“You know what your professor Shepley said to me last night?” Drayton asked.
“Now he’s my professor Shepley?” Theodosia said.
Drayton snipped at a flower stem. “That’s right.”
“What did he say?”
“Shepley told me that red carnations are a symbol of war and military might in Russia.”
“No kidding,” Theodosia said. “Did you know that when you placed your order?”
Drayton snipped another stem shorter. “Of course not.” He had the faint trace of a smile on his face.
? ? ?
Most mornings the Indigo Tea Shop served a cream tea and today was no exception. Haley had baked lemon poppy seed scones and Drayton was preparing small dishes of Devonshire cream and strawberry jam. In the UK, a cream tea always consisted of scones, Devonshire cream, jam, and tea, and was most often served in the afternoon. But, hey, it was a morning favorite at the tea shop, so nobody was standing on ceremony.
“You think we’ll be busy today?” Drayton asked. They’d already seated and served a half-dozen people.
“I do,” Theodosia said. “Fridays are often our busiest days. Plus there’ll be lots of tourists pouring into Charleston for the Lumiere Festival tonight.”
“I’ve never gone to that. Is it fun?”
“The Lumiere Festival is your basic overstimulation for the eyeballs and the mind,” Theodosia said. “There are light shows splashed against buildings, dancers cavorting with light sticks, colored light projections, light sculptures, LED installations by artists . . . you name it.”
“So, definitely worth seeing?”
“I’d say so, though it’s not to everyone’s taste.”
“Meaning mine,” Drayton said.
Theodosia hesitated. “Well . . . your tastes can be a bit rarefied.”
“Nonsense. I’m as down-to-earth as the next person.”
“Hah,” Theodosia said. But it was said with kindness.
Grabbing a cloth, Drayton polished a spoon until it shone. Then he laid it down carefully. “Will there be light installations around here?”
“Oh sure. And I know there are supposed to be a whole bunch of them over in White Point Garden. Near the yacht club, too. I know that some of the boats will be lit with strings of lights.”
Drayton looked interested. “Yachts, too?”
Theodosia immediately caught the gist of his question. “Interesting you should ask about that. Maybe we should walk over there tonight and take a look.”
“At Gold Coast Yachts.”
“You took the words right out of my mouth.”
Drayton pulled down a tin of orange pekoe tea and peered at it suspiciously. “Did you ask Miss Dimple to come in today and help?”
“First call I made this morning. She said yes and that she’d be thrilled.”
“Good, because I can’t say I’m looking forward to presiding over our Full Monty Tea this afternoon.”
“I’m about ready to lose my good humor, too,” Theodosia said. “Never again; never will we schedule three major event teas in one week.”
“What were we thinking?” Drayton responded. He flapped his arms like a hapless crow. “It feels like we’ve been jammed up all week long.”
“At the time, we didn’t know there was going to be a huge robbery at Heart’s Desire. Or that Brooke’s niece would be killed,” Theodosia said. “And we didn’t know that a crazy band of international jewel thieves would swoop into our city.”
One of Drayton’s eyebrows twitched. “Plan for the unexpected. Expect the worst?”
“That sounds fairly dour.”
“I’m a fairly dour person.”
“No, you’re not,” Theodosia said. “That’s just an act. And by the way, how was Honey Bee this morning?”
Drayton’s eyes lit up and he beamed. “She was so much better. Especially after some nourishing food and an exploratory sniff in my backyard garden. When I left, the little sweetheart was curled up fast asleep on my living room sofa.”
“The antique Victorian sofa that you overpaid for at Sotheby’s?”
“That’s the one.”
? ? ?
Just as Theodosia was making the rounds, a teapot filled with Irish breakfast tea in one hand, a teapot full of jasmine tea in the other, Miss Dimple toddled in. Barely five feet tall, beyond plump, and with a cap of pinkish-blond curls, Miss Dimple was seventy-something and spry as ever. She’d started out as their bookkeeper—in fact, she still came in twice a month. But what she really loved and adored was helping out at the Indigo Tea Shop.
“Thanks for calling me,” Miss Dimple said, putting a hand on Theodosia’s arm and giving it a friendly squeeze. “You know how I just love working here.” She spun on the stubby little squash heels that gave her an extra inch in height, and grinned at Drayton. “Hello, Drayton, long time no see.”
“My dear lady,” Drayton said in his courtliest manner. “Thank you so much for taking time out of your busy day to come in and assist us.”