Page 17
She nodded. “Definitely.”
When Leah took a seat, Mochi lay down on the floor between them. She placed her head on her white paws and went to sleep.
Shaun cleared his throat and decided to go in a safer direction. “Have you always lived in Kringle Falls?”
Leah shook her head. “This is my first visit.” There was a long pause. Just when he started to think she wasn’t going to say more, she said, “In fact, this is my first time in New England. I’ve spent all of my life in California with a couple of vacations south of the border.” She looked at him. “And what about you?”
“This is my first visit to New England too.”
“Where are you from?”
“Originally Ohio, but later I moved to Kentucky. My sister and her family live there. Until recently, my father used to run an animal shelter in Ohio. But when he started having health issues, I finally convinced him that running the shelter was too much for him. And he moved to Kentucky where he moved in with me.”
“That’s really nice that you’re that close. What does he think of retirement?”
“Well...my father quickly got bored. In less than a month after moving in with me, he found a shelter and started volunteering his time.”
“Aw... That’s sweet. Just goes to show that you can take the man out of the animal shelter but you can’t take the animal shelter out of the man.”
“That pretty much sums it up. And then he got me started volunteering there. I’m just part-time because I have my own business to run.”
“And yet you found time to drive to Vermont during an ice storm to deliver puppies.”
He shrugged. “Things are quieting down with the construction business for the holidays, so I agreed to do it. I didn’t think it would take that long. Last year, someone else... Maybe you know her, Candi…uh, I can’t recall her last name.” When Leah shook her head, he kept going. “Anyway she brought another group of puppies to Kringle Falls last Christmas and ended up staying.”
“I’ll let you in on a secret.”
“What’s that?”
“This place is hard to leave. When I first arrived, I thought I would come here and sign some papers to sell the B&B. Instead, I’m still here.”
“You must really like it here.”
She shrugged. “I like the town, but I’m still here because my grandmother put in her will that I had to run the B&B for one month before I could sell it.”
“So, you’re just putting in time?”
“Something like that.” She yawned. “Sorry. It’s been a long day.”
“I understand. If you want to go back to your place, I’ll stay here until the fire dies out.”
She shook her head. “There’s no heat back there.”
“I could start a fire for you.”
Once more she shook her head. “What I mean is the cottage doesn’t have a fireplace.”
“Oh. I can’t help with that.”
“I’m just going to sleep on the couch.”
“Why not take one of the guest rooms?”
She shrugged. “Too much work.” She yawned again. “And I’m too tired.”
Shaun got to his feet. “Let me put another log on the fire, and I’ll get out of here so you can get some rest.”
“Thanks. I’d appreciate it. I’ll just go grab a blanket and pillow.”
