Shear Trouble Read Online Free Page A

acceptance of the kitten.
    With the animals set, it seemed that the best course of action, as the sun started to sink, was to enjoy some tasty food and the company of quilters in the cozy quilt shop.
    Meadow beamed when she saw her and immediately relieved Beatrice of half of the things she was carrying and led her to the store’s large back room, wherelong tables were set up next to one another. “Good. You came early. Figured you would, since you’re one of those strictly punctual types. Here, take this table.” She laid down Beatrice’s things with a flourish. “See, you’re here in between me and Miss Sissy.” Meadow gestured behind Beatrice.
    Beatrice turned, repressing a sigh. How was Miss Sissy today, on the lucidity scale?
    Miss Sissy glared fiercely at Beatrice, her black button eyes narrowed. “Wickedness!” she growled.
    Apparently, Miss Sissy was not having one of her good days. Fortunately, Beatrice now knew how to make her a bit more even-tempered. “Could you help me out with my quilt today, Miss Sissy? I’m finished with my quilt for the show, because it was an easy pattern, but I wanted to try something harder for myself.”
    Miss Sissy’s harsh gaze relaxed and she trotted spryly around her table until she was on Beatrice’s side. She gently helped spread out the quilt and ran a hand over it. “Double wedding ring,” she grunted, smiling down at the colorful arcs that Beatrice had started. Instability aside, Miss Sissy was a fantastic quilter. And Beatrice would take all the help she could get. Particularly if, in the process, it meant keeping the peace.
    “Hoo-boy!” said Meadow, looking over Beatrice’s shoulder at her project. “That’s not a pattern for the faint of heart, is it? You’re a very brave quilter.”
    Beatrice said, “Well, I figured the fastest way to learnwas to do something really tough—and probably to fail at it. Besides, if I try a pattern this difficult, I know I’ll have experts volunteering to help me out.” She smiled over at Miss Sissy, who rewarded her with a small smile in return.
    Meadow grabbed her arm and gave it a squeeze. “Ash is here. Isn’t that exciting? I know he and Piper have already gone out a few times. Hope Piper can tear herself away from Ash to finish that quilt of hers. We need to get cracking to get ready for this quilt show.” She looked toward the door. “Hi, Georgia!”
    Georgia Potter, one of the younger quilters, in her early thirties, gave Meadow a quick wave and then wrinkled her brow as she looked around the shop’s back room.
    “Something wrong?” asked Beatrice.
    “Have y’all seen Savannah?” she asked them.
    Meadow gestured toward the store. “I saw her—looked like she was shopping for quilting supplies.”
    Georgia sighed. “I was afraid of that.”
    Meadow said, “Don’t worry about it.” She lowered her voice. “If she nicks something, you know Posy will just tell you about it later on. It’s not a big deal. Posy doesn’t even care.”
    Georgia gave her a grateful smile and then said, “I know. And it’s sweet of y’all to cover for Savannah and work around her . . . problem. I’ll admit—lately, she’sworn down my patience a little.” Georgia’s eyes were tired.
    Beatrice and Meadow exchanged glances. That was a huge admission for Georgia to make. She always seemed to have endless patience for Savannah. “Has Savannah been especially . . . challenging . . . lately?” asked Beatrice.
    Georgia nodded. “When Savannah gets stressed out about anything, these incidents seem to happen more. With the quilt show coming up, she’s really been tense—she’s fallen behind on her quilt and wants it to be perfect . . . but she also wants it finished on time. She and I even had a little spat a couple of days ago, and that made her even worse.” She noticed that Beatrice and Meadow were giving her a surprised look and she explained, “We can’t agree on getting a pet. I want one and