AllFreeNovel
Share Us
"Mr. Reynolds is here," Gen mentioned. Marguerite turned, looked out through the screen door as a white Lincoln pulled up.
"All right, all the better if the girls go out to play now. " She looked toward Tyler.
"Do you mind busing tables while I talk to one of my vendors?"
"Not if I'm fairly compensated. "
"I just acquired a promise for twenty dollars," she retorted. "It's all yours. "
Chapter Fifteen
Chloe tucked her tongue in her cheek and shepherded the noisy children toward the side entrance to the gardens. Tina hung back another moment, touched Marguerite's arm.
"I am so sorry," she murmured. "Please be sure and add it to my bill. "
"It's fine. " Marguerite patted her hand, the warm, professional hostess. "You stop worrying and go enjoy them. We'll settle things later. " She sent her on her way and turned to meet Tyler's shrewd look.
"And just how much is that tea set worth?"
Marguerite shrugged. "I bought it at auction for six hundred dollars. "
"And yet you trusted it with a dozen children. "
"Yes, I did. And they're generally very careful, as careful as adults, because I emphasize the special nature of the tea ceremony. One moment of perfection can last a lifetime. That's what the tea parties are about. "
"Just as one thousand imperfect moments can make a perfect life," he suggested.
She inclined her head. "So you understand why I used it, as well as why I'm not upset about it. "
The door opened and an elderly man stepped in, bearing a basketful of flowers on one arm and a wooden box in the other. He wore a pair of comfortable brown slacks, a striped dress shirt and a baseball cap on his bald pate, which he dipped his head to remove as he crossed the threshold.
"Mr. Reynolds, it's wonderful to see you. I didn't realize it had gotten so late. "
"Is this a bad time?"
"Not at all. Come sit down over here and you and I will do our business while Mr.
Winterman finishes cleaning up the tables. If he doesn't mind?" As she sat down with the man and explained the girls' birthday party, the kind of warm chatter indulged when the vendor was a fond acquaintance, Tyler delivered all the silverware and tea sets to the kitchen. While he helped Gen, he listened to the cadence of Marguerite's voice. She reviewed the samples Mr. Reynolds had brought, discussed with him his recent attempts to combine tea types with different flower and fruit flavorings and listened to his description of the conditions in which he'd produced this latest group of flowers for her. When Tyler came back out she was putting a pinch of tea leaves on her tongue. She closed her eyes, inhaled, frowned.
"This is flat, bakey. "
"Try this. You'll like it better. " Mr. Reynolds, apparently undismayed by her criticism, put another pinch in her hand, watched her bring it to her nose. Rinsing out the taste of the last tea from a water glass, she then put that sample into her mouth.
Tyler took a seat within their line of sight but a table over, taking out his pocket organizer to appear occupied so he would not give the impression that he was hurrying her with her guest.
"Mmmm. Better. " Marguerite nodded, her eyes closed. "This one has a lovely aroma. We'll use the clay pots to brew that, bring out that onion and ginger seasoning marvelously. " She cracked open an eye. "And did you write down how you put it together?"
He laughed. "You know I just potter with it, Miss Marguerite. "
"Mr. Reynolds. " She tapped her fingernail on the table. "You must keep a journal, every detailed step of how you do this so you'll know how to reproduce it. What if my customers fall in love with it so much they want more?" He smiled at her. Tyler saw grandfatherly affection mixed with a bit of a nostalgic crush. "At my age, Miss M, it's not about whether I can do it again. That's the beauty, in a way. Doing it different every time, never sure what to expect. " He pinched up the excess leaves, placed them carefully back in their container so none of it was wasted.
"Once you do it right once, you don't need to write it down anyway. Your feet will go toward that path again if you don't worry about it or force it. " He folded the top, handed it over to her with a beaming look. "Ready for my mystery tea of the month?" At her nod, he produced a thermos from an insulated carrier and a tiny teacup.
Pouring a portion for her, he pushed it across the table and sat back with an expectant look on his face.
She raised the cup to her mouth, inhaled the contents through thin nostrils, her lashes fanning her cheeks, her brow furrowing. Her soft lips parted to press against the cup edge and take in a sip.
It was absurd that he could get hypnotized and hard just watching her drink tea.
