Hot Flash Holidays by Nancy Thayer

Author:Nancy Thayer
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Tags: Fiction
ISBN: 9780307415509
Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
Published: 2007-12-17T16:00:00+00:00

FOURTH OF JULY

14

THE SUN SHONE DOWN ON A PERFECT DAY: SUNNY, clear, and hot. Divine picnic weather.

Shirley bustled about on the large slate patio off The Haven’s kitchen door, carefully setting, right in the center of each picnic table, a bowl of red, white, and purple-blue petunias with a cute little American flag in the middle. She felt festive in red cropped pants, a blue-and-white striped jersey, and red espadrilles. And her earrings were so clever—they looked like firecrackers!

All around The Haven, the grounds spread like green velvet. The gardener had mowed the grass two days ago, and now, at the far end, by the beginning of the walking path, Justin was stabbing croquet wickets into the ground. They’d already set up the badminton net.

Shirley paused for a moment to gloat.

A few years ago, she’d been lonely and just a hair above down-and-out. Now she was the director of this flourishing business, plus living with a literary genius who loved her enough to stop his important work and help her with the humble manual labor of preparing for this party.

It hurt that her friends didn’t trust Justin, but their faith in her encouraged her to have faith in him. And he’d worked so hard over the past few months, and accomplished so much! He’d researched and assessed various self-publishing companies, finally choosing The Hemingway Group. Wasn’t that the most elegant name! It gave Shirley shivers. The Hemingway Group was based in Boston, which was an asset, Justin informed her. This company not only knew how to package Justin’s novel, but how to market it. They had contacts with the media. They were planning an extensive publicity campaign for the book’s publication this fall. Justin went in about once a week to meet with Dee Sylvester, who had helped edit the book and was working with graphic artists to create the perfect cover. She’d promised Justin that this book would explode on the book-reading public, zoom to the top of the bestseller list, and bring editors from New York publishing houses pounding on his door.

Shirley couldn’t wait until the fall! Then her friends would come crawling to her with apologies for not believing in Justin. Especially Alice!

Alan and Jennifer strolled up the long drive from their cottage, once the gatehouse for the property. Instead of paying rent, they helped out whenever The Haven had an open house or some event needing food. They’d helped Shirley prepare the food for today’s party, but they were also guests, part of the Hot Flash Club’s extended family. They greeted Shirley with a kiss on the cheek, then set to work.

Alan asked, “Shirley, is the bar good here?”

“That’s fine.” Shirley slid a rubber coaster under one of the tables to level it. “If you want to bring the ice out, I’ll get the glasses.”

They set up the bar, then wheeled out the state-of-the-art barbecue grill. Shirley was a vegetarian, but Alice and the others had protested that not having hamburgers and hot dogs on the Fourth of July was not only bizarre but practically un-American, so of course she gave in.

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