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    Rest And Be Thankful
    Rest And Be Thankful
    Rest And Be Thankful
    Ebook107 pages1 hour

    Rest And Be Thankful

    By Joanna Chambers

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    About this ebook

    Things haven’t been going well for Cam McMorrow since he moved to Inverbechie. His business is failing, his cottage is falling apart and following his very public argument with café owner Rob Armstrong, he’s become a social outcast.

    Cam needs to get away from his troubles and when his sister buys him a ticket to the biggest Hogmanay party in Glasgow, he can’t leave Inverbechie quick enough. But when events conspire to strand him in the middle of nowhere in a snowstorm, not only is he liable to miss the party, he’ll also have to ask his nemesis, Rob, for help.

    Note: this story is also available through the Comfort and Joy anthology.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherJoanna Chambers
    Release dateDec 7, 2014
    ISBN9781311259806
    Rest And Be Thankful
    Author

    Joanna Chambers

    Joanna Chambers always wanted to write. In between studying, finding a proper grown up job, getting married and having kids, she spent many hours staring at blank sheets of paper and chewing pens. That changed when she rediscovered her love of romance and found her muse. Joanna's muse likes red wine, coffee and won't let Joanna clean the house or watch television. Connect with Joanna: Newsletter Website: www.joannachambers.com Facebook  Facebook author page Twitter: @ChambersJoanna Goodreads

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      Book preview

      Rest And Be Thankful - Joanna Chambers

      Things haven’t been going well for Cam McMorrow since he moved to Inverbechie. His business is failing, his cottage is falling apart and following his very public argument with café owner Rob Armstrong, he’s become a social outcast.

      Cam needs to get away from his troubles and when his sister buys him a ticket to the biggest Hogmanay party in Glasgow, he can’t leave Inverbechie quick enough. But when events conspire to strand him in the middle of nowhere in a snowstorm, not only is he liable to miss the party, he’ll also have to ask his nemesis, Rob, for help.

      Rest and Be Thankful

      December 2014

      Copyright (c) 2014 by Joanna Chambers

      Cover Art by Johanna Ollila

      Edited by Keren Reed

      All rights reserved

      No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without written permission from Joanna Chambers.

      Printed in the United States of America

      This is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to persons living or dead is entirely coincidental.

      Table of Contents

      Chapter One

      Chapter Two

      Chapter Three

      Chapter Four

      Chapter Five

      Chapter Six

      Chapter Seven

      Chapter Eight

      Chapter Nine

      Chapter Ten

      Chapter Eleven

      Rest and Be Thankful

      Joanna Chambers

      Chapter One

      Monday, 29th December

      You’re going to have to replace it, I’m afraid.

      Cam stared at the back of the plumber’s head, glad the man’s attention was still on the ancient boiler. Glad he wasn’t watching as Cam visibly swallowed against the hard lump that had materialised in his throat at this news.

      How much’ll that cost? Cam asked.

      He’d waited three days before he’d called Alan Glenn, a near neighbour and the only plumber for miles around, hoping beyond hope the heating might spontaneously come on again. It was only with this unexpected cold snap that he’d finally given in, worried by the prospect of burst pipes.

      Alan looked at Cam over his shoulder. He was one of those men whose hair went white early, but his skin was smooth and unlined and his bushy eyebrows were black, making his age difficult to judge. Those startling eyebrows drew closer together as he totted up the cost in his head. It’s an old system, he said at last. I reckon you’re looking at fourteen, fifteen hundred, all in.

      Cam pressed his lips together and gave a short nod. He’d been praying the problem would turn out to be something minor and cheap to fix. No such luck.

      Luck wasn’t something he’d had much of lately.

      It looks like it’s had a good innings though, Alan added as though that should somehow cheer Cam up. How long have you had it?

      All I know is, it’s been in the cottage since my folks bought the place, Cam replied. That was twenty-odd years ago.

      Yeah, well they don’t make them like this anymore, Alan said in a regretful tone, turning his head back to look into the depths of the understairs cupboard. The new ones don’t last the same.

      For a moment, they both contemplated the clunked-out boiler. Its once-white exterior had a greyish tinge now, betraying its advanced years, and a rash of rust crept down the seam of the casing, spreading over the bottom corners of the unit like patches of eczema.

      Why couldn’t it have kept going just a little bit longer? Cam couldn’t afford to replace it right now. He just couldn’t. He pressed his lips together, determined not to let Alan see how devastated he was by such ordinary news. The thought of Alan gossiping to the other villagers about him made his gut clench with sick resentment. He could just imagine what they’d say about him.

      Apparently he can’t even scrape together a couple of grand for a new boiler. That business of his can’t be doing too well…

      Cam cleared his throat. So, there’s nothing you can do to fix it, is that what you’re telling me? The words came out wrong. In his head, they were a plea. On his lips, they sounded sort of…disbelieving. That certainly seemed to be how Alan took them anyway, judging by the faintly affronted look he cast Cam’s way.

      Yes, the plumber said tautly. That’s what anyone’ll tell you.

      Great. Now he thought Cam had been questioning his honesty.

      Cam considered admitting that he just couldn’t afford any repairs. But in the end, all he said was, Okay. Well, thanks for coming ’round on such short notice. He cringed inwardly at the coolness of this dismissal but Alan seemed to take it pretty well. His annoyed expression faded and he even gave Cam a friendly nod.

      No bother, he replied, picking up his toolbox. But with his next words, it became plain he hadn’t picked up Cam’s intended meaning. So, shall I get you a couple of trade catalogues out of the van? If you want the work done any time soon, you’ll need to get a new boiler ordered sharpish. New Year’s a bloody awful time for getting parts.

      Oh, no, don’t do that! Cam blurted. Alan frowned, puzzled, and Cam cast around for an excuse to give. I—uh, I think I’ll get a second opinion on whether it can be fixed first.

      There was a long silence and Cam’s heart sank as he realised that this time he really had offended his neighbour. Coming on the heels of his earlier comment, this one probably made him sound as though he thought Alan was trying to rip him off, or perhaps just that he thought Alan was a rubbish plumber. Either way, the man looked to be tight-lipped with anger now.

      Cam opened his mouth to try to repair the damage, to take the comment back or qualify it, apologise—something—but he couldn’t find the words to smooth this over, not without admitting the truth about how broke he was.

      Before Cam could say anything else, Alan brushed past him, making for the front door. Well, good luck finding someone to fix it, he said tightly. I hope you don’t get a burst pipe in the meantime. Snow’s forecast this week, you know.

      And then he was out the door and striding down the path to his van.

      Cam watched him go, cursing inwardly, then he sighed and closed the door, turning back to face the interior of his too-small, run-down, depressing fucking cottage.

      He needed a new boiler.

      He needed fifteen hundred fucking quid. Fifteen hundred!

      Jesus.

      He could barely meet his bills at the moment. He actually had a decent number of bookings for trips and events next year but they didn’t start till late April. The next few months stretched ahead, long and cold and income-free.

      Cam wandered into the living room and dropped down onto the sagging, ancient couch with a sigh. As usual, whenever he let himself think about his predicament, he felt his gut begin to churn and his heart to race a little. Classic signs of stress and anxiety, and he knew it. Knew to take deep breaths. Knew to try to turn his thoughts in a positive direction. He’d always been a bit of a worrier—his brain could take him to worst-case scenarios in a hop, skip and jump. The trouble was, though, he couldn’t see a positive way of looking at this. There was no getting away from the fact that he had no source of income for the next four months.

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