shook her head. ‘I slept in my truck last night, but I have a tent I’ll pitch tonight.’
‘You can’t stay here Ava; before long it’s going to be a very noisy, dirty building site.’
‘I’ve lived in worse places believe me,’ she shrugged.
‘You know,’ Killian shook his head in amusement, ‘you’ll have to come over to the house. You can have a beer and a burger and tell us your life story. I have a feeling it’s fascinating.’
‘Maybe,’ Ava replied.
‘Well okay, look if you’re dead set on staying here at least upgrade from a tent to an RV or something. You need something sturdier than a tent. Once we get the equipment and supplies in, there’ll be temporary rest rooms on site, but trust me, you don’t want to be sharing them with a dozen guys. They have habits that would make a monkey blush. You’re going to want some sort of temporary home with a bathroom and kitchen space. I’ll make some calls and see what I can come up with.’
‘Thanks,’ Ava smiled genuinely.
‘Cell number?’ he pulled his own phone from his pocket to save her number.
‘Don’t have one.’
‘You don’t…’ he broke off and sighed. ‘You’ll need one of them too, unless you have a deep-seated moral reason for not having one.’
‘No reason,’ she shook her head, a small smile playing at her lips, ‘just didn’t need one before.’
‘Well you’ll need one now,’ he told her as he climbed into his pick-up, ‘if for no other reason than Hope can call you twenty times a day to make sure I’m not being murdered by the ghosts.’
Ava laughed and held up her hand as he backed up and swung round, disappearing down the road. Alone once again she whistled for Bailey who came trotting over obediently.
‘Well,’ she hunkered down beside her best friend and stroked her fur as she stared up at the old house, ‘looks like we might have a home after all.’
5
Ava strolled leisurely down the winding street as the cool breeze rippling off the water tugged at her hair. It had taken some convincing, but Bailey stayed in the truck. After all, Ava couldn’t imagine anyone named Bunty who ran a boutique would want a huge German Shepherd lumbering around her shop.
It wasn’t even as if she could leave her at home, considering they didn’t currently have a home and she certainly couldn’t leave her in the small tent she’d set up for the night. Maybe Killian was right, Ava mused, perhaps she should consider a temporary trailer or an RV of some kind.
Ava stopped as the small store came into view. It was a sweet little building, painted pale blue with brilliant white trims. The sign above the shop read ‘Bunty’s Boutique,’ in an elegant curling script and inside the windows hung lacy white curtains.
Crossing the street to the front entrance Ava found herself grateful she’d left Bailey behind although she missed her furry shadow. Pushing open the door in a merry tinkle of bells, she stepped inside and glanced around. She’d barely had time to take in the neatly stocked shelves filled with all manner of pretty little items when an older woman suddenly appeared behind the counter, summoned by the dainty bell mounted above the door.
Her hair was almost pure white and styled in a smooth bob which curled under her chin. Her skin was softly lined and dusted with a fine sheen of powder; her lips were a pearly pink to match her nails. She wore a double strand of pearls at her neck and a pair of thin wire framed glasses hung from a gold chain over her blouse of ivory silk.
‘May I help?’ she asked politely as her violet blue eyes studied Ava.
‘Uh,’ Ava shifted slightly under the intense scrutiny of the immaculately dressed woman. ‘I’m looking for Bunty McCarthy?’
‘Well you’ve found her.’ She stepped out from behind the counter, smoothing her dove gray slacks as she offered her hand. ‘And you are?’
‘Ava,’ she stepped forward and took the woman’s hand, ‘Ava Cortez.’
‘Ava?’ Bunty’s eyes widened and her grip on Ava’s hand tightened so unexpectedly that she almost yelped. ‘Well, as I live and breathe,’ she smiled widely, ‘Hari’s granddaughter, all grown up.’
‘Who?’
‘Hari?’ Bunty repeated, her elegant brow folding slightly, ‘your grandmother, Harriet Wallace? God rest her soul.’
‘Sorry,’ Ava apologized in embarrassment, ‘I don’t really know anything about my grandmother.’
‘Oh, that Caroline,’ Bunty rolled her eyes in exasperation. ‘She couldn’t run away from home quick enough. I assume if she hasn’t told