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But not all of Mirraccino was locked in the past. This island nation had the best of both worlds. It tempted him to consider purchasing a vacation home here.
He glanced over at Annabelle. She was all the incentive he needed to spend more time here.
He halted his thoughts, startled that he was beginning to feel something for Annabelle. But that couldn’t be. He wouldn’t allow himself to get emotionally invested.
If he were smart, he’d catch the next plane to Rome. But he’d already obligated himself to decipher the note and there was the pending proposal for the café. He was stuck.
He’d just have to proceed carefully and not risk his scarred heart.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
SHE HAD TO HURRY.
That evening, Annabelle rushed out of the kitchen. She paused in front of an ornate mirror in the hallway to run a hand over her hair. She considered going back to her room to touch up her makeup, but she didn’t want to waste any more time. She was already ten minutes late to meet Grayson.
The day had rushed past her in a heartbeat. In between the chariot races, the tour of the village and the quaint shops, they’d sampled many of the local culinary treats. Truth be told, she’d had a fantastic day. She’d had more fun with Grayson than she’d had in a long time. She hadn’t realized until then how much she’d let her work take over her life. And that had to stop.
She promised herself that once she finished the South Shore Project she would start living her life and having some fun. If she’d learned anything from her mother, it was that life was too short not to enjoy it. And she enjoyed it a lot more with Grayson in it. He’d been such a good sport that day with the chariot races. And she had a surprise for him tomorrow at the festival.
But now it was time to puzzle over that note again. It wasn’t like she could make anything of it. She honestly didn’t think there was anything to it. However, she didn’t mind spending more time with Grayson while he worked on it.
Annabelle rushed into the library to find Grayson already there. “Sorry I’m late. Things took longer than I’d planned.”
He glanced up from where he was sitting on the couch. “No problem. I haven’t been here that long. I had a lot of emails to answer and a couple of phone calls to return.”
“Sounds like you were busy. I hope there aren’t any problems with your business.”
“No. Nothing serious. Just the usual things that need answering or approval. If it isn’t one thing, then it’s something else. I also did some thinking about that note. Do you think Cosmo is some sort of nickname that your mother had?” Grayson asked. “Maybe something from her childhood?”
“Not that I know of. Does this mean you think the note was written to her?”
“It’s just a thought.”
She stood behind him as he sat on the couch. She leaned over his shoulder, getting a better look at the note. “But if this note was written to her, I’m confused. So she gave someone tea who must have known her when she was a child? It just doesn’t make any sense.”
“Which is why I think it’s a cipher.”
She picked up the note and stared at it, wishing something would pop out at her. “In the beginning I thought the chance of this note being some sort of cipher was a bit far-fetched.”
“And now?”
“I’m still skeptical but the mix of random upper and lowercase letters is odd. And then there’s the strange wording. I mean, do people really say that tea is their gold. Isn’t that a bit of overkill?”
“What do you think?”
She moved around the couch and sat down. “Maybe Cosmo is some sort of code name.”
Grayson smiled. “Have you been watching a lot of 007 movies?”
She shrugged, not really in a jovial mood. Maybe it was just exhaustion settling in. Or maybe it was her rising frustration. “I just want to know the truth. I want to know if there’s more to my mother’s death than anyone has acknowledged. Maybe unraveling what exactly happened to her and who killed her will help my father. I don’t think he’s ever really recovered from the event. He’s always worried about me and my brother.”
“And you think that if you can figure out what happened then your family can have a normal life?”
“Maybe not normal precisely. I’m not even sure what that is anymore, but something less stressful than what we have now. My father is always worried, checking in every evening. And my brother, well, he says that he’s fine, but he’s never home. He’s always on a new adventure. Last I heard he was in Paris, visiting an old friend of ours. It seems like my family is never in the same place at the same time.”
Grayson reached out and took her hand in his. “I’m sorry. I hope you’re able to change things. I know what it is to live without any family around. It can get pretty lonely, especially around the holidays.”
“Why don’t you try talking to your family?”
