Free The Splendour Falls by Unknown, Rosemary Clement-Moore Page B

regular meeting.’
    â€˜What does the council do?’ I pulled a pizza box towards me and peeked inside. Pepperoni. No way could I do that to myself, no matter how hungry.
    â€˜You know how some towns have teen library boards and student councils and stuff?’ she said. ‘We’re all that, sort of rolled into one.’
    â€˜That’s very efficient.’ The strain of being polite put a bit of a sarcastic edge on my tone, but Shawn answered with good humour.
    â€˜There’s not a big pool to draw from.’ He’d noticed my rejection of the pepperoni, and set a different box within reach. ‘Since the same people were in every student organization anyway, we just consolidated.’
    â€˜Shawn’s the president,’ said Caitlin, unnecessarily. I’d have had to be blind not to notice who called the shots.
    The pizza in the new box was cheese. I didn’t especially want it, but grabbed a slice and a napkin to giveme something to do with my hands. Across from me, Gigi watched with eager eyes. I’d fed her a quick snack before leaving the rest stop, so her starving puppy-dog face didn’t fool me.
    â€˜Paula said something about your helping out around here,’ I prompted. This was a trick of my mother’s, appearing a brilliant conversationalist by keeping people talking about themselves.
    â€˜We rebuilt the summerhouse out back,’ said Aaron.
    â€˜It’s just a gazebo, really,’ said Shawn. ‘And it’s a win-win situation, since Miss Paula is nice enough to let the TTC meet there when the weather’s nice.’
    â€˜Still,’ I said, genuinely impressed. ‘That’s not a small project.’
    Shawn shrugged. ‘That’s what we do. Fund-raisers, odd jobs. We want to support people who want to bring business to the area. Like this inn, when it opens.’
    â€˜So, if the inn isn’t open yet,’ I said, pulling the cheese off my pizza, since the crust wasn’t worth the carbs, ‘how did Rhys and his dad end up staying here?’
    There was a funny sort of pause that made me glance up from my slice, catching the look exchanged between Addie and Shawn. Had my innocent question poked a stick under an interesting rock?
    It was Addie who answered, in an almost normal tone of voice. ‘Professor Griffith is a friend of the guy in charge of the dig over at Old Cahawba. Dr Young hooked the professor up with Paula, and the Griffiths get to stay here for cheap in exchange for putting up with the construction mess.’
    Kimberly leaned forward, telling me in a confidential tone, ‘I can’t believe Addie is so lucky to have such a hot guy in the house. I thought all English people had pasty skin and bad teeth.’
    â€˜I think he’s Welsh,’ I said, but it didn’t seem to matter.
    â€˜Oh, my gawd,’ said Caitlin, in rapturous tones. ‘That accent.’
    Addie surprised me with a giggle. ‘I showed him how to surf the satellite channels on the TV, and he said, “Cheers, love.” ’
    â€˜I know!’ Kimberly squealed, squeezing Gigi like a teddy bear. ‘Could you just die?’
    â€˜What is it with y’all?’ Josh was the guy who’d given up his seat to me. He protested from the floor, his mouth full of pizza. ‘What’s so hot about the way a foreign guy talks?’
    Kimberly threw a wadded napkin at him. ‘Ask that after you swallow, you pig.’
    â€˜Seriously,’ said Aaron. (I hoped I was getting the names right.) ‘You showed him how to use the TV remote. It’s not like a first date or anything.’
    â€˜It’s not just the way he talks,’ said Addie, scornful again, but at least it wasn’t directed at me. ‘It’s the way he’s a gentleman. ’
    Aaron unfolded himself from the floor and helped himself to a soda from the minibar. ‘He seems cool enough. But it’s not like