Crowned and Moldering

“That’s just tragic,” Marigold said. “Sean is such a nice man. He comes into the store sometimes to buy toys and gifts for his niece and nephew.”

“Amy’s kids,” I said, nodding.

“Yes. The kids are adorable. They’ve all been in the store once or twice, as well. I’m sorry for their loss.”

“I’m really concerned about Sean,” I said. “He spent so many years holding on to the hope that Lily would return one day, and now to find out that she won’t? Well, he’s been through the wringer. I don’t want him to become disheartened and give up on life. I wish there was something I could do.”

“I could set him up on a date with a nice girl,” Lizzie said.

We groaned as a group. Lizzie was at it again, wanting everyone to be as blissfully happy and married as she was. And while all of us could admit to wanting that someday, going on countless blind dates was not the way we chose to get there.

“Lizzie, a date isn’t the answer to everything,” Jane said.

“But it’ll get him out of the house,” she said. “It’ll expand his horizons. He’ll take a shower. Wear nice clothes. Get a haircut. Okay, go ahead and laugh, but simple activities like these are good for people. They civilize us. And if you’re worried about him getting depressed, the first thing you’ve got to do is get him out of the house.”

“You’re probably right about that,” I conceded. “But you need to be careful who you set him up with. I mean, to all of us Sean is adorable and big and strong and smart and charming, but let’s face it: right now, he’s not at his best. So you’ve got to wonder how desperate a girl would have to be to date a miserably unhappy construction worker.”

Lizzie’s forehead furrowed at that. “Okay, let me think about this.”

“So, Sha

“It wasn’t really a body,” I said, and winced. I quickly checked the nearby tables to make sure nobody was listening in. “It was just bones. Mac and the guys and I were doing our walk-through of the lighthouse mansion to see what work needed to be done.” I held up my hand. “Everybody swallow their tea before I go on.” I waited for a moment. “Okay, I opened up the dumbwaiter door, and the sudden updraft caused the rotted pulley mechanism to snap. The bones fell three floors to the basement.”

“What are you saying?” Marigold whispered.

I gritted my teeth. “Her body had been inside the dumbwaiter all this time.”

Jane had already heard the story, but she still looked pale.

Marigold blinked repeatedly. “Oh, my goodness.”

“I don’t trust dumbwaiters,” Lizzie whispered, shaking her head.

“I beg your pardon?” Emily said. “Are you calling one of my staff a dumb waiter?”

We couldn’t help but laugh. Lizzie hastened to explain herself as Emily placed two three-tiered trays of tea sandwiches, scones, and pastries on the table.

“This looks beautiful, Emily,” Jane said. “Can you sit for a half second?”

“I’ve actually heard all about Sha

She started to walk away, but stopped abruptly. I heard her gasp, and I turned to see what had caught her attention. That’s when I noticed that Gus Peratti, my auto mechanic and Emily’s ghost whisperer, had just walked into the shop. I smiled and waved at him, but he didn’t acknowledge me.

Every other women in the place saw him, too, and half of them were waving to no avail.

He wore a tight black T-shirt that showed off his ta

I watched him approach Emily and heard him ask, “Can I see the kitchen now?”

“Of course.” Frowning, Emily led the way, and the two disappeared behind the swinging door.

“I wonder what that’s all about,” Jane said. She’d grown up with Gus, just as I had.

“Maybe something mechanical is wrong with one of her appliances,” Lizzie suggested.

We all reached for another round of sandwiches and chatted some more as we ate. I told them about Mac’s adorable niece, Callie, and they all wanted to meet her, so I promised to arrange a barbecue one of these days. Then the conversation drifted to the problem of Cliff Hogarth moving back in town.

“Cliff Hogarth is a bad apple, Sha

“I’d love to, but he keeps bad-mouthing me to people I care about. I don’t know how to handle it.”

“He’s such a blowhard,” Jane muttered.

“I wonder if there’s some way to get him to leave me alone.” I turned to Lizzie. “Was Hal a friend of his?”

“No, Hal can’t stand him.”

I sighed. “Hal has good taste.”

“I know Cliff is a jerk, but he was always nice to me,” Jane admitted.

I frowned at her. “I can’t remember. Did he ever ask you out?”

“No, never. I guess I was always too wrapped up in books for him to notice me.”

“You’re lucky, but I’ll bet he did notice you.”

“He was probably intimidated by you,” Lizzie said. “You’re tall and blond and beautiful. You probably scared him to death.”

Jane waved away Lizzie’s explanation, but I thought it was spot-on.

“You know,” Jane said, “I have my weekly hotel-association lunches at the I

“I’d appreciate anything you can find out,” I said.

The kitchen door swung open and Emily stumbled out, giggling. She fiddled with her skirt, and her face was so uncharacteristically flushed, it was obvious to all of us that Gus must’ve just kissed her silly.

Gus sauntered out of the kitchen and went directly to the front door, not making eye contact with anyone. As he left, Emily busied herself at the front counter, clearly trying to pull herself back together.

“Oh, how romantic,” Jane sighed.

“He is so handsome,” Marigold whispered.

Emily deliberately avoided our table while she bustled from one guest to the next and back and forth from the kitchen, carrying dishes or bringing out new teapots.

“Her face is still red,” Lizzie whispered.

Jane smiled. “She looks so happy.”

Yes, Emily was practically glowing, and my girlfriends seemed to be thrilled for her. I didn’t say anything, but I was worried. If she fell for Gus, he could break her heart. He was gorgeous and sexy and had always had a reputation with the ladies. He was also ten years younger than Emily was. I didn’t want him to hurt her.

Jane whispered, “I wonder how long this has been going on.”

“I think it just started a minute ago,” I guessed, and told them what Emily had said about Gus coming by to visit the ghost of Mrs. Rawley. Emily had refused to believe that he might be stopping by the house to see her. But now I wondered, Did Mrs. Rawley’s spirit somehow bring Gus and Emily together?

It was a ridiculous notion, but I liked the thought of it, anyway.

A few minutes later, another waitress approached to clear our dishes and take our money.

“What happened to Emily?” Lizzie asked.

“She’s not feeling well,” the waitress said, and quickly changed the subject. “I hope everything was to your liking today.”

“Wonderful as always,” Marigold said, and popped the last mini cheese Danish into her mouth.

We waited for the server to leave and then we stared at one another.

“Do you think she’s too embarrassed to talk to us?” Lizzie wondered.

“That won’t fly,” I said, taking a last sip of tea. “She’s got to know that the longer she puts off telling us, the more we’ll hound her.”

Lizzie laughed. “As she would do for any of us.”

Jane leaned closer. “If she’s smart, she’s on her way home to jump in the sack with Gus.”