Sweetness and Light (A Sweet Cove Mystery Book 5) (2 page)

“What does it say about him?” Ellie stroked Circe’s black fur.

Jenna paraphrased what was on the screen.  “His net worth is 2.3
billion
dollars.”

Angie dropped the tool she’d been holding.  She blinked at her sister.  “You’re kidding.”

Jenna continued reading.  “Norman Winston graduated from Harvard Business School and Harvard Law School.  He donated thirty million dollars to his alma mater for a new building project.”

“How did he make his money?” Ellie asked.

“Investment banking.”  Jenna scanned the online article for more information about the man.  “He has one child, Bethany.  He had a brother and a sister, but they’ve both passed away.  His wife, Candace, passed away suddenly and unexpectedly when the daughter was only four.”

A sudden chill ran through Angie’s stomach.  “Does it say what the cause of death was?”

“Heart attack.”  Jenna peered at the screen. “Winston served one term in the Senate and then returned to banking.  That’s about it.”

“Look up the daughter.”

Euclid had moved onto Ellie’s lap and was stretched out over her with his head hanging down on one side against the sofa and his long legs dangling over her right hip.  His feet pressed against Circe’s side.  Since the black cat was accustomed to the huge orange boy taking up most of the space, she didn’t react to Euclid pushing against her.

Jenna read aloud from the computer screen.  “So this is like a repeat of the father.  Bethany graduated from Harvard Law and works in Boston for a prominent firm.  There isn’t much else about her.  She’s twenty-nine years old.”

“What about the groom?  Can you find anything on him?”  Ellie was alternating her patting between the two cats.  “Didn’t Josh say his name was Nelson something?”

Jenna tapped.  “Nelson Rider.  Here we go.”  She read for a few moments.  “Another prominent family. Seems like these people are even wealthier than Senator Winston.  Nelson works at the family company.  Some sort of venture capital thing, whatever that means.  Worth billions.”  Jenna looked at her sisters.  “Why aren’t we worth billions?”

“We took a wrong turn somewhere.”  Angie chuckled.  Her phone buzzed and she reached for it to see the incoming text.  “It’s Josh.  Bethany would like to come here and meet with Jenna about the jewelry.”

“When?”  Jenna asked.

Angie looked up.  “She’s on her way.”

Jenna squawked, “What?!”

The three girls flew into action cleaning and straightening up the jewelry room.  Beads and silver findings were shoved into drawers.  Ellie zoomed around the room with the vacuum.  The cats were shooed away and Angie ran a lint roller over the sofa to remove the creatures’ hair.

Jenna set her sketch book on the round table near the fireplace, put suede mats down, and placed examples of the different necklace designs on the mats.  When she was satisfied with the display, she ran to her room to change and brush her hair, while Angie brought a vase of flowers into the room from the dining table and Ellie hurried to the kitchen to make iced tea and arrange some of the B and B’s morning breakfast treats on a serving dish.  Jenna was just coming back down the stairs to the foyer when the doorbell rang.

Angie opened the Victorian’s front door to find a tall, slender platinum blonde standing on the porch.  Her hair was cut in a short chin-length bob with bangs.  She had huge brown eyes.  A tight, caramel-colored skirt accentuated her fit figure.  The young woman extended her hand to shake with Angie.  “Hello.  I’m Bethany Winston, here to see Jenna Roseland.”

Angie introduced herself and stepped back to allow the woman to enter.

Jenna had her long brown hair held back in a ponytail and she had on a pale blue summer dress and navy sandals.  She welcomed Bethany and led her to her shop at the back of the house.

“What a lovely Victorian home.”  Bethany glanced around the foyer and dining room as she followed Jenna down the hall.  “You’ve decorated it perfectly.”

Angie heard the comment and smiled.  She wanted to stand outside the door to Jenna’s shop so she could eavesdrop on their conversation.  As she followed Jenna and Bethany Winston down the hall and past the kitchen doorway, Ellie stood there with a serious expression on her face and her arms crossed over her chest.  “Do not stand outside Jenna’s door.”

“I wasn’t going to.”  Angie put on an offended face, but she was really only put out because Ellie had caught her.

“Come in here and help me set up a tray.” Ellie turned.

Angie sighed and followed her sister into the kitchen.  As she was removing the iced tea from the refrigerator, her phone buzzed with a text from Josh.  Angie looked up, confused.  “It’s from Josh.  Senator Winston is on his way here to talk to me about the wedding cake.  He also wants to discuss the event with the wedding consultant.”  Angie made eye contact with Ellie.  “That would be you.”

“Why didn’t he come with Bethany?  This is one strange group.” Ellie rolled her eyes.  “And, have none of these people ever heard of making an appointment before showing up?”

Angie’s phone buzzed with another text and she flicked her eyes to the screen. “The groom, Nelson Rider, is accompanying the Senator.”

***

Ellie and Angie changed clothes so they wouldn’t look like wrecks when they met the Senator and the bridegroom.  They thought they’d better warn Bethany about the impending visit by the men, so they both carried some treats into the jewelry shop.

“How are things going?”  Ellie smiled and placed a tray with iced tea, sparkling water, and two glasses on the table.

“We thought you might like some refreshments.”  Angie put the glass plate of different squares and mini Danish next to the beverage tray.

“We’re just looking at the sketches and going over design possibilities.”  Jenna turned to her client.  “Would you like something to drink?”

Bethany, leaning over the sketches, requested some sparkling water.

“I just had a text from the resort.”  Angie poured the water.  “Your father and fiancé are on their way over here.”

Bethany’s head jerked up and her face hardened.  With her hands on the table, she pushed out of her seat with force.  Ramming her hand into her blazer pocket, she retrieved her car keys which she shoved at Angie.  “Move my car around the block.”  Bethany turned to the door that led to the wraparound porch.  “Don’t tell them I was here.  Can I go out this door?”  Not waiting for an answer, she bolted for the exit.

Jenna stood and pointed.  “Go through the trees at the back of the yard.  You’ll come out in the next yard.  Our friend lives there.  Cut over to the street.”

Bethany was gone in a flash.

“Quick.  Move the car.”  Ellie gave Angie a gentle push to the door.

Angie took off through the exit and ran to Bethany’s car in the driveway.

No one knew why there was such a rush to cover for Bethany, but the girls were caught up by the urgency and fell in to help.  Jumping into the driver’s seat of the Porsche and backing it out to the street, Angie wondered why on earth anyone would run away from her fiancé.
 

Chapter 3

After delivering the car to Bethany on the next street over, Angie walked home and opened the door to Jenna’s shop.  The room was empty so she headed down the hallway to the foyer.  Hearing voices coming from the sunroom, she went in that direction and saw Ellie chatting with Senator Winston and a young man who Angie assumed was Nelson Rider, the fiancé.

Ellie looked relieved when she spotted her sister entering the room. “This is my sister, Angie.”

The two men, wearing what looked like expensive fitted suits, stood and shook hands with the newcomer.

The sunroom had three walls of glass with long, wide windows that opened to let in the breeze.  The walls were cream and three pale mocha sofas were positioned in a U-shape around a blonde wooden coffee table.  Plants with deep green foliage stood here and there around the room in ceramic pots.

Angie sat down on one of the empty sofas and noticed the cats sitting on the glass side table in the far corner of the room.  They were scowling at the guests.

“We’re just going over some details for the wedding.”  Ellie informed her sister with one raised eyebrow which clued Angie in that something was odd.

“Is Bethany here?” Angie asked innocently knowing full well that the young woman had just escaped.

“No, it’s just the two gentlemen.”  Ellie smiled sweetly.  She had a notebook balanced on one knee and held a silver pen.

Angie decided to question the men and turned to them with a pleasant smile on her face.  “Shouldn’t you wait for the bride’s input?”

Nelson Rider gave what the sisters would classify as a fake smile.  His teeth were blazing white and perfectly aligned.  “That isn’t necessary.”  His sandy-blonde hair was cut close to his head.  He gave the impression of a body full of suppressed energy, as if, at the least provocation, he would rise and go outside to run a marathon.

Everything about this guy was perfect.  His haircut.  Posture.  Clothing, well-made and perfectly tailored.  His manners.  His diction.  Angie wondered if he ever perspired, or tripped, or misspoke.  She thought he seemed like a spring that was wound too tight.

“But,” Angie persisted.  “The bride is usually a big part of a wedding.”

“Bethany likes what I like.”  Nelson was still smiling.

“Do
you
like what she likes?”  Angie asked.  She wondered if Bethany was always bending to Nelson’s wishes while Nelson made all the decisions without considering her wants or feelings.

Nelson looked confused.

“You’re the baker, correct?”  Senator Winston inquired.  He leaned back against the sofa like he owned the place.  One arm lay across the sofa back in a wide, relaxed gesture.

Angie nodded.

“I’d like to see some examples of cakes you’ve created.  Then we can choose what we like and discuss flavors.”

Angie bristled.  “I’ll need your daughter’s preferences before finalizing things.”

The Senator pooh-poohed that comment.  “Bethany will be absolutely fine with whatever Nelson and I choose.”

Angie scowled and was about to respond when Ellie piped up.  “I think it best if we wait to continue when Bethany can join us.  We can all meet together very soon to finish up the details.”

The men were about to protest, but Ellie stood up and took a few steps towards the doorway.  “I have another client now,” she lied.  “You have my number.  Give me a call to arrange a time when everyone is available.”  She gestured towards the front of the house and the men reluctantly got up and headed for the Victorian’s front door.

When Ellie shut it after the men, she wheeled towards Angie.  “They hardly even mentioned Bethany.  It’s like they’re creating some show or spectacle and she is only to play a part.”

Euclid and Circe sat on the bottom step of the staircase.  Euclid released a low hiss from deep in his throat and Circe emitted a growl.

Ellie’s face was flushed and her arms flailed as she gestured animatedly.  “I don’t think I can work with them.”

Jenna heard her younger sister ranting and came into the foyer to find out what was happening.  The girls relayed the strangeness of the brief meeting.

“Well, that’s as odd as the bride scooting out the door when her dear fiancé is about to show up.”  Jenna narrowed her eyes.  “What do you think is going on here?”

The three of them headed for the family room with the cats tailing after them.  Ellie started up a new rant as they walked into the room.  Jenna and Angie took seats on the sofa just as Courtney came in from the back door of the house.  “What’s cookin’?”

“Plenty.”  Ellie paced around the family room as she complained about Senator Winston and Nelson Rider and relayed how Bethany ran through the backyard to leave the house before the men showed up.

Courtney’s eyes went wide listening to what went on during the meetings.  “I wasn’t expecting this.”

“Ellie doesn’t want to work with them.”  Jenna stretched out on the sofa and put her legs over Angie’s lap.

Courtney sat in the easy chair and tucked her legs up under herself.  “I don’t agree.  What does it matter to us if they’re nuts or weird or whatever.  It’s business. People at the wedding might like what we do and hire us for another event.  One thing can lead to another.  I’d be happy to make candy for the Winston wedding.  If their strange behavior works for them, then what do we care?”

Ellie stopped her hurried pacing from one side of the room to the other and stared at Courtney.

“The voice of reason.”  Jenna chuckled.

Ellie plopped onto the opposite sofa.  Her brow furrowed.  “I guess you’re right.”

“Okay. That’s settled.”  Courtney got up.  “Let’s make dinner.”  She headed for the kitchen.

“Bah.”  Jenna pushed herself up and followed her sister, muttering.  “I thought we were going to sit for a while.”

Mr. Finch sat at the kitchen table with a cup of tea, reading the newspaper.  Even though Finch was living in his own house now, he was an adopted member of the Roseland family, coming and going as he pleased and often eating his meals with the sisters.  He looked up when the girls came in.

“Did you pick out some furniture this afternoon?”  Angie asked.

“Indeed, I did.  Miss Betty and I visited the store in West Cove and I picked out some things for the living room, a dining room set, and a bedroom set.  I am quite happy with my choices.  The new things will be delivered later in the week.  In due time, I will furnish the upstairs rooms, but there’s no rush.”

“I can’t wait to see what you bought.”  Courtney smiled at Finch.

“I saw the strangest thing this afternoon.”  Finch adjusted his eyeglasses.  “A young woman, blonde, quite attractive, came running through the wooded area between our two houses.  I wondered if you were chasing your bed and breakfast guests away from the premises.”

Angie grinned.  “That was Bethany Winston.  She escaped from a meeting with Jenna.”  She gave her sister a mock questioning look.  “Maybe Bethany didn’t like anything she saw in your shop?”

Jenna ignored Angie’s comment and clarified for Mr. Finch what had happened.