“Though this be madness, yet there is a method in it.”
Tessa rolled her eyes. “Thanks, Hamlet.”
Paul pointed his sandwich at her. “Actually, Polonius said that.”
She lifted her sandwich and bit into the crusty bread. It probably tasted amazing, because that’s how it smelled. But Tessa’s senses felt dulled, and she chewed mechanically. The river bubbled over its rock-strewn bed. A cardinal chirped in a nearby tree, and a car engine traveled closer. Tessa turned around on the bench seat and watched a car traverse Crazy Kate’s driveway. The car parked beside Paul’s rental, and Tessa gasped when the driver stepped out.
“Mrs. Steele is here,” she whispered, sliding down on the bench in an attempt to slip out of view.
Paul turned around and watched. “No need to hide. She’s not even looking this way. I wonder what she’s doing.”
“You don’t think she’s coming over to yell more, do you?”
Paul grabbed Tessa’s hand and tugged her off the bench. “Let’s go find out.”
They crept toward the back of the house and squatted in front of an open window. Mrs. Steele stood in the living room as though she didn’t know what to do now that she was there.
“Tea?” Crazy Kate asked.
“I didn’t come for tea,” Mrs. Steele said.
“Why did you come, Trudy?”
Mrs. Steele leaned on her cane but did not turn her gaze to meet Crazy Kate’s. When she spoke, her fragile voice was barely a whisper. “I ignored his request. All these years. Geoffrey would have been—” Her voice faltered, and her hand trembled on her cane. “He would have been so upset with me. I was angry and had no one to blame, so I picked you. I don’t know what to do with this anger. I’ve carried it for so long that itisme.” She bowed her head.
Crazy Kate closed the space between them. “It doesn’t have to be you. You can let it go now, Trudy.” She placed her hand on top of Trudy’s where it rested on the cane. “It’s been more than long enough.”
Mrs. Steele nodded and wiped at her eyes. “I don’t want the house, but after all that Matthias did, helping all those people, it would be wrong of me to tear it down. Matthias was always good to me, and he checked on me and the kids all the time up until he—until recently. He never forgot about us, and I guess you didn’t either. I can’t imagine why a young woman would want to rehab Honeysuckle Hollow and live in that stuffy old house, but if she wants it, she can have it. I won’t have it destroyed.”
Crazy Kate walked into the kitchen and refilled the kettle with hot water. “Chamomile was one of the first herbs my mama planted in the garden, and after all these years, it still flourishes. I believe it makes the best chamomile tea around. It soothes the soul.”
Mrs. Steele took a seat at the kitchen table and propped her cane against the wall. “I’ll be the judge of that.”
Crazy Kate pulled two porcelain cups from the cabinet. “I assure you, this tea can turn a skeptic into a believer. You want honey?”
Mrs. Steele relaxed against the back of the chair. “I could use some sweetening.”
“I second that.”
The sound of Crazy Kate’s and Mrs. Steele’s laughter filled the small cottage. It dispersed out through the open windows.
Tessa exhaled and looked at Paul. She lowered herself down onto the soft grass. “Did we just win?” she whispered.
Paul grinned. “Thanks to you and Crazy Kate.” He sat beside her, cupped her face with his hands, and kissed her.
Chapter 22
Settle My Heart Hot Tea
TessaandPaulreturnedto the bench and finished eating their grilled cheese sandwiches. After tea with Mrs. Steele, Crazy Kate came outside and retrieved them. Mrs. Steele assured Tessa that Honeysuckle Hollow was hers, so Tessa returned the cashier’s check so she could issue a stop payment. Crazy Kate mentioned the photo albums in Honeysuckle Hollow’s attic, saying Mrs. Steele might want to see them. Paul offered to drive them to the house, but Mrs. Steele declined because she wanted to stop by the hotel and pick up Dorothy, and Crazy Kate offered to ride with her.
Paul and Tessa waited in the car outside Honeysuckle Hollow while their conversation jumped all over the place with ideas about renovations and the future. Once Mrs. Steele arrived with Crazy Kate and Dorothy, Tessa unlocked the front door with the skeleton key. Crazy Kate led Mrs. Steele and Dorothy up the staircase, and Tessa stared at the key in her palm before wrapping her fingers around it. She could never have guessed that this one key arriving at her office would change her life so quickly and so profoundly.
Paul stood in the front yard, gazing at the pruned rose bushes. Tessa stepped toward the railing. “You coming inside?”
“It’s lunchtime. We haven’t had much to eat. The sandwich was good, but not enough to fill me until dinner. Think the ladies are hungry too? I could run to the diner and grab food.”
Tessa smiled at him. “That’s really thoughtful. I bet they’d appreciate it. You don’t mind?”
