They laughed at their inside joke. Juliette prided herself on being the perfect wife and mother—except she had never been able to cook and had zero interest in learning. Luckily, her husband was more than capable of keeping them fed.
“From the diner? That couldn’t have been cheap,” Sylvie said, concerned that her friend was spending money she didn’t necessarily have.
Juliette was already shaking her head. “I told you not to worry. You know how much Shelly Baker loved your mom. I don’t think I could’ve left there withlessfood than I did. I’m still expecting to turn around and see her holding a tray of cake. The woman tried to give methree pies! I do have a box of things for you as well, though.”
“What? No, you’ve done so much,” Sylvie protested—only to go silent when she saw what Juliette was pointing to.
A large cardboard box sat on the porch. Inside were six plain glass vases and three rolls of stickers in different colors.
“Vases and…stationery?”
“These vases have a yellow dot on each of them, which means I don’t care when I get them back. I’ve given Lilly the roll of green dots; they’re for all the vases you’re using from the inn, as well as the ones that were delivered with the flowers. I put red stickers on the plates of cookies from Mrs. Dallwan because she’ll want those back pretty soon, and I don’t want her coming around here and complaining to you. So, I’ll grab them whenever I’m here next and return them.”
Sylvie’s eyes stung, but she didn’t want to cry. “Thank you. You’re the best.”
“I know,” Juliette said with a wide grin. “It’s a gift.”
They shared a long hug before saying goodbye. As Juliette jokingly reminded her to get some sleep, Sylvie grabbed a few vases and headed back inside.
“Fiona,” she started as she approached the table where Lilly was carefully putting green stickers on the bottom of each vase. “Can we talk for a minute?”
Her sister-in-law sighed, turning to face Sylvie with her arms already crossed tightly across her chest. “Sure. What is it?”
“Um…in my office, maybe?” Sylvie suggested.
The only response from Fiona was an eye roll before she turned to head up the hallway. Even for Fiona, this was outright hostility. Usually, there was at least a thin veil of civility, though maybe that had been for Annette’s sake.
“So, what do you want to hide from Lilly?” Fiona asked the moment she was inside the office.
“Nothing!” Sylvie exclaimed. “I just wanted to talk to you first!”
“Why? Why couldn’t you talk to me in front of Lilly?” Fiona’s voice was already growing louder, and Sylvie wasn’t sure she could handle a full-volume screaming match.
She took a deep breath to keep her voice calm and even. “Because, if I didn’t give you a heads-up about this, you would be pissed at me—rightly, might I add.”
Scoffing, Fiona took a seat in one of the chairs in front of Sylvie’s desk. “Since when do you care if I’m pissed at you?”
“It’s also the right thing to do. And regardless of what you think of me, I do try to do the right thing.” Running her fingers through her hair, she realized she desperately needed to wash it. It felt like it had been way too long.
Fiona stared at her in confusion. “Are you all right?”
“Yes. I’m fine. I mean, no, obviously. I just…” She shook her head, trying to find the right words to use. “I don’t know.Listen, I don’t have all the details yet. The lawyers are coming in a few days, but Mom—”
“Let me guess. She left everything to you because I’m not family?” Fiona regarded her with a pinched expression.
“No! Wait—is that seriously what’s been eating you since…?”
Fiona shrugged. “I don’t know what I expected. I know I’m not family. I thought she’d leave something to Lilly, though.”
Watching in shock, Sylvie’s jaw went slack as Fiona’s eyes welled with tears. “I don’t know what financial decisions Mom made. But she did tell me one thing that…is a bit complicated. She says there are letters with the lawyers for each of us, but she gave me this one in advance. It basically says that she wants me to have the inn—but unless I do certain things, it’ll go to Lilly.”
“The inn? This place?” Fiona’s eyes widened, clearly surprised. “But how? She’s not old enough. And your mom wouldn’t make you sell it, surely? And why is Lilly the punishment for you not doing whatever she wanted you to do? If youdocomplete these things, does that mean Lilly getsnothing, then?”
The idea of buying them out hadn’t even crossed her mind, and she kind of wished it hadn’t—because now, all she could think about was how she couldn’t afford to do that, even if she wanted to.
“Uh, I don’t know,” she said slowly. “But apparently, it will all be explained by her lawyers in a few days.”
“What even—”
