Carolina Breeze

by Denise Hunter

  They settled in the library, where they could hunker over a desk. The window above it had a stunning view of the lake when the blinds weren’t pulled.

  Levi waded through the legalese of the first page, Mia leaning in close. He was usually pretty good with contracts, but the sweet scent of her was a major distraction. He missed having a woman in his life. He missed the quiet conversations, the subtle touches, the stirring of want.

  He tried to remind himself it was the famed Mia Emerson inspiring these cravings, but his heart didn’t care. Never mind that she was so far out of his league she might as well be in a different galaxy.

  “Finished?” Mia asked softly.

  Levi was only halfway done, but obviously she wasn’t having the same difficulties.

  He flipped the page and redoubled his efforts. But this page was only about the executor of the will. “We could probably just skip this section.”

  “I’m all for that. I’m about to doze off. These lawyers, yeesh.”

  He flipped the page. “Here it is: Distribution of Personal Property.”

  He read the paragraphs detailing the Livingstons’ property. They’d wanted the inn sold at auction and the proceeds to go to First Community Church. The contents of the inn were to be auctioned off separately, the proceeds going to Bluebell Baptist Church Camp, a ministry that was still situated on the lake.

  He flipped the page, ready for more, but there wasn’t anything else about their assets.

  He sighed. “That’s it, I guess. They didn’t have an itemized list at all.”

  “Are you sure?”

  He skimmed the rest of the document. “Yeah, it’s a pretty simple will as far as the assets go.”

  “So there’s no mention of the necklace at all? How could that be?”

  Levi lifted a shoulder. “There must not have been anyone she had in mind for it. Are you sure she didn’t give it to your mother?”

  “I’m positive. They wrote her off after she left home. Besides, if my mom had a piece of jewelry that rare, she would’ve worn it every occasion she could.”

  “The necklace must’ve gone in the estate auction then.”

  “I guess that’s possible. But what if that’s not what happened? Think about it. They were running an inn. With all the strangers coming and going Paul found a place to hide it away somewhere. Levi . . . the necklace really could still be in this house somewhere.”

  He didn’t want to get his hopes up. But he had to admit he’d expected to find the necklace listed in the will. Would Dorothy have hidden it somewhere on the property? And wouldn’t they have come across it in the renovations?

  “Is there any part of the house you didn’t remodel?” Mia was obviously on the same wavelength.

  “Very little, and that’s only accounting for the changes we’ve made. My sisters’ room is original. Also my parents’ room—where you’re staying. It already had an en suite bathroom, so we only did cosmetic things in there. The library wasn’t touched or the basement. And there’s an attic.”

  “But it was cleared out?”

  “Yes, we store Christmas decorations and junk up there.” He scratched the back of his neck, something coming to him. “There is another section of the attic. I never really noticed it until we were renovating upstairs. It’s accessed through the girls’ bedroom closet. I don’t remember anyone ever going up there though.”

  Mia’s eyes lit up. “Let’s go look!”

  Levi looked at her crutches. “No way you’re getting up a ladder.”

  “Well, I’ll shine a light for you or something.”

  She was smiling that pretty smile of hers and looking so hopeful. So different from the weary look she’d worn when she’d come downstairs.

  Well, what else was he supposed to do? “All right. I’ll sneak out to the shed for a ladder.”

  twenty-one

  Grace’s bedroom door was closed when Mia and Levi reached the top of the stairs. Mia was high on hope. She just knew that necklace was somewhere in this house, and the attic seemed like their best shot.

  Levi rapped on the door. “Grace? Can we come in?”

  There was a shuffling sound. Then a moment later the door opened. Grace was wearing plaid pajama bottoms and a T-shirt that read If you say so. Her long blond ponytail trailed over her shoulder.

  “Hey.” Grace’s gaze swung between the two of them. “What’s up?”

  “First of all,” Mia said, “I want to apologize for all the hoopla outside. I’m so sorry for bringing my crazy world to your doorstep.”

  “It’s not your fault. I wonder who squealed. It wasn’t us.”

  “I believe you.” Mia was a little surprised how true this was. Trust had never come easily to her, yet this little family had quickly earned it. It said a lot for the Bennetts. “It could’ve been anyone I passed on the trails or who saw me around town in the car or who caught me coming or going. It doesn’t matter anymore. What’s done is done.”

  Grace gave Levi a look. “Well, you wanted the inn to get national attention. Mission accomplished.”

  Mia gave a rueful smile. “Be careful what you ask for.”

  “That’s not quite the kind of attention I was after.”

  Grace noticed the ladder. “Um, what’s that for? Something broken?”

  “We need to get up in the attic through your closet,” Levi said.

  “Ooo-kay . . .”

  “You’re not going to believe this,” Mia said. “Have you read Dorothy Livingston’s journals?”

  “Um, yeah . . . A long time ago.”

  Mia went on to explain that the blue diamond necklace was worth a fortune and that Dorothy had said she kept it tucked away somewhere safe.

  Levi took over when she got to the part about Dorothy’s will, explaining that the necklace was unaccounted for.

  “So . . .” Grace said after she heard him out. “You think it might still be here somewhere?”

  She didn’t seem very optimistic, but Mia was starting to realize that was Grace.

  “It’s possible,” Mia said. “Isn’t that exciting? I can’t wait to start looking.”

  Grace shrugged, opening the door wider. “Knock yourselves out.”

  They slipped through the door and onward toward the closet.

  Levi knew Grace was skeptical they’d find anything more than dust bunnies in the attic. She was just too kind to burst Mia’s bubble. He was thankful for that. And glad he could divert Mia’s attention from the scandal taking over her life.

  He opened the door to the small walk-in closet, his heart sinking. “You’ve got to be kidding me.” The floor was covered with clothes and boxes and who knew what else. He threw Grace a look over his shoulder. “Seriously?”

  “On a positive note, I got the college apps done,” she deadpanned.

  Well, that was something. “All three of them?”

  “All three of them. Happy?”

  “Ecstatic.” He wanted to add About time, but he held his tongue. “Now we just have to wait for their response. Did they say how long it would be?”

  “Six to eight weeks, but my friends say it doesn’t take that long.”

  “I hope not. That’s cutting it a little close.” Levi looked at the cluttered closet floor. “Now maybe you can help me make room for this ladder?”

  Ten minutes later there was finally enough room to set up the ladder. Levi climbed a few rungs, almost dreading the moment he lifted the hatch. What if the space was empty? He wasn’t so much dreading it for himself—although the windfall from such a find would be more than welcome. He was thinking of Mia. She was so hopeful, and he didn’t want to let her down.

  She stood under the ladder, perched on her crutches, anticipation shining in her green eyes.

  “Ready or not,” Levi said as he pushed up the drywall cover. Warm, stuffy air assaulted him. The attic was pitch black. He reached for the flashlight in his pocket, clicked it on, and shined it into the darkness.

  The space was about
ten by twelve, covering the area over his sisters’ room. And it wasn’t empty. There were boxes, stacked high and lining the walls, and a few pieces of furniture. If nothing else, those might be worth something. They must be antiques by now.

  “Well?” Mia asked. “Anything up there?”

  “Actually, there is. Some boxes and stuff.”

  Mia squealed. “I’m coming up.”

  He scowled down at her. “No, you are not. I don’t even know how safe the floor is up here.”

  “By all means,” Grace called, “go ahead and walk right over top of me then.”

  Levi went up the remaining rungs and stepped into the attic space. The air was thick with old dust and stifling heat. His beam of light caught on a hanging string, and he pulled it. Miraculously the lightbulb still worked. He turned his attention to the boxes. They were pretty heavy and looked full. He couldn’t imagine handing them down safely to Mia or Grace.

  He spotted a tiny double-hung window on the opposite wall and carefully made his way toward it, hunching over as he went.

  “The ceiling’s pretty low,” he called down to Mia. “Even if you could make it up here you wouldn’t be able to use your crutches.”

  He unlocked the window and struggled to lift the sash. It was probably on the old weight and pulley system and hadn’t been opened in years.

  “Is there a lot of stuff up there?”

  “Tons.” He finally managed to lift the sash. He already had a film of sweat on his back. “Too much to tackle tonight.”

  “But you’ll get a start on it, right?”

  How could he turn down all the hope in that tone? He shook his head, a wry grin tugging his lips. He was becoming a regular dope.

  “Would you tell Grace to bring me a fan?”

  She didn’t need to pass it on because next thing he knew Grace called out, “Yes, master!”

  An hour and a half later Levi was coated in a thick layer of dust plus assorted cobwebs. He’d gone through quite a few boxes, finding all kinds of fascinating old stuff. It was hard to keep from inspecting things. He’d set aside the more interesting items to bring downstairs.

  Molly was going to eat this up. She’d returned home earlier on Adam’s boat, sneaking in without trouble, and came upstairs to tell them she’d identified the person who’d given away Mia’s location. It was a tourist, a young woman who’d snapped a photo of Mia getting out of the car out front. The Twitter thread, #MiaEmersonSpotting, had already grown long.

  When Molly found out what was going on in her room, her eyes lit up. Another lost-and-found mystery—she’d discovered a lost love letter last year during the renovation.

  But before she could get too wrapped up in the adventure, Levi shooed her away. This was going to remain Mia’s and his mystery to solve, thank you very much. Molly only pouted a little as she went downstairs to make a pot of decaf.

  Mia had also left. At his encouragement she’d taken breaks from her vigil and was presently in her room, propping her foot.

  Levi focused on his task. The good news was, he knew some of the stuff went back to the Livingston era because the newspapers wrapping some of the fragile items were dated. He brushed a cobweb from his hair and let loose a sneeze. If that necklace would turn up sometime soon that would be just dandy.

  Grace called from down below sometime later. “Um . . . hello? I’d really like to go to bed without hearing your big feet tromping overhead.”

  Levi checked his watch. It was after eleven. His eyes drifted around the attic. He was only about a fifth of the way through the boxes. The rest would have to wait until tomorrow.

  twenty-two

  It was suppertime when Levi descended the ladder from the attic.

  At Molly’s insistence, Mia had made herself at home on her bed. She was officially off the crutches, although she sported a limp. The sisters had split for the day, braving the growing crowd of photographers out front.

  Mia’s flight home was tomorrow, but she hadn’t packed yet. She didn’t even want to think about leaving Bluebell. Or going home to face 24/7 scrutiny. Couldn’t one of the Kardashians just do something outrageous already?

  Levi emerged from the closet, carrying a cardboard box. Poor thing had been in the sweltering attic for most of the day. His hair was almost gray with dust, dirt smudged his blue T-shirt, and something that looked like grease marked his cheek.

  But the expression on his face said it all.

  “Nothing?”

  “’Fraid not.”

  “And you’ve been through everything?”

  “Every single thing.” He gave the box a little bounce. “Found some interesting old stuff though. An oil lantern, photos, and random stuff from what must’ve been the inn’s lost-and-found box.”

  She could tell he was trying to ease her disappointment. A consolation prize. She made room for him on the bed. “That’s fun. Let’s go through it.”

  He glanced at the bed. “Molly’ll kill me if I set this down here. Why don’t we head downstairs, maybe order a pizza? It’s getting on toward suppertime.”

  “Sure.” She followed him out the door. “I pity the delivery person, though, having to wade through all the stalkers outside.”

  “I’ll warn them when I order, but I’m sure they already know.” He gave her a look. “It was in today’s paper. Front-page news.”

  “Great. Now everyone in town knows I’m here. And I’m sure they probably know about the scandal too.”

  He gave her an empathetic look as he preceded her down the steps. “There was mention of it in the article.”

  “Of course there was.” She took her time with the steps. Last thing she needed was to fall and hurt herself again.

  “Well . . . you’ll be out of here tomorrow anyway. I’ve already talked to Skeeter about flying you to Charlotte. He can sneak you out the back. I’ll wait a while, then notify the goons out front that you’re gone.”

  “Sounds like you’ve got it all worked out.” Business as usual. She didn’t know why that bothered her so much. She had no reason to complain. He’d taken such good care of her.

  “I’m not sure an endorsement from me is going to count for much by the time all’s said and done,” she said.

  “I’m just sorry your trip wasn’t more relaxing.” He glanced back at her. “At least you won’t have to hobble through the airport on crutches.”

  “There is that.” She settled on the living room couch, and Levi set the box on the coffee table, then went to change out of his dusty clothes.

  He returned wearing his standard khakis and a black T-shirt that set off his dark hair and blue eyes. “Hungry yet?”

  “Let’s wait a bit if you don’t mind.”

  He sat beside her. “Not at all.”

  They began rooting through Levi’s finds, the musty smell of the attic filling her nostrils. He’d turned off the phone’s ringer last night, so the house was quiet except for the ticking of the mantel clock. It was probably going to take hours to weed through all the voicemails.

  The oil lamp looked really old, and it was in perfect condition. There were pillbox style hats that were popular in the ’50s. She modeled them for Levi. When he came across a black fedora he set it on his head, making Mia wish men’s hats were all the rage again because, mercy.

  “Ooh la la,” she said. “Very Frank Sinatra.”

  He left it on as they continued their exploration. Mia pulled out a gold woman’s watch and turned it over. An inscription read All my love.

  “Look, it’s engraved.”

  “Nice.”

  Mia wondered if her grandfather might’ve given it to her grandmother, but it could’ve been anyone’s. It could’ve been left at the inn by a guest.

  “Look at this.” Levi showed her several photos taken inside the inn back in the days of black-and-white. “I wish we’d had these for the remodel. Would’ve been fun to recreate some of this.”

  “You did a great job with the place. It’s so warm and inviting. D
espite the circumstances, I’ve loved staying here.” And she was feeling more than a little depressed at the thought of leaving.

  His eyes searched hers for a long-drawn-out moment. It was a thing of wonder that his mere look could make her body hum.

  “I’ve loved having you.” The low thrum of his voice strummed a chord inside her. The vibrations spread throughout.

  I’ve loved having you, not we’ve. She shouldn’t make too much of that, but the way he was looking at her made it all too easy. Those eyes, warmer than blue had a right to be. His bone structure was the handiwork of God Himself, a masterpiece.

  Of its own volition, her hand lifted to thumb away the streak of dirt from his cheek.

  At her touch his eyes flickered with surprise.

  She jerked her hand back and showed her thumb, clearing her throat. “You—you had a streak of something on your cheek.”

  “Oh. Thanks.” He rubbed the spot.

  Had she mistaken the moment for more than it was? Her face warmed.

  Since they’d gone through all the goodies from the attic, they started loading the box back up.

  Levi topped the pile with the fedora. “Ready for that pizza?”

  Actually, the very thought of pizza made her stomach rebel. She’d had pizza three times this week and had hardly had anything but takeout since she’d arrived, and she didn’t even want to think about getting on the scale right now.

  What she really needed was a nice grilled chicken breast and a side of steamed broccoli.

  “Not hungry yet?” Levi asked.

  “It’s not that. I’m just . . . a little tired of pizza, I guess.”

  “Okay. Well, we could order wings instead. Or Chinese. Did you like it last time?”

  “Yeah . . .”

  The truth was, she’d had it with being trapped like an animal. Her travel had been restricted for seven days, and she was ready to go crazy. Of course, she was leaving in the morning anyway, but just now the thought of another takeout meal made her want to vomit.

  And even more so . . . She was sick and tired of everyone else dictating where she could and couldn’t go. She was a grown woman. She was tired of hiding from the general public and even more tired of hiding from the paparazzi.