Teaberry for Two

by R A Wallace

  “It looks like you’ve found quite a few things at the market today,” Lauren said as she accepted the money from Jessilyn and handed the bag containing her purchases over to her.

  Jessilyn added it to another bag she was already carrying with her left arm. “We made a new resolution to eat healthier and have family time at meals.”

  Lauren nodded knowingly. “An excellent plan. Working parents have to do a lot of juggling.”

  “We’re getting better, aren’t we Evan?” Jessilyn looked down at her son and brushed the top of his head with her right hand.

  “Seth said he would help,” Evan said guilelessly, flashing a toothless smile.

  Jessilyn’s face began to redden. She looked up at Lauren.

  Lauren smiled back then looked down at Evan. “Seth is a pretty smart guy.”

  Evan nodded enthusiastically. Jessilyn thanked Lauren and gently directed Evan down the aisle with her right hand on his shoulder.

  Lauren watched them leave. A few moments later, she saw someone else approaching her tent. “Mrs. Forster, how can I help you today?”

  Jackie looked around at the items Lauren had for sale. “I don’t need much. I only cook for one. That’s why I stopped cooking as much as I used to. I’ve found it’s much easier to just buy most things already made.” She looked surprised that she had confessed as much. She told Lauren what she wanted and then passed the money to her. “Thank you. I have a cooler in my car so I can put this on ice.”

  “It is warm again today,” Lauren agreed with a smile.

  “I just saw your cousin over on Main Street. She isn’t here with you today?” Jackie asked.

  “No, she has double duty today. I think she needs to take some pictures for some web pages on the town web site.” Lauren passed the produce and baked goods over the table to Mrs. Forster.

  “About the sale of that building?” Jackie shook her head as she accepted the bag. “I can’t believe the town might sell to another outsider. You know what happened the last time. We’ve already had one death because of that building. We need the mayor to impose stricter regulations.”

  Lauren thought of the photographer that had been killed. “Well, the chances of another death happening again are slim.” She smiled tactfully.

  “Are you talking about that building?” Joseph Dayton asked as he approached the women. “I can’t believe Stan wouldn’t even consider my suggestion.”

  “You placed a bid?” Lauren asked politely.

  “Well, yes. Someone from Teaberry had to.” Joseph looked irate that anyone would even question his loyalty to the town.

  “I’m sure it will be considered along with the others,” Lauren said, hoping this comment would calm the man down. She was wrong.

  “Ha! That’s where you’re wrong. I asked Stan to weight my bid more heavily because I live here. He refused!”

  Lauren watched the older man’s face infuse with red as his blood pressure continued to rise. “I understood the bank was making the decision. Not Stan.”

  “That’s what he said. Should we believe him?” Joseph shook his head.

  “I should go. I want to get my shopping done before the winning bid is announced,” Jackie said.

  “I’ll go with you,” Joseph said as he threw a last glance at Lauren.

  Lauren watched the two of them walk away and sighed with relief. Mentally, she amended her previous thought with a wry smile. She enjoyed catching up with some of the townspeople when she was selling her baked goods in public. She was about to take a seat and rest her feet when she heard her name called.

  “Lauren, I see you have zucchini,” Madison Palmer said.

  Lauren watched Madison approach her tent. “That I do and they’re in several different sizes. Some of them got a little large with that last rain.”

  Madison nodded. “I’ll take some of the larger ones. They work out well for zucchini lasagna.”

  Lauren raised her eyebrows. “I haven’t heard of that. How do you make it?”

  “I slice the zucchini into strips lengthwise and use them in place of the noodles. I layer it with cooked turkey sausage, sauce, and shredded cheese like regular lasagna then bake it for, oh, maybe fifty minutes or so. Until the zucchini is tender.” Madison took the bag of zucchini from Lauren and passed over her money.

  Lauren thought about the recipe. “Is there a lot of liquid once the zucchini cooks down?”

  “There can be, probably depending on how much rain it got.” Madison gave a half shrug. “That doesn’t bother me. I think it’s even better the next day because it seems to absorb some of the liquid. I’ve seen recipes where they tell you to salt the raw zucchini first to draw the liquid out. And I’ve also seen some recipes where it says to coat it with breadcrumbs first and fry the zucchini before using it in the layers.”

  Lauren wrinkled her nose. “Not as healthy.”

  Madison grinned. “No, but it does taste really good breaded and fried first too. I have to go. You have a good day.”

  Lauren watched Madison as she continued down the aisle. Madison didn’t get far before Jerry Stevens caught up with her. Lauren noticed that he wasn’t in uniform today. The two of them smiled and talked as they continued to walk away. Lauren thought with a grin that he was more interested in Madison than his free cookie today. She wondered what he thought of zucchini lasagna. Turning to look the other direction down the aisle, she saw Megan approaching.

  “Hey, are you here to stay?” Lauren asked.

  “No, but I can give you a break if you need it,” Megan said as she crossed behind the table under the tent. “Then I have to go. I’ll need to get some pictures when they announce the winning bid and I need to get home. My new guest might stop back at the house. He wasn’t sure about his plans this morning when he left. I figured it was safer to just wait at the farm just in case he stopped by.”

  “What about Mr. McMann?” Lauren asked as she reached down into one of the boxes for her small purse.

  “He’s looking at a rental unit with Stan.”

  “He’s thinking of staying in Teaberry?” Lauren thought about Susan. “I wonder how Caitlyn and Jax are taking that?”

  Megan shrugged as she took stock of what they had left to sell.

  “Okay, I’ll be right back. Don’t let me forget to tell you about the zucchini lasagna recipe,” Lauren said as she headed in the direction of the restrooms.

  Chapter Seven

  Teresa Wilton followed her husband into Jammin’T. “This was a good idea. I’d rather wait here where there are a lot of people around.”

  Chris found an empty booth near the door. Since deciding that she might want to throw her hat into the ring, Teresa now preferred to sit where she was most likely to be seen by others in town. They placed their order with Betty, the frizzy-haired waitress in her sixties that had worked there since the diner opened and sipped iced tea while they waited.

  “Who do you think is going to have the winning bid?” Chris asked as he took out his phone to check his messages.

  Teresa shrugged as she looked around at the other diners trying to guess how they planned to vote in the future. She hadn’t yet formally declared a run for the mayor. But if she played her cards right, she’d have the support and name recognition that she needed when she did run. “I doubt it will be Joseph. He doesn’t have that kind of cash.”

  “So it will be one of the out-of-towners,” Chris said with a nod. “Did you recognize any of them?”

  “How would I?” Teresa asked with a roll of her eyes.

  Chris sat back in the booth and shrugged. “Just wondered.” He focused on the other people in the diner. It usually did a good business and today was no exception. Bert had been the owner for as long as Chris could remember. He’d always kept his prices more on the low side and the servings large.

  “We should come up with a strategy for when Barbara Reynolds makes the announcement,” Teresa said.

  “You could make sure that you’re standing near her
so that you’ll be in the photo,” Chris suggested hesitantly.

  “Now that’s a good idea,” Teresa said with a smile. “What else?”

  Chris brightened. “We should probably make sure we get there early so we’re in the front.”

  Teresa nodded in agreement as their food was placed on the table.

  ***

  Ken DeVille walked into the coolness of his house gratefully. Now in his sixties, he felt the heat more than he had in his youth. Come to think of it, cold was the same way. Funny how it worked that way, he thought as he closed the door firmly behind him. Turning, he saw the pictures of his family lining the wall of the hallway leading into the rest of the house.

  His wife had hung those there and Ken enjoyed seeing them. It reminded him of the good life he’d had starting with his wedding picture. As he walked down the hall, time moved forward. There were pictures of his children when they were young. A little further down the hall, his children had grown and were getting married. By the time Ken reached the end of his hall, he was looking at pictures of his grandchildren. He loved his family and he wanted to protect them.

  That’s why he’d attended the town hall meeting about the sale of the building. He understood everything Barbara said, and he knew that she was technically correct. But that didn’t mean he wasn’t worried about his family. That photographer, the last owner of the building, had been from out of town. He’d moved into Teaberry and bought the building taking over one of the shop spaces for his studio.

  Ken stopped at the end of his hall and looked at the photo of his granddaughter. She’d been frightened when she’d discovered that man was following her and taking her picture without her knowledge. He didn’t want that to happen again, not to his granddaughter or anyone else’s. He didn’t know what else he could do though. He thought about the upcoming announcement of the winning bid. He had been there earlier when the sealed bids were submitted. Maybe he’d better go back for the announcement. Maybe he could talk to the winning bidder.

  ***

  Elena Tilson found the Teaberry House Restaurant without any problems. She liked the look of the old Victorian that had been converted into a restaurant. She’d left her car where she’d parked it earlier and had walked around the town a bit. She liked what she had seen as she walked around and was hoping that her bid was successful. She could have just driven home after submitting her bid and waited for a phone call, but she was curious now to see how it all ended.

  She’d checked out her competition when she’d met them earlier. There had been more people submitting bids than she had expected. Now that she had a chance to see everything in person, she wasn’t completely surprised. It was a fine property with potential for a steady income based on what she could see of the town and her initial investigations online before making her decision to place a bid. Still, it surprised her a little to see so much interest. Perhaps there was even more to this town than she had already discovered. Glancing at the time on her phone, she chose something quickly from the menu. She didn’t want to be late for the announcement of the winning bid.

  ***

  Phil Porter walked around his car lot thinking about the day he’d had so far. He’d tried to speak to Susan Anderson privately after the bids had been placed earlier but he hadn’t been able to track her down. Her daughter had said that Susan wasn’t available. Phil suspected that Susan was just hiding in the back room. That Caitlyn always managed to get in the way whenever Phil tried to talk to Susan.

  He’d been too awed by Susan to ask her out when they’d gone to school together. But now that they were older and both had been successful in business, Phil felt that they were equals. Susan should appreciate the success he had made of himself. True, she had built her own business while Phil had inherited his from his father. But he was still doing pretty well with it. Well, actually his manager, Bonnie, handled everything at the car lot but no one else needed to know that.

  He wasn’t happy with the town selling the building to someone from the outside. That’s why he’d attended the town hall meeting and had been there to see who was placing bids this morning with the others who were opposing the sale. They hoped to make one last attempt to sway Stan and anyone else who would listen that more controls should be placed on the sale.

  Maybe if he went back for the announcement of the winning bidder Susan would be there and he could talk to her without her daughter getting in the way. Maybe he should get there early and try to find Susan on his own before the announcement. Her florist shop was in that building and she was right next door. He was sure she would be interested in knowing who the winner was. She was probably going to be the first one there.

  ***

  Barbara Reynolds signed off of the computer on her desk and sat back in her chair. She looked up to see her husband watching her from across their home office. She enjoyed working from home and sharing the space with him.

  “All set to go to the announcement?” Matthias asked. He’d been watching his wife work for the past thirty minutes or so. He was always impressed with her dedication.

  Barbara nodded her head as she stood. “I just need to get my things, but we have a few minutes to sit first.” She walked over to the sofa and sat next to her husband. “We can go directly to dinner to meet up with Caro and Tom after the announcement.”

  “I was thinking the same thing. We might be a little early, but we can enjoy the time together.” Matthias smiled and reached for her hand.

  “I’m looking forward to this sale being over and everyone forgetting about it.” Barbara gave a shake of her head.

  “Are you worried about anything happening during the announcement?” Matthias asked with concern.

  Barbara tilted her head and offered a wry smile. “There’s one thing I’ve learned as a mayor. You can never predict what will happen in a public meeting. Especially when there are cameras or the media involved. Some people are determined to have their fifteen minutes of fame.”

  ***

  Ross McMann felt the buzz of his phone in his pocket while finishing a sandwich at the Station Pub & Grill. He’d gone to see the available rental house with Stan Jiblonski after submitting his sealed bid for the building. He liked what he saw. He wasn’t certain yet if he’d want to own the house but renting it for the duration while he decided what his plans for Teaberry were sounded like a good option.

  Ross had originally come to Teaberry because he wanted to see what had compelled Jax to move back. He had come to think of Jax as more than just another young employee that he mentored. They’d formed a bond. Ross didn’t have any children of his own. He didn’t have anything else to compare it to. But over the years that he had worked closely with Jax, he could say that he often felt like a parent. Jax had certainly often made him proud.

  And now here he was in Teaberry, ready to move into a rental house just so he didn’t have to lose that relationship. The house was in a quiet-looking neighborhood. Although on the small side, it would be easier for a single man to maintain. Housekeeping was not one of his strengths, Ross thought with a frown as he pulled out his phone. Maybe he could find some sort of cleaning service and hire them to handle that. Checking the message on his phone, he was surprised to see it was from Stan.

  He’d just left him not long ago and planned to see him again shortly for the announcement of the winning bid. He wondered what Stan was asking to see Ross about before the announcement. Glancing at the time on his phone, he shrugged. Maybe it had to do with the rental house, maybe it had to do with the sale of the building. Either way, Ross will know as soon as he gets there.

  He paid his bill and drove back to the building on Main Street. He couldn’t find a parking spot in front of the building. He had to drive around several blocks before he finally found one. Getting out, he walked down the sidewalk toward the former photographer’s shop walking past the florist shop as he did so. He thought about stopping in to see Susan but wasn’t sure if she was still there and he wanted to find out what
Stan wanted. He had plans to have dinner with Susan after the announcement anyway. He’d see her then, if not before. He was certain she’d be there for the announcement.

  ***

  Caitlyn watched Ross McMann walk past the large picture window in the front of the florist shop. Her mom had run home to change saying that she had dinner plans later, but she’d be back for the announcement. Caitlyn glanced at the time. It was still a little early and she hadn’t expected to see Ross McMann.

  Maybe she should take advantage of the situation and speak with him alone. She didn’t know what she could say on behalf of her brother. He was a grown man. Jax would have to come to terms with Ross and their mother on his own. But Caitlyn still felt obligated to speak with Ross. On the one hand, she wanted to support her mother if dating Ross was what she wanted to do. On the other hand, her mother hadn’t technically dated anyone for over thirty years. Maybe talking to Ross alone wasn’t a bad idea.

  Caitlyn finally made her decision. After flipping the closed sign around on the front door, she quickly exited her shop and walked next door. She didn’t see anyone in the front room that Jason had used to greet customers, so she headed down the hallway deeper into the building. She knew from being there before that there was an office on one side of the hallway about halfway down. Further on was a large area that Jason had used for his studio.

  She didn’t see anyone in the office, so she kept going down the hallway. Walking into the large studio, she finally found Ross McMann. He was standing next to a body lying on the floor. Caitlyn stopped in surprise and must have made a sound.

  Ross looked up from his phone. “I can’t get a signal.”

  Chapter Eight

  Megan was intrigued by the recipe for zucchini lasagna that Lauren had told her about earlier. She had gone home in case Parker Lavigne stopped by in the afternoon. He had said that he didn’t have definitive plans but that he might want to stop and change clothes before heading out for dinner. To keep herself busy while she hung around the house, she decided to try making a tray of the recipe Madison had shared.