After All These Years Read Online Free PDF Page A

am so, so sorry about your grandmother.”
    â€œThank you.” She wiped away a tear. This was why she had come early. She wanted to get this over with, this seeing everyone for the first time after her
abuela
’s death…this pain hitting afresh, like a paper cut that couldn’t heal because she kept touching it.
    They clasped hands in silence. In a subtle way, the moment intensified Christ’s comfort more than words could. They sniffed and then smiled through tears. Isabel sensed this was another reason she came today. After her grandmother, Lia was the most joyful woman she had ever met. Such women knew the depths of sorrow firsthand.
    Isabel hadn’t heard the entire story. Lia had arrived in Valley Oaks only that summer. When she came to church and met Britte Olafsson and Isabel, an instant rapport sprangup between the three of them. Since that time, she and Britte had pitched in at the shop and the upstairs apartment, helping their new friend get her feet on the ground.
    â€œIsabel, your box is
moving
.”
    â€œLook.” She lifted out the kitten. “Her name is Nutmeg. Gina gave her to me. I thought Chloe would enjoy playing with her today.”
    â€œOh, how sweet! She’ll want one.”
    â€œWell,” Isabel cleared her throat, “Gina happens to have this mama cat out at Brady’s, and Brady is not exactly a kitten kind of guy. I thought it’d be a great ‘welcome to Valley Oaks’ gift, so I called Gina. There’s a kitty earmarked for Chloe if you give the okay.”
    Lia’s eyes were wet again. “Thank you, Isabel. You’ve all been so thoughtful.”
    â€œHey, we’re just grateful to have you here. You kept the pharmacy in town. I can’t wait to get you singing in the choir and to a book club meeting. Now, when do I get to meet Chloe?”
    â€œWe snuggled a bit this morning, and then I told her to go back to sleep. We didn’t get home until midnight. It was such an unbelievable day! Speaking of the choir, you’ll have to ask Cal Huntington what he thinks about my singing.”
    â€œCal?”
    Lia relayed the story, ending with her rendition of a hulking teddy bear avoiding eye contact.
    When their giggles finally subsided, Isabel said, “He’s my neighbor. And he goes with Dot’s daughter, Tammy.”
    Lia shook her head. “I will never get the hang of all the interrelationships in this town.”
    â€œOh, just give yourself six months. It took me a year, but you’re smarter than I am. All right, put me to work.”

    Like most Monday mornings, this one kicked into high gear promptly at nine o’clock, two minutes after Dot Cassidy waltzed in to take her place at the cash register beside Lia in the back of the store.
    Isabel enjoyed her role of chatting with customers and covering the front register. The simple changes Lia had already incorporated exuded a pleasant small-town environment. Her pharmacy area was located at the back, with the drugs and counter in one corner and a waiting area in the other with four new wicker arm chairs and a coffee table holding magazines. Besides the regular array of drugstore items, the pharmacy now carried distinctly more tasteful cards, organic herbal teas, Brady’s books, delightful gifts for any occasion, and an assortment of candles, their delectable scents permeating the shop.
    Cal walked in before ten o’clock, carrying a paper bag with the hardware store’s logo and a drill. “Morning, neighbor.”
    â€œGood morning, Cal.” Isabel winked at him. “I’ve heard you were upstairs already! Don’t you think Lia’s done wonders with the place? Especially the
shower?
”
    â€œLike I saw
that
, Miss Nosy Mendozy,” he bantered, although his tan deepened three shades and his jaw worked furiously on a piece of gum. “Why don’t you announce it on your show?”
    â€œMaybe I will.”