She nodded, turning back to the machine with a bit more enthusiasm than necessary. “Right. Let’s do this.”
They fell back into their routine, the tension between them fading as they refocused on the search. But Cora kept sneaking glances at Jack, wondering what might’ve happened if that blasted machine hadn’t interrupted.
Just as she was about to suggest calling it a day, her eyes landed on something that made her heart stop. “Jack,” she whispered. “I think I found something.”
He leaned over, his arm brushing hers. “What is it?”
She pointed to the screen with a trembling finger. There, in black and white, was an announcement that turned everything she thought she knew on its head.
Mr. and Mrs. James Arnold Lockwood of Sunrise, North Carolina are pleased to announce the engagement of their daughter, Lolita Ann Lockwood, to Tobias Worthington.
Jack and Cora stared at each other, the weight of this discovery hanging heavy in the musty air between them.
Chapter Fifteen
Cora and Jack barreled into The Salty Spoon, practically vibrating with their discovery.
“Guys!” Cora called out, but she froze mid-step, Jack crashing into her from behind. “What the ...?”
Winston, Aggie, and Bea were already there, but instead of the worried faces she’d expected, they were gathered around a table piled with enough food to feed half the town.
“Oh, good, you’re here,” Aggie said, barely looking up from a plate that was loaded with potato salad. “We saved you some food.”
Cora and Jack exchanged confused glances.
“Um, thanks?” Cora said, eyeing a bowl of orange Jell-O. “But where did all this come from?”
Bea grinned, a bit of coleslaw clinging to her chin. “The senior center. Some out-of-town insurance fella came to give a presentation about retirement planning.”
“Let me guess,” Jack said, grabbing a roll and dodging Aggie’s attempt to smack his hand with a plastic fork. “Nobody cared what he had to say, but everyone came, because there was free food.”
“I think half the seniors in town showed up,” Aggieadded. “Old Joe Anderson even came, and I was pretty sure he’s been dead for at least a year.”
Winston agreed. “The whole group is one rowdy sneeze away from an emergency room visit.”
Cora nodded at the half dozen plates spread out across the table. “That doesn’t explain how the buffet ended up here.”
Aggie laughed. “When I got your SOS text, I told them we had an emergency. And you can’t very well handle an emergency on an empty stomach.”
Winston offered Cora a deviled egg. “Nobody had the nerve to tell her she couldn’t pack up a few plates to go.”
“But now we’re here,” Bea said, “so what’s your big news?”
Aggie held up a hand. “Hang on,” she said, digging in her purse. She pulled out her little recorder with a flourish, pressed a button, and motioned for them to continue. “Okay, spill. And pass the collard greens while you’re at it.”
“Well,” Cora began, suddenly feeling as if she were back in school, giving a book report in front of the class. “We were at theGazette, looking through old newspapers, and we found something unexpected.”
Winston beamed, delighted that they’d found something useful in his beloved archives.
“Unexpected like Mayor Thompson in a Speedo on the town’s Fourth of July billboard, or unexpected like Delton Evernight’s toupee?” Aggie asked. “Because I swear I saw that thing scurrying across Main Street last week.”
“Neither of those,” Cora said, fighting back a smile. “It was an engagement announcement.”
Bea’s eyes lit up. “Ooh, was it scandalous? Did someone elope? Was there a shotgun involved? I love it when there’s a shotgun involved.”
“No, it was Lolly’s engagement announcement.”
“Lolly?” Winston said, disappointment crossing his face. “But we’re all aware of her marriage to your grandfather, Cora. That’s hardly news.”
