“I don’t think Mom got along with him. Anyway, I remember her calling him a smug dilettante.”
“Is he?”
“No idea. All I know is that Fox shot a documentary and won a big award for it. And then he was hired to shoot—” Bettina’s voice was a strangled knot in her throat. “The fashion show that never happened.”
“Do you know if your mom ever dated Eddie Fox?”
“No!” Bettina cried. “I mean, I don’t think so.” She pursed her lips. “If she did, she sure didn’t tell me.”
Theodosia wondered if Nadine had actually had an affair with Eddie Fox, or if they’d just had a few laughs together as Fox had mentioned. If they hadn’t been romantically involved, perhaps Marvin Chauvet was intentionally trying to misdirect her. If that was Chauvet’s game, then maybe he was more than an innocent bystander.
“Who else?” Theodosia asked.
Bettina shook her head. “There isn’t anyone else. Mom didn’t know anybody else. So her killer has to be someone from work or in the fashion business.”
Theodosia wasn’t totally convinced. “There were a lot of people there Sunday. Guests, models, a film crew . . .”
“And the Lemon Squeeze Couture people.”
“And maybe someone else,” Theodosia said. She knew that Nadine’s caustic personality could have rubbed somebody—anybody—the wrong way.
“You mean there could have been a surprise guest?”
“More like an uninvited guest.”
Bettina stood up abruptly. “I should go. Your tea shop is getting busier by the minute, and I’m taking up valuable time.”
“You needn’t apologize,” Theodosia said as they strolled toward the front counter. “Drayton, do we have a takeout cup for Bettina?”
Drayton reached for a pink-and-white teapot, poured a froth of tea into one of their indigo blue takeout cups, then snapped on a lid. “Peaches and ginger to go. Freshly brewed, nice and hot. Oh, and we should give you a few scones as well.”
Theodosia lifted the lid on their glass pie saver and plucked out four raisin cream scones. “You can take these back to Delaine’s boutique, if that’s where you’re headed.”
“I am, and those scones look beyond yummy, but Delaine won’t touch a single one because of the carbs.”
“Tell her they’re carb-free.”
“Are they?”
Theodosia smiled. “What do you think?”
Bettina offered a sad smile. “Okay, mum’s the word.”
* * *
* * *
The morning continued to slip by, and Theodosia never did get a chance to visit Nardwell’s shop. Instead, by eleven fifteen, she was cashing out tables, trying to hurry her customers along (without making them feel rushed, of course) so she could get the tea shop ready for their Sterling Silver Tea Party.
“I’m guessing you want to use the white damask tablecloths?” Miss Dimple asked.
“That’s right, with the matching lace napkins,” Theodosia said.
“And for dinnerware?”
“The Lenox Montclair with the silver trim. In fact, let’s each grab a stack of those plates and run them into the kitchen for Haley. Except for the scones, she’ll be plating the entire lunch.”
“Perfect. And for flatware?” Miss Dimple seemed to be having the time of her life.
“Let’s go for broke and put out the sterling silver Chantilly by Gorham. Then we’ll finish off the tables with white tapers in silver candlesticks, silver bowls filled with Devonshire cream, and, naturally, our silver tea service.”
“What about those gorgeous silver trays you have?”
“I’d say they’re just about perfect for serving scones. We can each carry out a tray stacked with scones, then serve them using silver tongs. Oh, and Floradora delivered two buckets of white tea roses this morning, so we need to pop a few buds in silver vases.”
Once the tables were set, the candles were lit, and the tea shop was practically gleaming with silver accents, Drayton walked over to survey their handiwork.
“Delightful,” he proclaimed. “I believe you could bring in any number of fancy magazines and they’d kill to have a photo of our tea room to use on their cover.”
Kill, Theodosia thought, wondering if one of those photographers had shown up at last Sunday’s tea.
9
Guests began lining up outside the Indigo Tea Shop at fifteen minutes to twelve.
“It’s a noon event and people are already here!” Drayton cried as he pulled back a blue toile curtain and peered out the window onto Church Street. “Are we ready? Is everything shipshape in the tea room?” He ran back to the counter and fluttered his hands above a lineup of teapots, tea tins, spoons, and strainers. “Do I have everything I need?”
“The answer is yes,” Theodosia told him as she stepped into the front hallway. She smiled at her reflection in the mirror and assured herself that it was all going to be fine. Better than fine. This tea luncheon was shaping up to be one of their premier events. Tickets had completely sold out, the menu was deliciously upscale, and the tea room looked like the kind of cozy shop you’d find if you wandered the picturesque back alleys of London’s Notting Hill.
As Theodosia stood at the door and greeted her guests, a mixture of old friends and fresh faces tumbled through the doorway, everyone eager to take their seats and enjoy the tea. There was Jill, Kristen, Judi, Linda, and Jessica. Followed by Joy, Arlene, and Monica.
Leigh Carroll, her lovely African-American neighbor who owned the Cabbage Patch Gift Shop just down the street, brought her friends Kenesha and Tiara.
And one of the newer faces to show up was Cricket Sadler, the proprietor of Wildflower, a soap and perfume shop that had recently opened some two blocks away.
At the very last minute, Theodosia’s dear friend, Brooke Carter Crockett, the owner of Hearts Desire Jewelers, showed up with fashion designer Echo Grace in tow. Brooke was in her fifties, bright-eyed and athletic-looking, with a cap of silver hair. Echo was petite, fine boned, and crackling with energy. Her rose-blond hair was gelled into spikes, she had inquisitive pale blue eyes, and her skin was so white you could almost trace the veins in her long neck. Dressed like a contemporary hippie-chick, she wore a suede jacket with a fringe of feathers at the bottom and three long, clanking silver necklaces laden with charms.
“OMG,” Theodosia said after introductions had been made and hugs and air-kisses exchanged. “How on earth do you two know each other?”