Page 2 of Seaside Bookclub
Bunny chose a chair near the tall windows that faced the ocean. To her left, a row of bookcases went halfway up the wall. They were loaded with leather-bound books, and she could practically smell the vanilla scent of their old, yellowed pages.
“What a great reading room.” Olga made a slow circle around the room while nibbling on a cracker with cheddar cheese on it.
“It’s one of my favorite rooms in the whole house. Dad was going to make it into a library.” Jane smiled as her gaze traveled around the room, then her smile dimmed. “But that never came to be.”
“Still could happen.” Olga took a seat next to Emma.
“We have a lot of things to do here and a limited budget, so it’s at the bottom of our priority list. Maybe someday.” Jane glanced at Andie, who had just bitten into the orange Danish and looked a bit surprised. Apparently, she hadn’t gotten the warning. Jane frowned then held up her book. “Now then, what did you guys think of the book?”
“I thought it was a little scary.” Olga glanced at the hardcover on the table next to her as if she were afraid it might come to life. Bunny hadn’t thought the book overly scary. In fact, it had seemed quite mild to her.
“I thought it was fascinating. Especially the parts with the cat.” Maxi plucked a grape off her plate.
A shadow near the door caught Bunny’s eye. Was that someone lurking in the hall? Probably her overly active imagination. Anyway, shadowy hall lurkers went hand in hand with mystery book discussions.
She turned her attention back to the conversation as each person said a little bit about the book.
“I thought it was nice,” Hailey mumbled.
“Nice?” Claire squinted at her. “There was a murder.”
“Oh, I know but… umm…”
“Wait. Did you even read it?” Andie teased good-naturedly.
Hailey’s face turned red. “Okay. Busted! I didn’t have time. It’s hard with Jenn always wanting to be driven here and there.”
There were murmurs of sympathy all around.
“It’s okay,” Jane assured her. “I’m sure you could use a night out.”
Hailey blew out a breath. “You can say that again. Gramps is watching her, and they enjoy their alone time too.”
“What about the characters?” Jane got the conversation back on track. “I love Abigail Childs.”
“Didn’t Franny Parker remind you of Ellen at the library? With those gigantic glasses and big eyes.”
Everyone laughed.
Bunny glanced out into the hallway again. She was sure someone was there, but why? The room was in the back, so the hall didn’t lead anywhere else. Were they listening in?
“The killer was a big surprise. Did anyone else figure it out?” Emma glanced around the room at the others.
Bunny waited just a tad to see if anyone else had. Maybe her skills of deduction weren’t as great as she thought. But everyone just shook their head.
“I did. And early on too.”
“You did?” Liz looked impressed. “How did you figure it out?”
Bunny was practically bursting with pride. “I followed the clues. Like the hole in the garden? The author led you to believe it was for a shrubbery, but I knew it was to hide the murder weapon!”
“How did you know that?” Claire asked.
Bunny opened her book to the section where she’d put a green sticky note. “In chapter five, the landscaper brings five shrubs and plants them next to the driveway.”
“Oh, gosh, I didn’t even notice that.” Andie passed around a tray of cookies.
“And there was also the clue at the farmers market,” Bunny said.
