**
Miss Caroline Visits
Laugh at the annoying things. It’s more fun that way.
–Harry Finkle
The next morning Jack, Lizzy and Robert stayed busy in the shop performing their daily chores.
Jack was reorganizing the storage room to stock the new supplies. He rotated the merchandise from back to front, with fresh supplies going in the rear as they arrived.
Lizzy, with the less-than-eager help of Robert, planned to sweep and mop the entire downstairs, including the shop, office, library, storage room, and hourglass room. This would be at least a full day of work. Lizzy couldn’t wait to get started, while Robert dragged behind.
Hours later, nearly finished with the shop floor, Lizzy paused while kneeling and wiped her forehead with the back of her hand. Her knees were hurting and her hands were aching. Considering how long it had taken her and Robert to clean the shop floor, she wasn’t sure they’d be able to finish cleaning the downstairs entirely. Some of the rooms might have to wait until the next day.
Swoosh! A sound came from the back of the shop. Swoosh! Swoosh!
Lizzy leaned over, then peeked around and saw Robert sloshing the contents of the bucket onto the floor. He wasn’t cleaning. He was throwing water on the wooden floor and making a huge mess!
“Robert! What are you doing? That’s not how you clean the floor!” Lizzy narrowed her eyes. All of her hard work was going to waste. It would take quite a while to clean this up. He’s such a child, Lizzy thought.
“It might not be the way you clean the floor, but it does the job for me,” Robert said. “Your way is boring. It’s more fun this way!” Robert grinned, then soaked the floor once again. Swoosh! Robert purposely began to hum an annoying tune, just to irritate Lizzy that much more. And it worked.
“Robert! You’re insufferable!” Lizzy huffed. She tossed the scrubbing brush into the water bucket beside her. Soapy water splashed, then spilled over the sides of the bucket and onto the floor, creating yet another mess.
Lizzy pressed her lips together tightly, then rolled her eyes. “Will you ever grow up?”
The entrance bell rang, filling the shop with its cheerful sound and welcoming the first patron of the day. Lizzy wiped her wet hands on her apron to dry them off and stood to greet the customer.
Miss Caroline Florentine shuffled through the door. All her friends just called her Miss Caroline. Her plump round cheeks seemed to shine with her smile, and her floppy hat wobbled with every laugh.
“Hello, my dear! How are you on this lovely day?” Miss Caroline asked.
“I’m very well, thank you,” Lizzy replied.
Lizzy always enjoyed these visits. Miss Caroline loved to talk about this, that and everything, and Lizzy loved to listen. Miss Caroline knew most everything about everyone in Finkleton. She wasn’t a gossiper, she just chatted with everyone and they enjoyed talking with her. Miss Caroline had a way about her that made a person feel comfortable. With her cheerful conversation and bouncy personality, she was just as famous as her delicious pies.
“That’s wonderful, dear,” Miss Caroline said. She patted Lizzy on the shoulder and smiled, then tucked a stray white hair back into her hat. “The shop is looking magnificent. Much cleaner than I remember your Uncle Harry ever keeping it.”
Lizzy beamed. When they had moved to Finkleton, the shop had been so dusty and disorganized that she didn’t think they’d ever get it into proper order. Now the shop gleamed with clean shelves and freshly painted walls. It no longer had the old smell Lizzy remembered. Uncle Harry would be proud.
“How may I help you today?” Lizzy asked.
“I’m here to purchase more supplies for my scrumptious pies,” Miss Caroline replied.
Robert licked his lips. Robert loved all sorts of deserts, and he especially enjoyed eating Miss Caroline’s wonderful pies.
Jack entered the shop with an armful of sacks and placed them on the counter. “Hello, Miss Caroline,” Jack said, wiping his hands on his trousers and greeting her with a warm smile. “It’s always a pleasure to see you.”
Miss Caroline giggled. “You’re such a sweet young man, Jack.” Robert rolled his eyes.
“I don’t mean to be the bearer of troubling news, but I noticed Mr. Lowsley in town early today,” Miss Caroline said. “I’ve no doubt he’s still trying to persuade folks to sell their land in Finkleton.”
“Yes, I caught a glimpse of him at the bookshop yesterday afternoon,” Lizzy said.
Jack gave Lizzy a look. “It was nothing, really,” she continued. “I slipped out before he had a chance to notice me.” Lizzy covered her mouth with her hand. “Oh, dear!”
“What’s wrong, Lizzy?” Jack asked.
“Well,” Lizzy said, hanging her head, “I was in such a hurry to leave the bookshop when Mr. Lowsley arrived that I forgot the books I had purchased from Mr. Wellington.”
“I’m sure your books are still there, Lizzy,” Jack said.
“I suppose you’re right. I’ll visit Mr. Wellington again soon.” Lizzy looked at Robert, then at the waterlogged floor, and rolled her eyes. “Robert, you can help Miss Caroline carry her packages home.”
Robert immediately stopped humming and looked up at Lizzy. “Me? Why me?”
“Because you’re not cleaning the floor.” Lizzy glared at the area Robert had been attempting to clean. “You’re just spreading the dirt around and making a watery mess.” Lizzy placed her hands on her hips and narrowed her eyes, daring Robert to disagree.
“Go on then, Robert,” Jack said. “I’ll clean this up while you’re gone. Just in time for you to make another mess when you return,” Jack added, muffling a laugh.
“Robert, I do believe I have one more slice of mince pie left,” Miss Caroline said, trying to coax him. “But I’ll understand if you’re too busy helping Lizzy clean the floor. It looks like so much fun.”
“You made mince pie?” Robert asked, then licked his lips. “I’d be glad to help you, Miss Caroline.” Without hesitation, Robert scooped up her packages and headed for the door.