Valise in the Attic Read Online Free PDF

note about Herb’s present being in a separate package. Then she added a tin of Christmas cookies she’d baked for the twins and sealed the box. She’d go out to the post office later.
    Sighing, Annie decided to spend a while crocheting the lovely filet crochet table runner she had been working on for weeks. The dresser in the upstairs guest room was a beautiful antique piece that was a bit battered on top. It would look gorgeous with the runner draped across it. Annie had charted the crocket design herself, basing it on the pattern in the window drapes. She was very proud of the detail, but it required total concentration, so she would probably still be working on it well into the spring.
    The evening passed quickly as Annie slipped into the zone with her crocheting. It wasn’t until Boots jumped into her lap with a chorus of demanding meows that she realized it had grown late. Annie put away her project carefully, remembering to put the project bag in a cupboard away from curious cat paws. Then she carried Boots off to bed with the comfortable feeling of a day well spent.
    As she walked down the hall, she paused to turn down the thermostat. As much as Annie didn’t enjoy being cold, she loved that winter let her pile quilts on her bed for sleeping. As Annie snuggled under the handmade quilts from Betsy Holden’s collection, she always felt close to her grandmother.
    Betsy had loved beautiful things, but even more than that, she had loved things made by hand. “When someone creates something with her hands,” Betsy had told her, “with each stitch she sews part of herself into every piece. The same goes for knitting or crocheting. Everything you make will have a bit of you in it. And when you pass it on, you make connections from your heart.”
    Betsy had certainly made many connections with her own handwork. Though Annie’s grandmother loved trying many crafts, the one she was really known for was cross-stitch. She created worlds with her needle, and those worlds had lived on. “Proving that Gram was right,” Annie told the sleepy cat in her arms.
    Wednesday dawned clear and bright. The morning sun on the snow was nearly dazzling as Annie looked out. She hoped this weather would settle in for as long as the film crew was in town. Not only would it be more comfortable, it was just safer, especially since they were going to be filming around the water. Ian had told her how treacherous the waterfront piers got in icy conditions.
    Annie made a full pot of coffee to welcome Alice. She stood at the front windows sipping from her favorite mug and watching for her friend. Soon she spotted Alice crossing the yard. Alice lived in what had once been the carriage house for Grey Gables, back in the days when both properties belonged to just one family.
    Alice carried a basket covered in tea towels, and Annie’s stomach growled in anticipation. Alice’s goodies were always fantastic. Annie fully believed her friend could make a living with her baking if she wanted to, but Alice preferred selling Princessa jewelry and Divine Décor items at home parties. Baking was Alice’s play, and she didn’t want to rob it of any of the fun by making it a job.
    Annie had the door open by the time Alice reached the top of the porch steps. As her friend stomped snow from her boots on the mat, Annie took the basket. Boots sniffed the air through the door, but it was too cold for the cat to be interested in dashing outside.
    “Ready for an attic adventure?” Alice asked as she came in and slipped out of her long wool coat. The forest green sweatshirt she wore underneath made Annie laugh out loud. Alice had cross-stitched “Attic Adventurer” across the front along with images of piles of trunks and hatboxes.
    “Oh, that is wonderful,” Annie said. “When did you make it?”
    “About a month ago,” Alice said grinning. “You cannot imagine how itchy I’ve been to have a reason to wear it.”
    “Today’s the day,” Annie said.