by R A Wallace
Chapter Thirteen
Barbara Vance took a pitcher of iced tea from the refrigerator and placed it on the tray with several glasses, plates, and silverware. After carrying it carefully to the large living room, she set it down next to some of the baked goods that Lauren had dropped off and waited for her guests to come downstairs. Three of her girlfriends from school were staying with her. Barbara had been so happy to see them all. It was like the years in between had melted away. They immediately fell into a comfortable conversation talking about each of their families.
Barbara turned and smiled as she heard footsteps coming into the room. Gail Bridges, the oldest of her three friends by about a year was now living in Georgia. At sixty-two, she looked several years younger. She had explained that the hint of purple highlights tipping her dark hair were the result of a dare from her granddaughters. Barbara thought it looked lovely on her with her warm golden brown skin. She was handing Gail a glass of iced tea when the second woman entered.
This time, it was Janet Holland. Like Barbara, she was sixty-one. Janet had ended up living in Maine but now spends her winters in Florida. Before retiring, she had worked over thirty years in a doctor’s office. Her husband had been the doctor and they’d enjoyed every moment of working and living together until his death last year. Her short, no-nonsense hair had always been dark but was now peppered with white.
Behind her, Connie Lynch was the last to enter. The youngest of the group, she was turning sixty this month and they all planned to help celebrate while they were together. They had missed all of the birthdays in between for the last many decades. They would celebrate a lot of things together this weekend. Connie was blonde and had blue sparkling eyes. She’d ended up in Texas.
All four of the women had lost their husbands over the years. They settled down with a glass of iced tea and chose to talk about the future.
“This was such a good idea,” Connie said with an infectious smile.
“I agree. I’m planning to gain five pounds and not feel a bit guilty about it,” Janet said, taking her time to select a cupcake.
“That’s right,” Connie grinned as she took a brownie square with thick chocolate frosting. “Another good thing about being with friends is you can get frosting on your face and it’s okay.”
“I got a text from the others. They’ve all made it safely to the bed and breakfast. They’ll be here in a few minutes. I thought we’d spend some time catching up before we go to dinner,” Barbara said.
“Does that mean I should feel guilty about the brownie?” Connie asked.
“Not at all. You’re on vacation,” Barbara said.
“That’s right,” Janet said. “Everyone knows vacation calories don’t count.”
“In that case, I’m having a brownie too,” Gail said. “Teaberry is looking good. You should be proud.”
“Oh, I am,” Barbara nodded. “And watching the whole town pull together for the TeaFest this weekend was wonderful. It was like some synchronized production where everything just falls into place as it should.”
“Where are we going for dinner?” Connie asked.
“The Teaberry House Restaurant. It’s one of the old Victorians on the other side of town. It’s been converted into a restaurant,” Barbara explained then got up when the doorbell rang.
Barbara greeted Julie and Gerald Walker and Aaron and Crystal Ingram and sent them into the living room with the others. Over the excited voices in the nearby room, she turned to Matthias Reynolds. Matthias rested his hands on his cane, leaned over and lightly kissed Barbara, then asked, “Have you told them yet?”
Chapter Fourteen
Late Saturday morning Caitlyn Anderson stood elbow-to-elbow with six muscular men with a large smile on her face as she handed yet another barbeque beef brisket sandwich to a customer. Of course, they also had several other options including pulled pork and that was moving just as quickly.
The line snaking around the firefighter’s concession booth and down the aisle was seemingly endless. Caitlyn had been taking orders, fixing sandwiches, grabbing orders of French fries and drinks, handing the food to the customers, and taking payment for hours. She’d loved every minute of it.
She’d discovered quickly on that the secret to success was to avoid the flying elbows of the oversized men sharing the booth. She’d dart in and out gathering what she needed for each order and then quickly move on to the next customer.
Doug had called over to her a couple of times asking if she was still doing okay. She’d answered enthusiastically that she was just fine. Doug had just shaken his head. It hadn’t escaped his notice that many of the customers were jockeying to get into the line in front of Caitlyn because hers was moving so much faster than the rest of them.
Madison Palmer stepped up to the booth and asked for an order of pulled pork over a bed of French fries. After asking if she wanted any toppings such as jalapenos, cheese, or onions on it, Doug handed her the order and took the payment.
Madison walked away with her paper tray of food and plastic fork, looking for a spot to sit. She found one next to an elderly couple who were people watching while taking a break from walking. Madison listened to their quiet remarks about the things they’d seen so far while she ate her lunch. She was just finishing when she again felt as though she were being watched.
Looking around quickly, she spotted a man with a camera. Narrowing her eyes, she threw the remains of her lunch in the trash can next to her and stalked over to Jason Malone.
“Why are you taking my picture?” Madison demanded.
Jason smirked at her. “It’s my job. I’m taking pictures for the town web site.”
Madison folded her arms. “I believe you need my permission to post my picture.”
Jason shrugged. “If your permission isn’t on file, the photos won’t be published.”
“I’d prefer you not take my picture at all,” Madison said evenly.
Jason gave her a creepy smile then turned and walked away. “Well!” Madison huffed.
“Is he a friend of yours?” A woman asked.
Madison turned to find the tall woman from the park when she’d run into Jerry. “No, he’s not.”
The woman watched Jason as he disappeared into the crowd. “He’s very handsome, isn’t he?”
Madison shook her head. “He’s not my type.” Madison glanced in the direction that Jason had taken. When she looked back, she realized that the tall woman was gone.
“Enjoying your day?” Jerry Stevens asked.
Madison turned and smiled at Jerry. He was in full uniform this time so obviously he was working the event. She thought about mentioning Jason Malone to him but decided against it. If Jason was legitimately taking pictures for the town of Teaberry, the fact that he was taking her picture wasn’t all that strange. Was it?
“Yes, I am,” Madison said. “If you haven’t eaten yet, I can recommend the pulled pork.”
“I am actually on my way to pick up some food, thanks. Maybe I’ll see you around later,” Jerry nodded and headed in the direction of the volunteer firefighter’s booth.
On his way, he walked past Lauren Dempsey’s booth and stopped to check out what she had. He’d been lucky enough to taste some of her baked goods at a meeting once.
“Can I help you, officer?” Lauren smiled from behind the table.
Jerry smiled back at Lauren and pointed when he saw what he was hoping for. “I’ll be back for a bucket of those cookies.”
“I’ll be here,” Lauren promised.
She watched Jerry walk down the aisle toward the firefighter’s booth. The firefighter’s booth had been doing an excellent business today and that had helped Lauren out tremendously. It was why she’d requested the spot she was in. The area received so much traffic from people in search of the brisket and pulled pork that it increased Lauren’s business also. She reached down in the box at her feet and brought out another handful of flyers promoting Megan’s bed and breakfast and set them on th
e counter.
Lauren waited on several more people and had just handed change to someone when she heard angry voices nearby. She recognized the photographer, Jason Malone. A man was very angry with him at the moment and was making a scene as he told Jason off.
“And if I find you taking pictures of my girlfriend again, I’m coming after you!” The man shouted.
“I’m a photographer, it’s my job to take pictures,” Jason retorted. He was looking around him as though searching for an escape route, but the crowd of people had him blocked in.
“I’ve heard stories that you aren’t always on the clock when you do it. Just stay away from my woman.” The man pointed a finger at Jason angrily then stormed off, quickly swallowed up by the crowd.
Lauren raised her eyebrows. Interesting. Wonder what that was all about? Looking back where Jason had been standing, Lauren searched for him but couldn’t find him now. She did see Mayor Vance walking toward her. It looked like she was with her out-of-town visitors. The group stopped when they reached Lauren’s tent.
Lauren finished the transaction with the person who had stepped up to her table first, then turned to the older woman with a smile. “Mayor Vance. Don’t tell me you’ve run out of baked goods already.”
Barbara laughed. “No, but we’ve made a big dent in it and my guests wanted you to know how much they loved what you brought over.”
“Well, that’s good to hear.” Lauren returned their friendly smiles. She was touched that Mayor Vance had taken the time to let her know. As the group walked away, Lauren noticed that one gentleman with a cane remained close to Mayor Vance and often shielded her from the crowd with his free arm.
After waiting on a frazzled-looking mom with four small children later in the afternoon, Lauren found Caitlyn and Doug next in line. “Hi, is your shift over?” Lauren asked.
Caitlyn nodded. “I told Doug about your cookies. We want to buy a bucket.”
Lauren smiled and looked back and forth between them. “Just one?” She’d seen Caitlyn devour an entire bucket by herself.
Caitlyn glanced at Doug and laughed. Doug shook his head and muttered, “I thought she was kidding when she told me that.”
“How did your first day on the job go?” Lauren asked.
“I loved it! No wonder you like doing this. I can’t wait for our shift tomorrow.” Caitlyn was still bouncing with energy.
Lauren passed over the bucket and watched them walking away as they shared cookies companionably from the bucket. Lauren smiled. Her friend deserved a nice guy. A little later, Lauren saw Jessilyn Brewer approaching.
“Hey, how are things going today?” Jessilyn asked.
“Excellent,” Lauren smiled. “It’s a great crowd so far. Do you have any idea what the numbers are?”
“Not yet,” Jessilyn said. “But if they hold steady like this for both days, I think we’ll top last year’s numbers.”
Jessilyn looked around as though looking for someone. “Have you seen the photographer?”
Lauren pointed. “I believe he headed that way.”
“Thanks.” Jessilyn waved and headed in the direction that Lauren had pointed. She’d been watching Jason for much of the day. She had a lot of concerns about what she’d been seeing. She believed that she would need to speak with the mayor about him. She didn’t like talking about other people, especially in a negative way, but she felt that her concerns were legitimate.
Jessilyn shook her head. She wasn’t going to spend her day chasing Jason around. But she had made up her mind to speak to the mayor. Jessilyn rounded a corner to go into the next aisle and bumped into someone.
“Oh, hello Seth. Are you done with your shift at the booth?” Jessilyn asked.
Seth smiled at Jessilyn. She’d been a year behind him in school. “I am. I’m walking around checking out what everyone else has now.”
“Need some company?” Jessilyn asked.
Seth smiled warmly. “I’d love some.”
Chapter Fifteen
Megan took the loaf of white bread from the oven and set it on the rack to cool. Pouring herself another cup of coffee, she thought back to the previous evening when Mayor Vance’s friends had returned to the bed and breakfast. Still excited about their day and wanting to enjoy as much time together as possible, they’d sat out on the back porch for quite some time enjoying some wine, some good conversation, and trying the Rhubarb Custard pie.
Gerald Walker had declared it to be every bit as good as his mother’s. Megan wasn’t sure if that was truly the case but appreciated the kind words. She’d given the recipe to Julie Walker and explained that other fruit could be used in place of the rhubarb. Megan often made it with peaches when they were in season.
She took another sip of her coffee before heading out to the chicken coop. She could hear Henry’s strangled crows as she left the back door and went down the porch steps. Henry was already out waiting for her in the yard. He hopped back and forth on each foot with his head bobbing back in forth in what Megan had come to assume was his happy dance.
She collected her eggs and returned to the house to finish cooking the breakfast. She had taken some sliced potatoes out of the freezer earlier to begin thawing. They were from last year’s garden. To freeze them, Megan sliced them, blanched them by dropping them into boiling water for five minutes before plunging them into cold water to stop the cooking, and then froze them in zippered plastic bags.
She put the mostly thawed potatoes into a frying pan with chopped onions and green peppers. They were also frozen from last year’s garden. Then she covered the pan with a lid. She found that if she cooked them slowly at first, the moisture from the thawing potatoes cooked the vegetables fairly well at first. Eventually, once that moisture cooked off, she would sprinkle on some spices, add a bit of oil to the pan to finish cooking and brown the potatoes.
No one had ever been able to tell that the potatoes, onions, or green peppers had previously been frozen. And Megan felt that she was able to cook the potatoes using less oil this way though she could drain the water from the frozen potatoes first also.
As it got closer to breakfast time, Megan began bringing the coffee and food into the dining room. She had several jars of jam to go with the homemade bread including strawberry-rhubarb, red raspberry, grape, peach, and plum. She’d made them all from the fruit on the farm.
Each time she brought in more food from the kitchen, she found more of the guests in the dining room. They were drinking coffee and talking about their plans for the day, their excitement about spending another day together obvious. When all had arrived but Tamara Hines, they tucked into the food. Apparently, Tamara had decided to skip breakfast again this morning.
Megan had a thought then walked to the front door and looked out the window. It looked like Tamara was already gone. Her car was missing from the drive. Interesting. Megan went up to Tamara’s room and looked inside. The bed was unmade but there was nothing else in the room. The suitcase was gone and there was nothing else sitting out in view in the bedroom or the bathroom.
She must have decided to check out early, Megan thought. She had tried to get to know her guest, but Tamara had spent little time at the bed and breakfast and didn’t want to eat there claiming that she needed to lose some weight. Megan had been certain Tamara was around a size two at the most. When Tamara was at the bed and breakfast, she seemed more interested in asking Megan about her love life. With a shrug, she returned to the first floor to check on her other guests.
They would also be checking out this morning sometime after breakfast. Megan had enjoyed having them but was also looking forward to spending some time with Dan later.
“That reminded me of the breakfasts I used to eat when I was young,” Matthias Reynolds said when Megan entered the dining room again. Megan had learned in her discussions with him over the weekend that he was a retired financial advisor.
Gerald Walker was sitting back in his chair. One hand was resting on his stomach, the other was dr
aped on the chair behind his wife Julie, who was sitting next to him. Gerald had been a high school history teacher while Julie had taught sociology in college. “I can’t remember the last time I had homemade jam,” Gerald said.
“I can’t remember the last time I had homemade bread,” Crystal Ingram added. Crystal had been a nurse while her husband, Aaron, had been an electrical engineer.
They had all been friends in school in Teaberry when they were younger. Megan enjoyed hearing stories about Mayor Vance and the others from their school days. According to her guests, it was no surprise that Barbara Vance had become a mayor. She’d always been level-headed and the first to roll up her sleeves when something needed to be done.
The five of them went back upstairs to pack. They were planning to meet their friends at Mayor Vance’s house and spend the rest of the day with her. Megan had gotten the impression that there was something in particular that Matthias wanted to speak to all of his friends about when they were together this morning at the mayor’s house.
She spent the morning cleaning the house after her guests had left. She stripped the beds and got the bedding washed and hung out to dry and finished cleaning the kitchen. She fed and watered the chickens and checked on the sheep. She watered all of the potted flowers on the porch. She spent some time with Emma to make up for keeping her in Megan’s suite for part of the weekend. Emma had everything that she needed in Megan’s suite and never seemed to mind either way. Then she texted Dan that she would be in town soon to meet up with him.
Dan immediately replied back that he couldn’t wait to see her. Megan smiled when she read it. Setting down her phone, she finished getting ready to go into town. She wanted to wear something casual, but still nice. After showering and drying her hair, she put on a sundress and sandals. The sundress was a little old but hadn’t been worn much. Megan thought it still looked nice even if it had a few years on it.