Beatrice Gallagher
No. 40 in the Cobblestone Circle Series
Walter as you know runs the village grocery store and Beatrice used to work right along beside him every day. At first it was great fun but gradually their differing opinions as to exactly how to run a business started wearing away the excitement and turned each day into a grind for them both. Then out of the blue the storefront on Market Street between the Daily Gazette and the General Mercantile became available. Beatrice snapped it up and soon Twinkles Gift Shop was open for business.
Beatrice has been quite successful in her own shop. She has a keen eye for extraordinary pieces that she knows will appeal to the townsfolk ~ and she has that valuable shopkeepers’ sense of discretion. Just yesterday Betsy Wallace was in to pick out her own birthday gift. Her own gift??? Well after that string of birthdays when she received a vacuum cleaner, a bathrobe with huge orange poppies all over it, and then (gasp!) a health club membership, Betsy took the liberty of mentioning to Mr. Wallace that Twinkles might be a good place to shop. So today when Luke comes in, Beatrice will subtly guide him to the antique brass teapot Betsy chose.
But that will have to wait until this afternoon because right now it is time to close up for her midday kiss. You see the Gallaghers now have a rather romantic daily ritual. Three times each day they meet at the park for a kiss and to toss a coin in the fountain for luck ~ once as they part ways on their walk to work each morning, then at noon and again as they meet to stroll home together.
Yes, things certainly have a way of working themselves out ~ and it doesn’t hurt that Beatrice can slip a few doors down the street to the dress shop without Walter knowing!
~ SOLD ~
June 2008
