Chapter 13
Katie couldn’t concentrate on the conversations at dinner as she listened to Mike chat with her aunt and uncle at the table. She was too busy lambasting herself for allowing Gladys Rosenthal to get to her. And it hurt that everything Mike said in her room was true. She had been the one to break off contact. She had been immature. Mike must have noticed she was being quiet and squeezed her hand under the table. Little flames flickered up her arm at the touch.
“You all right?” Mike asked.
“Yeah, just chastising myself,” Katie replied.
“Don’t think for a moment that will save you from a firm lecture once our guest is gone,” Earl said, his voice stern. “You’re too old to be putting us through that rigmarole.”
“Not now, Earl,” Viv said. “Anyway, sounds like you two have some good plans set up for that office of yours. Which room did you say that was going to be again?”
Mike finished what was in his mouth. “My parents used it as a guest room.”
“What do you know about Mrs. Rosenthal?” Katie asked.
Everyone at the table stared at her. “Katie, you know how I feel about gossip,” Viv chided.
“I’m not asking for gossip,” she replied. “I honestly want to know what her story is.”
Earl and Viv looked at each other. “I’m afraid I don’t know Mrs. Rosenthal,” Viv said slowly. “She’s quite a bit younger than Earl and I. Younger I think even than your mother, but not by as much. I’m afraid we don’t really run in the same circles.”
Mike sighed. “I know a bit because I have her daughter in my class. Gladys is recently divorced, and it’s been a messy split. I can only infer that she was left for a younger woman based on things Stacie has said, but I don’t know for sure.”
“Were they high school sweethearts?” Katie asked.
“That I don’t know,” Mike replied. “Stacie doesn’t talk much about her dad, and when she does it’s typically not pleasant. I think she’s always been closer to her mom and with everything that’s happened, their relationship has only grown. Why do you ask?”
Katie shrugged. “Just curious.”
The conversation quickly switched to new topics and soon they were clearing the table. Mike asked, “Can I help with anything? Dishes maybe?”
“Viv and I will do the dishes,” Earl said. “Why don’t you and Katie go out to the other kitchen to dip strawberries? I noticed the display was looking a little empty when I left this afternoon.”
“Other kitchen?” Mike asked.
Viv ignored the question as she turned a suspicious look at Earl. “It looked fine to me.”
“No, he’s right,” Katie said. “We had several customers come just after you left and I did make a note for myself to restock it.”
Frowning, Viv said, “Well, just be sure he’s following all the rules.”
“Huh?” Mike asked.
Katie smiled. “Just come with me. It’ll be fine, Aunt Viv. We’re not due for any kind of inspection for several months yet.” She led Mike to an addition to the house he hadn’t noticed before.
“What’s this?”
“It’s been several years now, but a lot of states have adopted more stringent rules for food sales. Even though our dipped strawberries are the only food item we offer at Sweet Retreat, we still have to follow all of the guidelines, including having a separate kitchen for food preparation.”
“Seems like it would have been easier to just drop the strawberries,” Mike said.
“Oh, Aunt Viv and Uncle Earl definitely considered it. But their customers were so upset at the prospect of not having those strawberries, they decided it would be worth the expense. It’s certainly a bonus around Valentine’s Day and Mother’s Day.”
“I’ll bet. So, what do we do?” Mike asked, looking around the stainless steel kitchen.
“You wash strawberries,” Katie replied. “That’s probably the easiest job. I’ll melt the chocolate and then we’ll have fun.” They worked together quietly, the only sounds the splashing water over the fruit and the bubbling water in the double boiler.
Mike lifted the strainer full of strawberries. “All washed. Where should I put them?”
Katie nodded towards a large towel. “Set that underneath the strainer on the worktable so we don’t make too big a mess. Then if you reach into that cupboard over there you’ll find our sprinkles and such.”
Doing what he was told, Mike whistled as he opened the cupboard door. “Wow, you have a ton of stuff in here.”
“Why do you think everyone likes our strawberries so much?” Katie teased. “Take out a variety and we’ll get started. The chocolate is melted now.” She carried the chocolate to the worktable. “I’ll dip the berries and then you can sprinkle them.”
He gave her an odd look. “You want me to sprinkle?”
“If you’d rather you can just watch the first few times to see how it’s done. It’s really not that complicated.”
“I never said it was complicated. I’d just hate to make your strawberries look bad.”
Katie giggled. “What they look like isn’t quite as important as taste, but you do have a point.” She took a berry from the strainer. “It’s easy. You just dip it into the chocolate like this, twirl off the excess chocolate…”
“Is there such a thing?” Mike teased.
She grinned. “Not that I’ll admit to. Then set it on the waxed paper and sprinkle the toppings on.” Katie showed him. “See? It’s easy.”
“How about I dip and you sprinkle?” he asked. “I have a feeling you’ll do better at sprinkling than I will.”
Katie shrugged. “Sure.”
Silence resumed as they dipped and decorated the strawberries. Mike marveled at how easy Katie made it look. He watched her for a moment and said, “So, what did Gladys say to you that you were asking about her at dinner?”
“Who says she said anything?” Katie hedged.
“Not gonna work this time. Out with it. What did she say?”
“It’s really not important, Mike,” Katie replied, looking up from the strawberries. “She must really want to date you for her to go to the effort she did today.”
“Katie, if she’s hurting your feelings or spreading lies about me I need to know. This isn’t just about us. My career could be at stake,” Mike pointed out.
She laughed. “I highly doubt she would go to that kind of effort, Mike.” Katie sighed when he continued to look serious. “Look, if it’s that important to you, she made some implications about high school sweethearts never staying together. Obviously not true since Uncle Earl and Aunt Viv are still happily married, but that’s really all. She didn’t say anything bad about you, I promise.”
Mike frowned. “Still, she shouldn’t be seeking you out like that. It’s bad enough…” He sighed and nearly ran a hand through his hair before remembering he was working with food. “Well, let’s not worry about it tonight. If Gladys says anything, and I do mean anything, to you again about me or our relationship please talk to me instead of trying to deafen your woes in Boston.”
“You’re losing your touch, Mike. That was the Cars tonight, not Boston,” she replied.
“Either way, Katie, you need to let me know,” he insisted as Katie took the trays of dipped berries to a large refrigerator. “Her position with the school is purely voluntary and as tough a spot as it would put the PTA, I can talk to committees and have her replaced if this kind of behavior is going to continue. It’s not healthy for anyone involved, particularly for her.”
“If it happens again, I’ll talk to you. Happy?” Katie asked, putting away most of the extra strawberries.
He looked at her for a moment and sighed. “Yeah, I guess.”
“Good.” She smiled. “It’s time for taste-testing.”
Mike raised an eyebrow and the right side of his mouth quirked. “Taste-testing?”
“Absolutely,” Katie said as seriously as she could. “One should never put out anything but the best quality. We have to ensure the strawberries are worthy of being in Sweet Retreat.” She dipped two berries into the last remaining chocolate and sprinkled toffee bits over them. “One for you and one for me,” she said, handing him a strawberry.
He took a large bite. “Wow, these really are good. Especially since the chocolate is still warm.”
Katie smiled. She bit into hers and squealed as strawberry juice sprayed her mouth. “Oops, that was juicier than I expected.” She licked the sides of her mouth. “Did I get it all?”
For what seemed forever, Mike just looked at her. Katie’s heart raced as he stepped nearer and leaned towards her. “Missed a spot,” he said, his low voice sending tremors through her. Butterflies began a frenzied dance through her insides as he kissed the side of her mouth.
“Oh,” Katie whispered. He started to lean away and she draped her arms over his shoulders. “Did I miss anything else?”
The golden inner ring of Mike’s eyes glowed as he put his hands on her waist and drew her closer to him. “Possibly. I’ll have to check.” He lowered his mouth to hers. Fire spread through Katie’s veins as their kiss deepened. The unique taste of Mike blended with the strawberry and chocolate flavors in her mouth. Her hands wound through his hair, the fine texture tickling her fingers. She felt like she was floating on air until he pulled back. He brushed the hair behind her ear tenderly. “Katie, I love you so much.”
“I…”
Katie’s reply was cut short by the sound of Earl bellowing, “Vivian Raleigh!”
~*~
A few moments earlier
Viv took a long look at Earl while they were drying their dishes. “The strawberries really weren’t that short, Earl. It’s not like you to hedge your bets like this.”
“I’m not hedging anything, Viv,” Earl replied. “Just giving those kids a chance to talk things out without two old codgers eavesdropping.”
“You speak for yourself, Earl Raleigh,” she retorted. “I’m not an old anything.”
“Well, love, at sixty-three, you’re not young either.”
She glared at him. “Just for that you’re sleeping on the couch.”
Earl shrugged. “Could be worse.”
“Keep that up and you’ll be sleeping in the manure pile.”
He chuckled and squeezed his wife. “Have I told you today how much I love you?”
Viv smirked as he kissed her cheek. “I don’t know. But I certainly don’t mind hearing it again. Did I ever tell you about that magic trick I saw on the internet?”
“Nope. I seem to recall you never had much interest in magic,” Earl replied.
“I saw the neatest trick. Can I show it to you?” she asked.
“Sure, I guess.”
Viv smiled and pulled Earl over to a counter with a water bottle set out on top. “Okay, so I’ve placed a coin under the bottle and after I say the magic words, it’ll move to being inside the bottle.”
Earl looked disbelieving. “Really, Viv?”
“I’m telling you it worked in the movie,” she insisted. “Come on. See? There’s the coin. Now I’m putting this towel over the top and I’ll say the magic words.”
He rolled his eyes. “All right.”
“Abracadabra and hocus pocus!” Viv said dramatically. She pulled the towel off and glanced inside the bottle, placing one hand on the outside of it. “I did it! Look, Earl! I did it.”
“Really?” he said looking over the bottle.
Viv squeezed the bottle, sending water spraying into Earl’s face.
“Vivian Raleigh!”