Jill Clemmons started each day with Grandma Pearl’s favorite quote in mind: Live your life in such a way that every single morning when your feet hit the floor Satan shudders and says, “Oh shit, she’s awake!”
Still in her jammies, Jill breezed into the kitchen after a perfect night’s sleep, which was rare for a night not spent in her own bed. She’d probably still be asleep, but a spicy aroma had teased her awake. The closer she got to the kitchen, the better it smelled.
Aunt Milly stood in front of the stove, already coiffed right down to her red-orange lipstick, her signature color. Even with the frilled apron over her outfit, she looked way too thin for an active lady in her eighties.
“Good morning.” Jill took an exaggerated whiff. “Now, that’s home cooking.” The smell had Jill’s stomach growling a complaint for hurrying back home from Savannah to Virginia. She hadn’t had anything to eat since lunch yesterday.
“Was that your stomach?” Milly spun toward the doorway and waved a metal spatula with an outdated avocado-green handle in the air. “Lordy goodness. You probably haven’t had a good meal in way too long.”
“I don’t get much of this kind of cooking. That’s for sure.”
“’Bout time you got up. I thought you might miss out on breakfast. Are you living on a city clock these days?”
“I wish that were the case.” Jill helped herself to a cup of coffee. “Bradley has an alarm set for everything from getting up in the morning to when to go to bed and everything in between. I never knew anyone so regimented.”
“That man is a wee bit uptight, you know? You don’t need alarm clocks if you’re following the sun.” Aunt Milly pushed the sausage around the well-worn cast-iron skillet. “Never knew Pearl to ever use a clock to tell her to get up. You either, before you up and left town.”
“True.” Jill leaned against the counter and took a sip of her coffee. It was hard to believe it’d been nearly a year since she’d packed all her stuff in Piggly Wiggly bags, loaded her little red pickup, and moved to Savannah for her job with the Kase Foundation. Until then, Jill had never thought she’d live anywhere but Adams Grove, yet on the rebound from Garrett Malloy, moving had been one of the biggest perks of the job. The only downside was being away from Pearl.
“I’m so glad you could make it back for the surprise party. I was worried with it being so close to your big shindig that you wouldn’t come.” Milly planted a lipstick kiss on Jill’s cheek.
“I wouldn’t miss this for the world.” Jill stopped short of telling Aunt Milly about Bradley stomping around mumbling complaints about her dropping everything to make the trip up and putting the Kase Foundation event at risk, even though she was in charge of the event timeline. Aside from Bradley’s foul mood, the Kase Foundation wouldn’t suffer one bit by her being gone for one day. He hadn’t been supportive. Not as a boss or boyfriend.
Jill pushed those thoughts aside and slid into one of the chrome-legged chairs around the orange-and-white Formica kitchen table. “Do you think we’ll surprise Pearl today?”
“It’s two weeks before her birthday. You’d think that would be surprise enough.”
That had been Bradley’s big heartburn. He didn’t understand why she couldn’t wait and celebrate Pearl’s birthday on June 27, her real birthday.
“That grandmother of yours is near impossible to keep a secret from. It’s the thought that counts, though.” Aunt Milly cracked two eggs into the hot grease.
“So you think she knows?”
The eggs snapped and popped as they crisped in the hot grease. “I didn’t say that. You never know with Pearl. That gal has her thumb on the pulse of this town.”
“Always has.” The thought of the calorie-laden breakfast worried Jill a little. She had to squeeze into the formfitting gown she’d picked out for the fundraiser soon, but saying no to her tummy now would just be plain cruel. Plus, Aunt Milly had gone to a lot of trouble.
Milly slid a plate in front of Jill, then took off her apron and hung it on a hook next to the refrigerator. She glanced at her watch. “It’s almost nine fifteen.”
“I was a sleepy head,” Jill said.
“You probably needed this break. Pearl tells me about everything you’re working on. I don’t know how you do it all.” Milly stretched out her arms for a hug, and Jill gave her a long squeeze.
“Okay, sweetie, eat up. I’ve got to get my rear in gear to put on that Academy Award–winning act to get Pearl over to the church on time. Pearl wants to stop at the yarn shop on the way, and you know there’s no rushing her once she’s got her fingers in those bins. I can stall, but I can’t rush her. If I rush her, she’ll definitely get suspicious.”
“You’re so right. I’ll lock up when I leave. Thanks for the lovely breakfast. You’re too good to me.”
“Of course I am. I’m your favorite aunt.”
She was her only aunt—and not even a real aunt, at that. Milly had been Pearl’s best friend for as many years as Jill could remember. “Good luck. I’ll see you there.”
Milly grabbed her purse off the hall table and headed for the door, waving a bony hand in the air as she slammed the door behind her.
Jill swept the last corner of her toast into the yolk and sausage grease on her plate. One quick pass over the kitchen and everything was back to normal. She washed and dried her dishes and put them back in the cabinet, then went to her room to get packed and ready to go.
She checked herself in the full-length mirror in Milly’s bedroom, then gathered her tote bag and headed to the car. Her brand-new car was covered in dust from the drive down the dirt lane. Bradley would freak if he saw it today. He’d talked her into getting the fancy BMW to replace her truck. It wasn’t important to her, but he hadn’t been a big fan of her truck being parked in front of the house. Tired of hearing his complaints, she let him have his way. After all, you have to have some compromise in a relationship, and the kind of car she’d drive didn’t seem one to go to the mat for.
Her sporty car hugged the tight curve on Old Horseshoe Road way better than her truck ever could. Honeysuckle reached across the ditch bank, making the road feel isolated. As she neared the side entrance to the church, she couldn’t see any other cars at the church building. Maybe we will pull off the surprise. Gravel crunched beneath her tires as she pulled into the back lot to park among the dozens of cars already there. Jill grabbed a bag from the passenger seat and headed for the door.
A pretty blonde girl Jill didn’t recognize swung the door open as she approached and rushed her inside. “We’re trying to be sure Pearl doesn’t sneak up on us.”
“Good thinking. Here’s hoping for a miracle.” Jill raised her crossed fingers, then turned her attention to a banner that read, Happy Early 85th Birthday, Pearl. Silver duct tape secured the sign to the wall above a long table filled with home-baked casseroles and desserts.
Bright balloons flanked the banner, and so many soared above the chair-of-honor that they threatened to lift it right off the floor. The thought of her tiny grandmother whizzing around the room above all the guests made Jill laugh.
Sweet Tea and Secrets Description:
When beloved town matriarch Pearl Clemmons dies on a warm June afternoon, the folks of Adams Grove, Virginia, can hardly believe it. Sure, Pearl was eighty-five years old, but everyone—particularly her granddaughter Jill—just assumed she would live forever. Now Jill must return home to settle Pearl’s estate, comfort a town in mourning…and face Garrett Malloy, the man who broke her heart years ago.
Making matters worse, a string of break-ins at the Clemmons place has Jill and the rest of the town on edge. She can’t imagine what Pearl possibly could have had that is worth stealing. But when Jill’s safety is threatened, she and Garrett must join forces to unearth Pearl’s secrets before someone else—someone dangerous—gets there first.
Garrett may have been the last man Jill wanted to see, but now, she may not want to let him go.
