“Some people already are.” Belinda Sue nodded to a couple seated on the curb, balancing plates of pizza on their bare knees. “I ain’t ever seen anything like this.”
“You’ve never been to the Gulf?” Cordelia gave the three of them an incredulous look. “How is it you’ve lived in Texas your whole lives and never been to the Gulf of Mexico?”
“We’ve got a watering hole just outside Sarsaparilla Falls,” Belinda Sue said. “And a real nice pool at the Chickadee. What do we need to go to the Gulf for?”
Cordelia had to concede that she had a point. And really, who was she to judge? She’d only ever been to the Gulf once herself, when one of her momma’s boyfriends promised them an all-expenses-paid trip to Galveston, only to stick them with the hotel bill before the week was up. Sherilynn had to take up a second job for six months just to break even again.
“Look at these little knickknacks.” Daisy tapped on the glass of a storefront with her overly long nail, drawing a few side-eyes from tourists. “Have you ever seen anything so useless and adorable in your life? They even got a stone hippo. Miss Penelope would’ve loved it here.”
“We can look around later if you want, but we should probably take care of the business we came here to do first.” Cordelia consulted her phone in search of the market.
A bell chimed over the shop, and Cordelia looked up in time to see all three chicks disappear through the door. She supposed it couldn’t hurt to let them have a little fun first.
Sighing, she moved to join them when she spotted Stella across the street with a woman who was quite a bit taller, long and lean, like a living strand of ivy. She wore her strawberry-blond hair short, and her pointed features and tweedy academic style of dress gave her an Ichabod Crane look. Cordelia locked eyes with Stella, who widened hers in return. Stella immediately whispered something to the woman in her company and the two of them hustled up the street and out of sight.
Odd. Did Stella recognize her after all these years? And if so, what was she so afraid of?
Cordelia entered the store and tapped Daisy on the shoulder, who jumped and nearly dropped the snow globe she was holding. “I just saw Stella.”
“No kidding?” Daisy passed the globe off to Arline. “Did you say hi?”
Cordelia shook her head. “I couldn’t say anything. She was across the street with another woman. As soon as they spotted me, the two of them ran for the hills.”
“Probably Gladys, the two of them are thick as thieves.” Daisy picked up a crystal duck and tapped its beak. “That’s weird, though. Stella is normally real friendly. Maybe she thought you’d judge her for taking a vacation when she’s supposed to be mourning her husband.”
“Maybe.” She nearly laughed at the idea of Stella Reed-Smythe being worried about Cordelia West judging her. Times sure had changed. “We should get going.”
Pulling Daisy away from every store they passed turned out to be a Herculean task. Every time she saw something cute, she had to stop and coo over it. A purse shaped like a frog. A fountain made of hand-blown glass. Clay Christmas ornaments molded to look like Norman Rockwell figurines. Everything in the town had been built to be cute.
It took half an hour to reach the brick facade of Val’s Vino, a charming wine shop that boasted a vine-covered courtyard for tasting parties. The owner, Val Kirkland, greeted them with a warm smile that dimmed significantly as she took in the chicks. While Cordelia had opted for her usual attire of a pencil skirt and cream shell top, the chicks had dressed in their usuals: hot pants for Daisy, skin-tight leather for Belinda Sue, and a floral caftanfor Arline. With their big hair and makeup, they looked like they were auditioning for a rodeo sideshow.
“Are y’all here for the tasting?” Val asked, a clear note of hesitation in her voice.
“We sure are.” Cordelia stepped forward and offered her hand and her most professional smile. “My... um... aunts and I have heard such good things about this place.”
Belinda Sue snickered at being referred to as an auntie, and Cordelia shot her a look over her shoulder.
“Okay.” Val didn’t look convinced, but she led them toward the back anyway.
The store had that shabby-chic style that some Texas women went gaga over. It was how her momma’s business became so profitable. Val’s Vino even had crackle-paint shelves and gray oak floors, right out of a stylish farmhouse magazine. Little seating areas with mismatched chairs that still went together perfectly held hand-embroidered pillows.
“It looks like a spa in here,” Daisy said.
“You don’t know what a spa looks like,” Belinda Sue said.
“Sure I do.” Daisy rolled her eyes at Belinda Sue’s need to always be contrary. “I got cable, don’t I?”
“Would you two knock it off?” Cordelia hissed under her breath. “You’ve been picking at each other like hens over the last ear of corn all afternoon. I’m one wheel down and my axle is dragging. Give it a rest already.”
Cordelia rarely snapped at them, and even though it was in Belinda Sue’s nature to start a fight in an empty room, they respected her position and let it go.
Val opened a set of French doors that led out to the prettiest little brick courtyard. A fountain of marble cherubs sat at the center, with black wrought-iron tables covered by red umbrellas spread around the open space. Ivy climbed the walls and the Texas sun beat down from where it rose high in the sky.
“This is lovely, thank you.” Cordelia took a seat. “I’m really looking forward to trying your Dew Valley Cabernet. It’s getting rave reviews.”
“Yes, that’s a popular one,” Val said. “People drive in from all over for it.”
Cordelia opened her mouth to ask if anyone had driven from Sarsaparilla Falls recently for a bottle, but she took one look at Belinda Sue and closed her mouth again. The knot on her calf where she’d gotten a swift kick the other day was still tender enough to keep her quiet.
