Sweet Tea Sunrise

by Rachel Hanna

  "What's your name?" he asked. Boy, this guy was direct.

  "None of your business."

  He leaned forward, reaching out his hand. "Hi, none of your business. Nice to meet you."

  She cut her eyes at him again and then rolled them, not taking his hand, even though she wanted to.

  "You're a regular comedian."

  "I'm also polite. I can tell you're not from around here. And by the way, my name is Dustin."

  “I didn’t ask.” She sighed. "Fine. My name is Evie. And I live at Sweet Tea B&B."

  "Oh, wow. Then you must know Miss Mia."

  Evie laughed. "She's my aunt."

  "I've got to say I'm surprised that Miss Mia would have relatives from up north."

  Evie rolled her eyes again. "Well, she does. And I'd still like to know why you're in my tree?"

  He leaned back against the trunk, his feet dangling just like hers. "I like to come up here. It's the best view in the whole area.”

  She had to agree with him on that. As soon as she had found this perch, she decided to come here every day, weather permitting. For some reason, it just calmed her down.

  "But you shouldn't go on other people’s property."

  Dustin laughed. "Around here, we share the land. Miss Mia wouldn't care that I'm up here. She knows my momma.”

  "I'm sure she does. Well, I need to get back to the house. I can see that my quiet place has been invaded."

  She climbed down, gingerly, being sure not to fall in front of the new guy. Even though he annoyed her, he was cute, and there was no reason to fall flat on her face in front of him.

  "Hey!" he called as she started down the gravel road.

  "What?" she said, hands on her hips as she looked up at him.

  "It's nice to meet you. See you tomorrow?"

  She laughed under her breath, shook her head and turned back toward the house. She wanted to tell him no, but there was a really good chance she would be seeing him tomorrow.

  Chapter Two

  Mia checked her email for the third time in as many hours before slamming the laptop shut. Why had she opened herself up to this man, her biological father, to disappoint her? She had been just fine before finding out the information that there had been yet another DNA match.

  She stood up and walked toward the kitchen, feeling antsy. It wasn't yet time to start dinner, and she hadn't seen Kate or Evie in the last few hours. Last she heard, Evie had gone for a walk, and she didn't know where Kate had wandered off to.

  Sometimes, she hated being alone with her thoughts. Most of the time, she found herself thinking about her mother and missing her. Some days were better than others, especially those where she found herself distracted with new guests or learning new things about Kate and Evie. Quiet times were the hardest.

  Even harder was that she didn't have someone to share her life with. Sure, she had her new sister and niece, but she hadn't seriously dated anyone in years.

  And if she was honest with herself, watching Kate and Cooper start to fall in love made her a little envious. She was happy for them, but she wanted to be happy for herself also.

  She walked upstairs, intent on going in her room and sulking for a while, but when she got into the hallway, she looked at the one door she never opened. The one that had been closed for months now. Her mother's private office.

  Because of the size of the house, her mother had been able to have her own office space, more like a mini library. She had loved to read more than just about anyone Mia had ever met. A few years back, she'd had custom shelving installed all around the office and filled every square inch with all of her favorite books. If there was one thing Mia was sure of, it was that getting her mother books for every holiday was a safe bet.

  But since she had passed away, Mia had not entered her office. She just couldn't bring herself to do it. Not only were all of her mother’s books in there, but she knew the smell of her would hang in the air. She knew the feeling of her mother would loft over her the second she walked in the door. And while that might have been a welcome thought to most people, for her it was agonizing. To be able to feel her mother but not touch her or talk to her or hug her seemed like a devastating prospect.

  There was a part of her, though, that wanted to walk through that door, to feel her presence and touch her things. She knew that her mother kept private keepsakes in boxes in the closet inside of the office, but Mia had never gone through them. It was upsetting enough finding all of those journals that only mentioned the time that she was pregnant with Kate. Somewhere, there had to be journals about Mia's early moments of life. Maybe her mother just didn't want her to know her origins.

  Many times, she thought about what her birth father must've been like. Had she been a product of rape? Had it been a one night stand? She shook the thought out of her head, knowing her mother wasn't that kind of woman. She loved hard, and she wouldn't have gotten pregnant on a whim.

  Even her pregnancy with Kate seemed to be brought about from love. Not knowing how her story began left a strange void in Mia’s heart that she didn't know if she would ever fill.

  Maybe that was one of the reasons why she hadn't had a successful adult relationship. Her ability to trust wavered at times, not really knowing how to build a solid relationship. She’d never seen her mom and dad together, holding hands while sitting on the sofa on a Friday night watching TV. She hadn’t experienced it, so she didn't really know what that was like.

  "Are you okay?” Kate asked from behind her. She had been so lost in thought that she hadn't even heard her sister walking behind her on the hardwood floor.

  "Yeah. I was just… reminiscing, I guess."

  Kate walked up beside her and stared in the direction that Mia was looking. "What’s behind that door?”

  Mia blew out a breath. "That's Momma’s private office. I just haven't been able to make myself walk through those doors since she died."

  Kate put her arm around Mia’s shoulders and squeezed. "Are you thinking about going in now?"

  "I don't know. One minute I think I'm ready and the next I want to run straight out into the hills back there."

  Kate smiled. "You know, big sisters are here for things like this. Why don't we do it together?"

  Mia thought for one moment longer. “Okay.”

  She regretted it as soon as she said it, but she decided it was time. Something about that office was calling her, just like her momma was telling her from heaven that it was okay to start moving on.

  They approached the door, and Mia stopped. "You know, a lot of times when somebody dies, It's like they were never here. The generations just move on, and before you know it nobody even remembers that person. I don't want that to happen to Momma. She was too special. And I think generations after us should remember her, but I don't know how to make that happen."

  Kate nodded. "We'll figure it out. One step at a time."

  Mia nodded before reaching down and turning the door handle.

  Learning how to be a good big sister was something Kate never thought she'd be faced with, especially at her age. Pushing forty, she’d never imagined that she would be standing in the doorway of her birth mother's office with her brand new sister, wondering how to support her through the grief of losing their mother.

  Reading her mother’s journals had given her insight into who she was and how she felt in one of the worst times of her young life. But, she couldn't grieve the way Mia was. And, in a way, that gave her a whole different type of grief to deal with on her own. How did she grieve someone she never got to meet?

  It wasn't only that she didn't get to meet her mother. She’d never even known she existed until recently. Her entire life had been a lie, with her parents making her believe that she was biologically theirs. Sometimes, she thought about speaking with a counselor, just to work through the hurt feelings she carried for the parents who raised her.

  She had suffered through thinking her father had abandoned her, and he had, but it turned out he wa
sn't her biological father. There were so many lies that had been woven throughout the fabric of her life that it was hard to grieve each one. And still, there was a lot of anger there.

  Right now, her focus had to be on her sister. Going into their mother’s office months after her death was difficult for Mia. She had memories and experiences with her mother that Kate never would, so she couldn't fully understand the depth and breadth of Mia’s grief as they walked through the door.

  The office was lighter and brighter than Kate had imagined. With custom white bookshelves built into the walls and bright pink and white upholstery on the small settee near the window, it looked like something out of an interior design magazine.

  Much more floral than Kate would've liked, the office was full of life, but at the same time full of death. Mia just stood there, her arms hanging by her side like two limp spaghetti noodles, her head slightly hanging. Kate could hear her taking a deep breath.

  "It still smells like her. Do you smell that perfume? She always put on too much," Mia said, laughing sadly. “I used to tell her that she stayed in a room for hours after she left it."

  Kate smiled. "I smell it. I guess I know what my mother smells like now."

  Mia turned and smiled at her. "I guess you do. I'm so sorry you never got to know her."

  "Me too. So, where would you like to start?"

  "Look at all these books. I know most people have shelves full of books that they never read, but Momma read every one of these, some of them twice."

  "She sounds like a very smart woman."

  "She was," Mia said, laughing. "She often surprised people, you know. Being so southern and sweet, people automatically thought she was stupid. But she wasn't. She was more well read then anyone I've ever met."

  "I bet she was. People who read this many books have to be pretty smart."

  "I just don't know what to do with all of them. I can't just throw them away. One time she told me she'd haunt me for such a thing."

  Kate chuckled. "Well, as much as I'd like to meet her, I really don't need a ghost haunting this place, so let's not do that."

  Mia walked over to her mother’s desk, the tips of her fingers trailing along the dark wood, as she stared down at the organized chaos below.

  "She had way too much paperwork. I don't even know what most of this stuff is. I tried to get her to do everything on the computer, but she barely turned it on. It just wasn't her thing."

  "I can see that."

  "I bought her a really fancy phone a couple of years ago, but she refused to get rid of her flip phone. Never even knew how to send a text," Mia said, reminiscing.

  "Well, there's something to be said for doing things in the old-school way. I wish Evie would stop staring at her phone so much. Kids these days miss out on a lot of life experiences."

  "They sure do." Mia sat down in her mother’s very plush, black leather chair. The hardwood floor creaked below it as she sat down. She looked around the desktop and then smiled as she picked up a shiny, royal blue pen. "This was Momma’s favorite pen. I remember when Bobby bought it for her. These things are very expensive, and she tried to get him to take it back. But he wasn't having any of that. Told her that she was worth a thousand of these pens. She wouldn’t write with anything else, especially after he died."

  "I'm glad she had a second chance at love."

  Mia tilted her head and looked at her sister. "Maybe a third chance? I mean, I'm hoping she was in love with my father and yours."

  Kate sat down in the chair across from the desk. "Do you think so? I mean, I guess we'll find out when you hear from your father."

  "You mean if I hear from him. He hasn't messaged me back.”

  "Mia, it hasn't been that long," Kate said, laughing as she shook her head. "Maybe you get your impatient streak from him."

  “Maybe so, although Momma was very impatient. Poor Bobby was always running late, and I remember she used to pick at him about that. It was her biggest pet peeve, aside from somebody putting down a drink without a coaster."

  Kate laughed. “I must get that from her. I do the same thing."

  Mia looked around the room and sighed. "I don't know how I'll ever go through all of this stuff."

  "You don't have to do it alone, and you don't have to do it all at once. This stuff isn't going anywhere."

  "I know that Momma would want me to turn this room into something to benefit the bed-and-breakfast. But, I just don't know if I can bring myself to do it."

  “Why can't we just use it for our own office? We could put another little desk over here, or take the one out of the living room."

  “Maybe. Or we could create some kind of library for the guests."

  Kate shook her head. "I don't think our guests need a library. They aren't coming to Sweet Tea B&B to read, Mia."

  “Momma believed that reading was the best kind of relaxation."

  “I know, but we need an office. It would make much more sense for us to use it for that," Kate said, worried that they might be having their second argument as sisters, the first one having been in the attorney’s office.

  "We have time to think about it," Mia said, obviously not wanting to start an argument. "What's that?"

  She stood up and walked over to the corner of the room. There was a door, probably to a closet, with a small piece of fabric sticking out of it. She opened the door.

  "Wow. I haven't seen this jacket since I was a kid."

  She pulled out a bright pink raincoat, the size that a little girl would've worn. She held it up and smiled.

  "I remember when Momma surprised me with this. I think I was going into the fourth grade, and another little girl in class had a coat like this. We barely had any money at the time, but somehow she managed to scrape it together and buy me this coat. I just remember being so proud to wear it to school and thinking that one day I would give it to my little girl, but that never happened."

  "You still have plenty of time," Kate said, putting her hand on Mia’s shoulder.

  "No, I do believe my ship has sailed. I just forgot to get on it."

  Kate chuckled. "Your prince charming is out there somewhere."

  Mia looked at her sister. "I don't think he's going to find me way out in the woods hiding at a bed-and-breakfast, do you?"

  Kate shrugged her shoulders. "Who knows? Stranger things have happened. I mean, I'm dating Cooper."

  Mia laughed “You're right. Strange things definitely do happen."

  The truck came to a stop. Kate sat there, picnic basket in her lap, and waited for Cooper to come around and open the door. If there was anything she had learned about true southern gentlemen, it was that they always opened the door. She’d given up even reaching for the handle at this point.

  The slightly feminist part of her wanted to be offended, but she wasn't. She knew he didn't open doors and walk closest to the street because he was being disrespectful. In fact, he was respecting her and trying to protect her, and she thought it was kind of cute.

  He opened the door, and she stepped down, his hand on her lower back. "So are you ready for the long-awaited picnic?"

  Kate smiled. "Yes, I am. And I'm curious what I'm going to find in this picnic basket you brought."

  He took it from her and grinned. "I'm actually a pretty good little cook, I'll have you know."

  They started walking toward the trail, the last slivers of sunlight peeking through the trees. In true Cooper fashion, he was honoring her request to have a moonlit dinner on the deck overlooking the river and waterfall on his clients’ land.

  “And you're sure they don't mind us being down here?"

  Cooper laughed. "I'm positive. Now, come on," he reached over and took her hand as they made their way down the incline to the overlook deck.

  Something about his hand in hers made everything all right. As much as she didn't want to rely on anyone, especially a man, she couldn't seem to help herself. He was stable and strong and kind. Every time she let herself start to feel that w
ay again, she flashed back to her marriage with Brandon. There was a moment where she thought he was some of those things too. Trust is a hard thing.

  When they reached the deck, Cooper set the picnic basket on the table and then took both of her hands, pulling her over to the edge. "Take a look at that." He pointed off in the distance, where the pink sky, streaked by the last remnants of daylight, shone over the edge of the rocks and trees in the distance.

  “It's beautiful. We have some pretty areas in Rhode Island, but nothing like this."

  "Yeah, the beauty of these mountains isn't something I've seen anywhere else."

  "Have you done a lot of traveling?" Kate asked, turning toward him, her elbow leaning against the deck rail.

  "Actually, I did. For a couple of years I just sort of traveled around trying to get my head on straight, I guess. Got to visit Mexico, New York City, Texas."

  "Wow, those are nowhere near each other," she said with a laugh.

  "Well, I did do a little visiting in places in between. I had a rough go for a couple of years, so I was kind of floating around out there."

  "Mind if I ask what happened?"

  He turned and leaned his forearms against the deck and stared out over the mountains like he was a million miles away.

  "I was married, and things didn't work out."

  "Been there, done that, burned the T-shirt in a fit of rage."

  Cooper laughed. "It can really do a number on your head, can’t it?”

  "Very true. And it wouldn't be so bad except my despicable ex went off and started a whole new family and left his daughter behind."

  Cooper shook his head. "I guess I should be glad we didn't have any kids between us, because I can't imagine how difficult that would have been. But there's no way I would've left my kid for any reason. I'm sorry that you and Evie have to deal with that."

  Kate sighed. "Yeah, it's hard, but it's so much worse for her. A girl needs her father. I'm so worried about her future relationships because she doesn't know what a real man acts like."