMoney, Яндекс.Деньги, QIWI Кошелек, бонусными картами или другим удобным Вам способом.