“Thank you.” Olivia gave a small grateful smile.
“Well.” Erica stood and smoothed her skirt. “I really need to be getting back to my next client.”
“You go, then.” Mayor Burnett waved a hand at Erica. “You can leave Ms. West with me for a while.”
Erica paused, regarding her godmother with an appraising gaze before turning to Olivia, who inclined her head.
“Alright then. Olivia, call me if you need anything.”
“I will,” she replied.
“Tell your mother and father I still expect them for dinner on Sunday,” Mayor Burnett called out to her. “You can come too if you want, and you can bring Deputy Gilbert with you.” Her mouth curved.
“Jake?” Erica’s eyes widened. “He’s not, I mean, we’re not…”
“As I said, Erica, I like to know what’s going on in my town.”
“We’ll see,” Erica mumbled as her cheeks flushed. “I’ll see you later.”
Mayor Burnett smiled as she watched her flustered goddaughter exit the room. “Well then, Olivia.” She rose from the chair. “May I call you Olivia?”
“Uh, sure.”
“Would you like some tea? It’s such a cold, damp day.”
“That would be nice,” Olivia answered, studying the immaculate-looking woman as she rounded the desk and pressed a button on the phone.
“Audrey, would you be so good as to have Helen bring in a tray of tea for us?”
There was a quiet response from her assistant before Mayor Burnett returned to her seat opposite Olivia. “I just thought that this seemed like a perfect opportunity for us to get to know each other a little better,” the older woman told her. “I understand you’re a historian?”
“That’s right.” Olivia relaxed her tightly coiled muscles a fraction. “I’m also an author.”
“Historical reference books?”
Olivia nodded. “But recently, I’ve started a new project primarily aimed at middle-school children.”
“I see.” The mayor tilted her head. “Tell me, what made you decide to start writing for children?”
“When I was a kid, my father…” Olivia paused for a moment and frowned. “He had this way of making history come alive for me. I guess I just wanted to pass that on.”
“It’s alright, you know,” Mayor Burnett spoke softly.
“What is?”
“Remembering the man you knew,” she said sympathetically.
“But none of it was real.” Olivia shook her head.
“Are you sure about that?”
Silence filled the room as Olivia held her gaze, pondering her words. Mayor Burnett looked up as the stillness was broken by a knock at the door.
“Come in,” she called out.
The door opened and a small, slightly dumpy woman in a tidy skirt and sensible shoes strode into the room carrying a tray that seemed way too large for her arms.
“Mayor,” she greeted, setting the tray down on the coffee table in front of them. “Can I get you anything else?”
