Free The Peppercorn Project by Nicki Edwards Page A

to control the urge to laugh.
    ‘Deal.’ She was surprised he hadn’t insisted they shake on it.
    Moments later they were at the pub.
    ‘Hope you’re hungry,’ Leah said, holding the door open and giving Isabelle her first glimpse of the dark interior. A dozen men sat lined up at the bar like the last line of pins at a ten pin bowling lane, nursing schooners of beer. They turned as one to look at the newcomers. Two waved and smiled at Leah and she returned the friendly greeting. One man gave Isabelle more than a cursory glance and tipped his head in her direction. ‘G’day, love.’
    Isabelle smiled politely and followed Leah through the pub to the dining room. They found a table in the corner and sat. Her stomach growled at the smells emanating from the kitchen. Until then she hadn’t realised how hungry she was.
    Fletcher looked at the chalkboard menu of specials and grinned. ‘I’m hungry and they do an all-day breakfast.’
    ‘He’s got hollow legs,’ Mietta told Leah seriously. ‘That’s what Dad always used to say.’
    Leah ruffled Mietta’s hair. ‘You’re brother’s a growing boy, and growing boys need to eat like the men they’re going to become one day.’ She flicked Fletcher’s hat from his head. ‘Hats off inside, mate!’
    Isabelle raised her eyebrows in surprise when Fletcher didn’t protest. Leah ushered them into a corner of the dining room and waved to the man behind the bar. He shouted a greeting across the room before hobbling towards them.
    ‘He’s so old !’ Mietta said under her breath as she hung back timidly.
    ‘Shh!’ Isabelle warned.
    ‘Hey Joe, this is Isabelle, Fletcher and Mietta Cassidy,’ Leah said. ‘Guys, this is Joe. He and his lovely wife Jane have run this pub forever, and he’s one of the main reasons the Peppercorn Project got started. One day he can tell you all about it.’
    ‘G’day, love,’ he said. ‘Heard about you lot already.’
    Isabelle’s heart skipped a beat. What had he heard?
    ‘What can I get you then?’
    He plonked laminated menus in front of each of them. The food was simple and the prices reasonable. Isabelle relaxed. Leah had offered to pay, but she didn’t want to take advantage of her new friend’s generosity.
    ‘I’ll have the breakfast with the lot,’ Fletcher stated, after giving the menu a cursory glance.
    ‘Growing lad, I see,’ the old man grinned, showing off large teeth like crooked tombstones. ‘Good decision. One big breakfast coming up.’
    He squeezed Fletcher’s shoulder and Isabelle held her breath, waiting for Fletcher’s reaction. When it didn’t come, she relaxed.
    ‘And for the princess? ’ Joe ruffled Mietta’s hair. ‘What can I get for you?’
    Mietta grinned up at Joe, all shyness gone, and Isabelle added another person to the list of people she could trust in Stony Creek.
    ‘May I please have pancakes with ice cream and maple syrup?’
    Not proper breakfast food, but Mietta asked so politely Isabelle couldn’t bring herself to scold her. She shrugged. Then again, dessert for breakfast sounded like a perfectly good idea after the morning they’d had. ‘I’ll have the same, thanks,’ she said with a smile, which was returned tenfold from Joe.
    ‘And you, Leah?’
    ‘I’ve eaten already, thanks, Joe.’ Leah put a hand to her stomach and laughed. ‘And I absolutely positively do not need to eat again. But I’ll never say no to an iced chocolate.’
    They settled into an easy conversation, and Leah asked the kids a lot of questions. She listened intently to their answers like it really mattered what they had to say. Isabelle saw what she was trying to do – putting them at ease, but at the same time trying to figure out what their story was.
    She regarded Leah carefully and made a snap decision. If they were going to be friends, it was easier to get things out in the open right from the beginning.
    ‘What do you want to know?’
    Leah’s face flushed pink. ‘Sorry. I hope you