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CHAPTERTWENTY-EIGHT
Andie wrapped the antique porcelain pitcher carefully in tissue paper then placed it in a bag and handed it over to her customer. “This is going to look great in your china cabinet, Mrs. Litchfield.”
“I think so, too, dear. Thank you.”
Andie watched the elderly woman shuffle out of the shop, the bag clutched to her chest. Mrs. Litchfield was one of her best customers. She collected a special type of porcelain that was made in the Limoges area of France. The pitcher—hand-painted with cherubs and gold detail—was an excellent example and one of the nicest pieces Andie had seen in a while.
She picked up her feather duster and walked around the shop, swooshing the dust off the tops of the mahogany side tables and crystal candy jar lids. This was her favorite activity, walking around and looking at her inventory while the shop was quiet. The subtle creaking of the old floorboards and the smell of antique wood and lemon Pledge swirled in the air.
She opened the curio cabinet and gave the glass shelves a dusting. Her gaze fell on the box beside it that held the Civil War papers.
Her search of the county records for Robert Koslachowski’s two great-grandsons hadn’t yielded a thing. It was as if his family disappeared. Maybe they had, or maybe they had moved to another state. How many states should she check? Maybe checking just a few of the surrounding counties wouldn’t take too long.
She settled in at the computer behind the counter and was so engrossed in her search that she didn’t hear someone come in.
“Must be pretty interesting.”
Andie jumped, dropping the notebook she’d been holding even though she hadn’t found anything to take notes about.
Shane stood on the other side of the counter, looking amused. “What’s so interesting?”
Andie sighed and stretched. “Sorry, I was looking up my Civil War guy.”
“You still haven’t found his family?”
“No. It’s weird because I know he had two great-grandsons, but all traces seem to disappear.” Andie had already filled him in on her visit to the armory.
“Oh. I’m sorry you’re having a hard time. I know how important this is to you, but maybe there is no one to give the documents to. You’ve put a lot of work into this. Might be time to let it go.”
The expression on his handsome face was sincere. She knew he had her best interests at heart. And maybe he was right. She was letting it take over too much of her life, and it was overshadowing the really important things—like Shane. She’d even considered skipping the morning coffee at Sandcastles the next day so she could do more research. But her sister Jane and her friends were too important to skip out on for this.
By getting those papers to the family, she would feel like she helped someone. But those people were strangers. Maybe she should focus on helping those closest to her instead.
Andie shut her laptop and stood. “You’re right. Now, did you say you were going to take me to the beach so we could have a glass of wine and watch the sunset?”
