Nola placed her bag on the far side of the tray. “You can have a doughnut only after you finish your oatmeal. And only one. Save the second one for later.”
“Thank you,” I said, adjusting myself so the tray didn’t wobble and spill a single precious drop of coffee. “Really, I do appreciate it. But I’m totally fine. I blacked out for just a minute. There’s no reason to be put on bed rest. . . .”
“Doctor’s orders—just until tomorrow.” Jack held up my laptop again. “And you’re supposed to be resting.”
I leaned back against my pillows in defeat. “Do you know how many more sales Catherine is making while I’m being held prisoner here? The only positive is that Jayne didn’t drag me out for a run this morning.” I pointed at the coffee. “I hope that’s not decaf. You know what happened last time.”
Nola shook her head. “Trust me, we learned our lesson. Keeping you fully caffeinated is for our protection.”
“Seriously, though,” I said to Jack, “I’m completely fine. You didn’t need to send the film crew away.”
Jack stuck a spoon into the oatmeal and rotated the handle in my direction. “Oh, they’re still working. They’re doing the scene where the skeletal remains are discovered in the fountain.”
Nola sat down on the edge of my bed and plucked a blueberry from the top of my oatmeal before popping it into her mouth. “I hope Louisa’s fine with that.”
I kept my smile to myself. “Yeah. Me, too. And if she isn’t, there’s nothing I can do. I already warned Marc that I have no control over the unexplainable.”
Nola took another blueberry. “I’ve invited Lindsey and Alston to come watch the filming after lacrosse practice. I promise we’ll be quiet and not bother you.”
“Please bother me—and bring the twins. Jayne allowed only a brief supervised visit this morning, but I say the more the merrier. I’m bored out of my mind. Anyway, you brought me doughnuts, so you’re allowed to make as much noise as you’d like.”
There was another tap on the door. I pulled up the high neck of my heavy flannel nightgown when I spotted Beau Ryan. He wore a sheepish grin and had a newspaper tucked under one arm while carrying a small and lumpy paper bag with his other. “Good morning.” He looked uncertainly into the room, relaxing as he spotted Nola. “Nola told me to wait outside, but I brought something for Melanie. Before I could ring the doorbell, the front door just opened. I called out. Nobody answered. I wasn’t sure what to do, so I let myself in. You might need to check that latch. Anyway, I was going to wait in the foyer, but the nice lady told me I could go up. So I just followed the voices. I’m sorry if I’m interrupting.”
“Absolutely not,” I said, eyeing the bag.
“You are,” Jack said at the same time, his narrowed gaze focused on Nola.
“He’s joking,” I said, motioning for Beau to come in.
He stood awkwardly by the side of the bed, then placed the newspaper on the breakfast tray. “I found today’s paper on the hall table downstairs, so I brought it up. I figured you might need some reading material while you’re cooped up in bed.”
“Thank you, Beau.” I squinted at my bedside clock.
Jack slid it closer to me.
“It’s seven fifteen.” I thought for a moment about Beau’s “nice lady” comment. “I guess Mrs. Houlihan is early—she didn’t say anything to me yesterday when she left.”
“That wasn’t Mrs. Houlihan. The lady who let me in was much younger and, um, smaller.”
“Right.” I felt Nola and Jack looking at me. “That must be her sister. She comes to help Mrs. Houlihan sometimes.” My gaze drifted to the paper bag again.
“Oh, sorry!” Beau handed the bag to me. “Nola told me how much you like boiled peanuts. The best are from the Rosebank Farms produce stand, but they don’t open until April. Still, these are pretty good.” He handed me the bag. “Opening the shells before eating should help pass the time.”
“That’s so thoughtful. Thank you, Beau.”
I waited for Beau to leave, but he held back. Jack crossed his arms and turned to Nola. “How did you know Beau was coming this morning?”
“Because he’s taking me to school.” Nola plucked another blueberry from my rapidly cooling oatmeal, and chewed it slowly as if unaware of the gasoline she’d just poured on a smoldering fire.
Jack turned to Beau and in an icily calm voice said, “Absolutely not. My daughter isn’t riding on the back of a motorcycle.”
“No, sir. I brought my truck. It has seat belts and doors and everything.” A hint of a smile touched his mouth and I hoped Jack hadn’t noticed.
Nola jumped off the bed. “Dad! Beau’s doing me a favor. Since Alston and Lindsey have their driver’s permits, they’re driving to school with their moms. But they’re not allowed to have passengers, so I said I’d find another way to get to school.”
“That’s funny,” Jack said, his voice humorless. “I don’t remember you asking me to drive you.”
Beau cleared his throat. “Well, sir, that’s because I was in the store with Nola when she got the phone call from Alston, so I offered. I felt sorry for her, since she’s not allowed to get her permit yet, and I figured I could help. I’m working on the broken sections of the iron fence today, so I had to drive here anyway.”
Jack stared at him. “Because she’s not allowed—”
“Dad!” Nola interrupted. “I don’t have a permit because I don’t want one,” she emphasized. “It’s so overrated.” She rolled her eyes as Jack and I shared a glance.
“Well, I’m here now,” Jack said, already heading toward the door. “I’ll drive you.”
I sat up, jostling the tray table. “Actually, I have a few things I need to discuss with you. I’m sure Beau is capable of driving Nola the two miles to school.”
“Or I could walk,” Nola said. “It’s not that far. Especially since Beau offered only because he pities me.”