“I hear every word you two are saying!” Mrs. McKenzie called out.
I gave Redmond a final nod and followed the stout woman to an old-model Honda, shiny and well kept despite its age.
“Have you had a chance to see much of Chattanooga yet?” Mrs. McKenzie asked as she manually unlocked the doors from the outside.
“I just got here a few hours ago,” I said.
The car was stuffy and warm from sitting in the sun. I leaned forward to keep from smashing the back of my hat in a way that might reveal the pink hair. I needed to make a good impression on this woman before she figured out that little detail.
“Well, there’s a lovely little bakery just up the road that I adore. Would you like to stop by for a refreshment?”
That sounded easy. “I’d be delighted, Mrs. McKenzie,” I said.
“Call me Carol Ann,” she said.
“All right, then, Carol Ann.” I watched out the window as we headed along a quiet road with houses set well back from the street. “I’ve never been to Tennessee before.”
“Oh, it’s a wonderful place,” she said. “So many lovely sights. And the music. This close to Nashville, you know. I think that’s why my Chance took up singing like he did.”
“He’s very good,” I said.
“How did you meet him?”
“I went to a movie premiere and he did a number with the band who played afterward.” I did my best to avoid the word “party.”
“What did he sing?” She turned down a side road with lots of cute cottages lined up, like a retirement village.
“The first one was ‘Let the Good Times Roll,’” I said. “Then ‘When a Man Loves a Woman.’”
She shot me a knowing look. “That Chance. He always was a charmer.”
“It worked on me,” I said, relieved to talk about him with someone who wouldn’t mock how easily I fell for him.
We pulled up in front of a tiny bakery with only three parking spots. “Isn’t it quaint?” she said. “You have to try their teacakes.”
I wondered if this fuss had to do with my hat and maxi dress. I got out of the car, realizing I hadn’t eaten in a while. As I stood up, lightheadedness caught me off balance and I had to catch myself on the doorframe before I stumbled.
Thankfully, Mrs. McKenzie was busy on the other side and didn’t notice. I took a deep breath and steeled myself to get inside. We walked between two rows of rosebushes to enter the little shop.
“Hello, Lila!” Mrs. McKenzie called out as we approached a glass cabinet filled with pastries and cakes. My head swooned at the sight of them.
A tall thin lady with her copper hair tied up tight in a fat round bun smiled at us. “Carol Ann! So nice to see you.”
Mrs. McKenzie turned to me. “This here is Chance’s girlfriend visiting from California. She’s in the movie business.”
I extended a hand. “Just the back end. I don’t act.”
“Sounds fancy to me,” Lila said. “Take a look at the goodies and let me know what you’d like.”
All of them, I thought, but then simultaneously, a wave of nausea came over me. Great, little grain of sand. Decide, already. Hungry or sick?
Apparently the wayward speck had both things in mind. I pointed out an oversized blueberry scone, hoping to get a nice caloric bang for my buck while not inciting a puke-fest. Mrs. McKenzie ordered several teacakes and a pot of Earl Grey.
We settled on a horribly uncomfortable set of wicker chairs with a glass-topped table between us. “Tell me everything,” Mrs. McKenzie said. “I haven’t seen Chance in months. Is he well? Did he grow a beard? Has he gotten thin?”
I tried not to cram too much scone into my mouth despite the need for food firing through me like a cannon. When I swallowed, I said, “He is still clean shaven, although he gets pretty scruffy in the evening. He is definitely not thin.” I paused to reflect on that hard chest and those corded shoulders. “He must be finding some way to work out on the road.”
Mrs. McKenzie took a delicate bite of a teacake and sat back in her chair. “Lovely. So good to hear that he is well. Did he happen to tell you why he left?”
The bite of scone in my mouth suddenly went dry, and I coughed. I tried pouring the tea, but it was steaming and not even brewed yet in the pot.
Tears streamed from my eyes until my body settled down and I managed to get the bite down.
“Are you quite all right, Jenny dear?” Mrs. McKenzie asked. “You seem very excitable.”
I decided to hell with it and sipped the bit of watery tea I’d put in my cup. My tongue burned instantly, but I felt better.
“He didn’t talk much about home,” I said finally. “Mostly he told me about his music, and places he’d been on the road.”
“I heard a terrible rumor he was hitchhiking,” she said, folding her napkin into a tight little square. “Is it true?”