Page 27

After the tea was poured, Millie added two cubes of sugar to each cup, then pulled out a small silver flask from the pocket of her cardigan.

“This was my great-grandmother’s. Isn’t she a beauty?” she said, raising the intricately designed antique flask for her guest to see. “Family legend says she drank her Laudanum from this. Tough old bird.” Millie shook her head, smiling at a memory. “Maybe I’ll be just like her someday. You know, the tough part. Not the Laudanum part.”

“Maybe,” Katherine had answered, not sure what to say, considering most of Windsong thought of Millie Fraser as a tough old bird anyway.

“Oh my! Where are my manners?” she scolded herself after pouring a heavy splash of whisky into each cup. “Hope you take your tea sweetened. I always forget to ask.”

“That’s okay.” Katherine smiled. “I like my tea a little sweet.”

“Glad to hear it,” she said, adding another splash of whisky to both cups before putting the flask back in her pocket. “Biscuits?”

Millie slid a plate of shortbread cookies across the table toward Katherine before lifting her cup and taking a long sip.

“Thank you, ma’am… I mean Millie,” Katherine corrected herself, then reached for a perfectly baked shortbread cookie from the plate. She placed it on the cloth napkin in front of her, then lifted the dainty floral cup. Once her lips reached the rim of the porcelain, Katherine could smell the alcohol. Taking a cautious sip, she tried not to cough as the liquid hit the back of her throat and burned all the way down to her belly.

“That’s quite sweet,” Katherine rasped, setting her cup down and reaching for the cookie.

“Maybe we make your next one a little less sweet.”

“Maybe…”

“Not too many folks take their tea as sweet as mine.”

“It is pretty sweet,” Katherine said, assuming thatsweetwas Millie’s way of sayingflammable.

Taking a bite of the crisp, buttery treat, Katherine reveled in its simple, homemade perfection. She wanted to compliment her host on its flavor and texture but didn’t get the chance.

“So, I hear your husband’s dead too.”

Instantly, Katherine choked on the delicious shortbread cookie, shocked by Millie’s bluntness. Somehow, she managed not to spit crumbs across the table, swallowed the bite in one big lump, then cleared her throat. “Yes, he is. He died in a house fire.”

“That’s right, Gideon and Ruth Chandler’s youngest. The wild one. I remember hearing about that.” Millie had nodded, studying Katherine with skepticism. “Sometimes, tragedy brings blessing. Like money.”

Choking on another sip of tea, Katherine realized that she’d never had such a direct conversation with someone outside of her family before.

“Oh, forgive me, dear. I’m an old woman, and I haven’t the patience for pretty words,” Millie said, waving her hand as if she were waving a white flag. “What I meant to say is that I understand when you lose someone, you sometimes come into a sizeable sum of cash.”

Katherine nodded as a powerful wave of intoxication washed over her, easing her even more into the conversation.

“You don’t look a day over twenty-five. May I ask how old you are?”

“I’m twenty-two.”

“Oh my… twenty-two. I remember what it was like to be twenty-two,” Millie said fondly. “I’m also guessing this is the first time you’ve ever had such a large sum of money at your disposal.”

Katherine nodded, naming the exact amounts of money she’d received from the life insurance payouts.

“Dear girl, you really shouldn’t share your financial business with others. But something tells me that you wouldn’t have without that tea. And that’s a good thing. But in the future, try keeping your cards a little closer to your chest. In this day and age, some folks don’t mind taking advantage of a widow. But not me. I’m just the opposite. In fact, I intend to reduce my asking price by twenty-five thousand dollars.”

“You are?” Katherine’s eyes widened in surprise.

“Yes, but only on the condition that it stays between you and me,” Millie added. “When we call the suits back in, we’ll tell them you played hardball until I agreed to drop the price. Got it?”

When she’d tried to protest, Millie stopped her by leaning in and reaching for her hand. “I, too, have lost more than a husband, so I know how heartbroken you must be. Oh, you can try to put on a stiff upper lip like your mother, but you can’t fool me, young lady. I’ve been in your shoes and know far too well the pain you’re feeling.”

As Katherine could no longer hold back her tears, Millie handed her another napkin, then wiped a few tears from her own eyes.

“Now, I’ll admit, I had some concerns about your ability to keep the place running when your sister Andie came to see if I’d consider an offer from you. You’re young and of a generation much different than mine. But your brother-in-law Andrew assured me of your character, and as you may know, he’s been friends with my son Henry ever since they were knee-high to a grasshopper, so I trust him. He also said that you’re a strong young woman who can overcome any obstacle, which I like.”