Cecilia nodded. “That’ll be a lot of work. After Matthias died, I think they pretty much let the place go, though I don’t know why. It was such a beautiful house. Matthias was one of our very first customers. Such a nice man. He used to come in here every Wednesday morning, and we shared gardening tips. Did you know he transplanted sage and rosemary from my garden into the garden there?”
Tessa’s eyes widened. Plants grown in the diner’s special soil were now growing at Honeysuckle Hollow.The magic spreads.
“Paul had quite a lot to say about the house and what you hoped would happen with it.” Cecilia’s eyes were full of optimism. “He couldn’t stop smiling when he was talking about the architecture. It’s been a long time since I’ve seen that.”
Tessa cleared her throat and tried to avoid Cecilia’s searching eyes. “I was asking Harry, is there anything quick I could take off your hands this morning for breakfast?”
Cecilia eyed Tessa a moment longer before nodding. She pointed to a warm, buttery quiche sitting on one of the countertops. “It’s a Courage Quiche. If you can believe this, I went out to the garden this morning to grab rosemary, and I noticed a few dozen crocuses popping up through the dirt. They’re all in bloom, and it’s not crocus season. Not only that, they are . . . what are they called again, Harry?”
“Crocus sativus.”
“That’s right. The kind of crocus that yields saffron.”
Tessa had a feeling she knew the answer, but she asked anyway. “Does that mean they’re special?”
“Of course they are. Saffron is rare and expensive, and I certainly didn’t plant them in the garden.” She shrugged. “Who knows who dropped them there.”
Tessa glanced over her shoulder as though she might be able to see the garden from the closed-in kitchen. Now the garden was pushing up not only out-of-season plants but saffron-producing crocuses?
“I brought the saffron threads inside and put them in a small jar. Then I accidentally tipped the entire jar into the eggs. It wasn’t worth fishing them out. I wanted to throw out the quiche, but Harry told me that someone might want it. I guess that someone is you.”
Tessa walked over to the quiche. It wasn’t as yellow as a crayon, but it was brighter and sunnier than other quiches she’d seen. “Why is it called Courage Quiche?”
Cecilia lifted her hands. “Old tales say that saffron gives strength and courage to those who ingest it. Mynonnaused to add threads to her risotto—”
“The best I’ve ever eaten, may she rest in peace,” Harry interjected, causing Cecilia to glance his way and smile.
“This was one of her recipes too. She always called it Courage Quiche,” Cecilia said, sliding the quiche into a brown paper bag. “Bring back the pan when you’re done. With the amount of saffron in it, I’d say you’ll be courageous enough to take on the world. Perhaps even to take a chance on love with a wayward young man—”
“Cece,” Harry warned.
Cecilia shoved the bag into Tessa’s hands. “Take it.” She shook her head at Harry. “Can you blame me, Harry? Tell me you don’t love having Paul around.”
Tessa cleared her throat again. “Thank you for the quiche. How much do I owe you?”
Cecilia waved her hands in the air. “Nothing. Share it with Paul if he’s around. He’ll only raid the kitchen for free anyway.”
Tessa scooted out of the kitchen before the conversation became any more awkward. She slipped out of the dining room and stared at the garden as she walked past. Purple crocus blooms huddled together, waving to her in the breeze.
At the top of the apartment stairs, she paused. WhywasPaul still staying? Even during dinner the night before, he hadn’t mentioned when his second attempt at leaving town would happen.It’s not because of me, a voice whispered in her head. For a moment, long enough for her to inhale and exhale a heavy breath, she imagined what it would be like for a man like Paul to stick around because of her.
Tessa opened the door and crept into the kitchen without disturbing Paul. She grabbed a fork and carried the quiche into the bedroom, where she pulled the fluffy duvet off the bed and dragged it into the bathroom. The bathroom contained an oversize garden tub, a tiled walk-in shower, and a double vanity with a mirror spanning the wall behind the two sinks.
Tessa checked to make sure the bathtub was clean and dry. Then she dropped the duvet into the tub, causing it to look like a giant oval filled with marshmallow fluff. It was a strange place to want to sit, she knew, but as a child, when she truly wanted to be alone, she’d always retreated to the bathroom. And if she was going to “hide out” in the bathroom, why not be comfortable? She grabbed her cell phone and notebook. Then she removed the quiche from the bag, closed the bathroom door, and crawled into the tub, careful not to drop the quiche.
The first bite of Courage Quiche tasted earthy, and the flaky, buttery crust melted on her tongue. She ate bite after bite, watching the sunbeams stretch across the bathroom tiles and fill the room with pink and gold light. Before she realized it, she’d eaten the equivalent of two entire slices of quiche. She hadn’t bothered cutting the quiche into equal segments, so it looked as though someone had eaten willy-nilly from the pan.
Words crept into Tessa’s mind, blowing through her thoughts like a spring breeze.Buy Honeysuckle Hollow. This time, she didn’t hesitate. She didn’t worry that it was the most absurd and irresponsible idea she’d ever had. She didn’t need three people to give her life advice. Sheneededto save Honeysuckle Hollow, and there was no way to do that without purchasing it herself.
Tessa called Ralph. “Huh?” He rasped his greeting into the phone.
She heard rustling around and muffled groans. “Did I wake you?”
“It’s not even nine, Tessa. No one gets out of bed before nine.”
Tessa frowned. “Seriously, Ralph? No one? How much is the investor giving Mrs. Steele for the land?”
Whether it was because she’d woken him and he hadn’t thought to shield his answers or because he felt no reason to protect his client, Ralph gave her an honest answer. He seemed surprised when she thanked him and ended the call immediately.
