The Christmas Shoppe Read Free Page B

find out what kind of business, if any, this woman planned to open up. If nothing else, he might run a human interest story on her next week—as filler and to appease Councilman Snider. Besides, Tommy actually was curious. What could possibly motivate an outsider to relocate to a hick town like Parrish Springs? And why would an old woman want to buy a decrepit building? He did feel relieved that the councilman had been outbid. It was no secret that this economy had been tough on local businesses. Many were fighting for their lives and livelihoods already, and the cheap goods at a discount chain store would’ve only made things worse. What had Councilman Snider been thinking about anyway? Probably the almighty dollar—in his own pocket!
    To go to the extreme of initiating what sounded a lot like a witch hunt was unsettling. Talking about this poor woman’s long gray hair and strange clothes as if Parrish Springs had some sort of enforced dress code ordinance made Tommy’s skin crawl.
    He shook his head as he opened the Spout email account. Maybe the bigger story would be to put the spotlight on Councilman Snider. Except that Tommy had attempted something like that years ago. Naturally, Snider had come out squeaky clean while Tommy was the one left with dirt on his face. Oh, Snider forgave Tommy in time. He may have even forgotten all about it by now. But Tommy still had questions about the old codger. Some people softened with age, but George Snider seemed more hardheaded than ever.
    Tommy let out a long sigh. What was it with small towns anyway? They seemed to bring out the worst in some people and the best in others. As for Tommy—well, he just tried to keep his head low and remain neutral. It had never been his plan to stick around this long, and although he felt fairly well trapped by this worthless old newspaper business, he still experienced occasional moments when he entertained daydreams of escaping. Especially this time of year.
    He stared at the calendar on his desk. It seemed impossible that it was already November. Next week was Veterans Day, and already he could feel the holidays barreling down the track, straight toward him, like a diesel-snorting locomotive going full speed. Tommy was itching to hop that train. More than anything he wanted to get out of town for good . . . or bad or whatever. Christmastime brought too many sad memories to him. Too much loneliness.
    Although Tommy knew forty-two was far too young to turn into an old curmudgeonly bachelor, he felt certain he was on the cusp of doing that very thing.

Susanna checked her BlackBerry as she entered city hall. It was barely noon, and already she had more than a dozen messages that would have to wait until she finished with the Beautification Committee. The topic of today’s discussion would be holiday decorations downtown. She was running a couple of minutes late, but these luncheon meetings seldom started or finished on time.
    As she entered the meeting room, she was taken aback to see Councilman Snider sitting at the head of the table. Box lunches were just being distributed, and Alice was playing hostess by filling water glasses.
    “Glad to see you could make it,” Councilman Snider told her in a slightly sharp tone.
    “Sorry to be late.” She smiled at the small group. “I was just helping our newest member of the community settle into the Barton Building.”
    “Settle in?” The councilman frowned. “Has it even gone to escrow yet?”
    “Ms. Honeycutt made a cash offer. As soon as her check clears at the bank, the property is hers.”
    “But not until her check clears,” he stated. “So why, pray tell, is she taking occupancy now?”
    “She’s not taking occupancy,” Susanna said. “Not that this has anything to do with this meeting—”
    “You let her remain in a city-owned building—”
    “Ms. Honeycutt is simply doing some planning and measuring, Councilman Snider. She will return the key to my office when she’s