A Pine Island Christmas: A Short Story by Caroline Mickelson

Author:Caroline Mickelson [Mickelson, Caroline]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Bon Accord Press

5

Jenni swished her feet around the ceramic basin. The jasmine scented water was the perfect temperature, and the floating rose petals topped off what had to be the most relaxing pedicure she'd ever experienced.

The Silken Sands was decorated with a charming Old Florida flair. She'd been surprised and pleased to find the salon virtually empty when she'd arrived. It meant that she'd been able to get her nails done without waiting, and more importantly, it meant that she'd had no competition for Cherry's attention. The owner, Jenni soon discovered, turned out to be every bit as charming as her shop.

"Keep waving your hands, Jenni," Cherry instructed her. "Things here in Florida dry more slowly than they do up north." She switched off the water taps and crossed the salon to pull a jar of sea salt crystals from a shelf on the opposite wall. She turned back to look over her shoulder. "Here I've been chatting up a storm since you got here without asking if you're in a particular hurry."

"I'm not," Jenni answered quite truthfully. "I'm operating on vacation time, and my son is off bowling with some new friends, so my afternoon is my own."

Cherry settled herself on the small rolling chair in front of the basin. "Just what I wanted to hear. I love everything about my work, and high up on that list is chatting with visitors to our little town. Now, tell me how your trip is going so far."

Jenni was grateful for the segue. She filled Cherry in about their flat tire and Micah's kindness in loaning them his car. "I'd love to find a way to repay the favor but I don't know anything about him. Do you, by any chance?"

Cherry's brow furrowed in thought. "Well, I can say with a great deal of certainty that no one by the name of Micah Braxton is a regular on the island. It's entirely possible that he's just moved here, although I have to tell you that news travels quickly through our little island, so I doubt that." She looked up and met Jenni's eyes. "Did he say where he was from?"

"Not exactly. He only said 'here', which is quite ambiguous, isn't it? He might mean Florida, Pine Island, or even the beach itself." She paused to give the other woman a chance to answer but Cherry remained silent, a thoughtful expression on her face. Jenni decided that since she was here, she might as well go for broke. "I wondered if Pine Island has much of a homeless population?"

"Thankfully, no." Cherry reached for Jenni's left foot and guided it to the towel she'd laid on the edge of the basin. "Did this gentleman have a southern accent, by any chance?"

"He did, but it was slight. Why do you ask?"

Cherry shrugged. "It's the name. I wondered if he was one of Atlanta Braxton's?"

"Friends of yours?" Jenni asked.

The other woman's laughter rang throughout the shop. "Good heavens, no. I've done quite well for myself and have been able to feather my nest, but I don't run in the same circles as the Braxton family.

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