Joker in the Pack (Romantic Suspense, Completed, Watty Winner)

Chapter 10

Aunt Ellie may have spent half of her life on the sofa, but it wasn't as comfortable as it looked. No matter which way I turned, a broken spring stuck into my back, and the seat sagged at one end.

Even so, I couldn't blame my lack of sleep entirely on it. My mind hadn't stopped churning all night, creating nightmares about the stacks of junk and the state of the kitchen. Although if the oven did blow up and burn the house down, it wouldn't be the end of the world. The flood at my old flat had taught me one important lesson: buy insurance. I'd spent the last of my savings on a policy, and for a moment I considered "accidentally" knocking one of the candles over myself. At least that would solve the tidying problem.

The sheer volume of junk in the house made me cringe. I hated clutter. Hated it! It'd take me months to clear this lot. Years, maybe. Even if I managed to sell everything on eBay, I'd still have to package it up and take it to the post office—no mean feat without a car. Oh, and in between that, I needed to carry on with my web design clients because I couldn't rely on online auctions for my bread and butter. Did Lilac Cottage even have a broadband connection?

If not, I'd be spending an awful lot of time nursing a coffee in the local branch of Starbucks. If there was a Starbucks. Here in the sticks, I'd probably end up with Bernie in The Cock and Bull, which at least had free Wi-Fi even if it didn't have edible food.

Despite being exhausted, I forced myself to get up as soon as the sun rose. Without electricity, I couldn't afford to waste any of the precious daylight hours at this time of year.

Okay, start small, Olivia.

That meant tackling the third bedroom first. Most of the jewellery seemed to be in there, and hopefully that would bring in enough cash to pay for the basic repairs the house was crying out for. I'd already discovered the upstairs toilet didn't flush properly. What other surprises were lurking beneath the mess?

I spent the first few hours of the day carrying items down to the kitchen, where I'd set up a makeshift photo studio in front of the window with a white sheet draped over the open door. By the time Maddie and Dave arrived just before noon, I had thirty-two items catalogued and up for sale on eBay, and aching thighs from all the stairs. Who needed that weird exercise machine?

Maddie bounded in through the open door. I couldn't lock it from the inside, but last night, I'd dragged the shelves next to it across so if anyone tried to get in, Aunt Ellie's collection of junk would spill all over the place and wake me up.

"We've brought your bed," Maddie called.

Oh, thank goodness. I greeted her with a hug. "You're a star. I was dreading another night on that sofa."

Dave kissed me on the cheek and looked around. "Maddie said it was bad, but not this bad. Bloody hell, look at the size of that spider."

I sprinted outside after Maddie, who leapt into Dave's van and locked the doors.

"You didn't tell me there were spiders," she screeched through the glass.

"I didn't know. Honestly. Look on the bright side—at least it wasn't Margot."

Dave leaned out of the doorway. "It's okay. I've flushed it down the loo."

A little coaxing got Maddie into the house again, and between the three of us, we wrestled Eleanor's ugly old bed downstairs. No doubt I'd have a hernia by the time the cottage was habitable.

"Now what?" I asked. "We can't leave it there."

Dave had propped the mattress up against the front wall, and it created an eyesore.