Bells, Tails, & Murder by Kathy Manos Penn

Author:Kathy Manos Penn [Penn, Kathy Manos]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781734322606
Publisher: Manos Penn & Ink
Published: 2020-02-16T22:00:00+00:00

Chapter Nine

By the time Dave arrived, I’d done a bit of light housekeeping, prepared a plate of grapes, hummus, and pita chips, and had a bottle of wine chilling. I let Dickens out the door when I heard the car pull up.

“Hey, boy,” I heard him say. “How you doing?”

Dickens eyed him and barked, “Nice of you to ask. I’m doing fine.”

I chuckled as the two came toward the door. “I think he just told you he was fine,” I told Dave.

I admired his tweed sport coat and was glad I’d chosen dressy casual for the evening.

He handed me a small box as he came in. “I explored the village of Broadway today and couldn’t pass up the chocolate shop,” he said. “I hope you like chocolate.”

“Fortunately or unfortunately, depending on your perspective, I like chocolate and most sweets,” I replied. “Let me open some wine and I’ll show you around the cottage. Would you prefer red or white?”

We settled on red, and I poured two glasses before I took him back outside to start the tour. “I fell in love with this place when I saw the pictures online,” I said, “but the fact that it had been a schoolhouse in the 1800s pretty much sealed the deal for me. Thankfully, it was in great shape and had the space I needed. The appliances have been upgraded, and the garden is a dream.”

“Look, it even has a school bell,” Dave observed. “And the mullioned windows are a nice touch. You’re going to have to tell me the story of how you decided to move to England and the Cotswolds in particular, plus how one goes about finding a fairy-tale cottage like this one.”

As we returned to the kitchen, I suggested we save that story for dinner. I gave him the indoor tour, pointing out that the two very large rooms downstairs were originally classrooms but had been turned into a sitting room and extra-large playroom when the school was converted to a cottage.

I’d added bookcases on either side of the fireplace in the sitting room and a comfy cushion to the window seat in the other room, now my office. In there, I’d positioned my desk to see out the large picture window to the garden. Slowly filling the bookcases put in by the previous owners with books and local pottery was one of my great pleasures.

Next was a quick tour of the two upstairs bedrooms, where Dave was as enchanted with the mullioned windows of leaded glass as I was. Returning to the kitchen, we grabbed the snacks and the bottle of wine and settled in the sitting room. He was admiring my collection of books when Christie made her entrance.

“Pffft,” she hissed. “I’m not sure about this one. I much prefer Peter.”

Dave laughed. “Uh-oh, I suspect that sound means she doesn’t like me. Or does she greet all newcomers like this?”

The answer to his question was no, she didn’t usually have that reaction, but I didn’t want to hurt his feelings, so I told him she hadn’t adjusted to her new home yet.

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