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CHAPTERSIX
When Andie arrived at Tides for her shift, she found Brenda sitting behind the check-in desk in the foyer and a large tray of freshly baked chocolate chip cookies on the side table. Andie grabbed a cookie as she walked past.
“Those are for the guests!” Brenda admonished.
Andie turned around to survey the empty lobby as she took a bite. “What guests?”
“Very funny. It’s still nice out, and someone driving up the coast could decide they want a room.”
Andie eyed the three dozen cookies in the tray. They didn’t even have that many rooms. “That would be great if they do. I promise I won’t eat any more.”
Brenda laughed. “At least rearrange the tray so there isn’t an empty spot.”
“I will, and now that I’m here, you can head out.”
“Are you sure? You have a business to run. I can stay a little later.”
Andie was sure. She didn’t mind taking shifts at Tides. She loved it here. Everything from her great-grandfather’s old writing desk to her grandmother’s flow blue china to the antique paintings that had hung on the wall was familiar and comforting. “I don’t mind watching the place. Don’t you have some grandkids’ soccer games to attend or something?”
Brenda’s eyes lit up at the mention of her grandkids. She doted on them. “Well, if you’re sure…”
“I am.”
Brenda grabbed her purse from under the counter, and Andie had a thought. Brenda’s family had been in town for ages, and even though she was only about twenty years older than Andie, she might be able to help find the family those Civil War papers belonged to.
“Hey, Brenda, do you know a family with the last name Koslachowski?”
Brenda pressed her lips together and tilted her head as she repeated the name. “Can’t say I do. Why?”
Andie told her about the Civil War papers. “I just want to return them to the family. I’m sure the person I bought them from is a distant relative, but I was just curious because I didn’t recognize the name.”
“Well, I’m sure you’ll get them into the right hands.”
They said their good-byes, and Brenda left.
Andie looked up Nadine Parker in her contacts and was about to call her when Liz Weston, covered in dust and sneezing, came breezing into the lobby.
Liz looked up to see Andie. “Oh, hello. Where’s Jane?”
“She’s off this afternoon. I’m her sister, Andie.” From the way Liz had strolled in, Andie figured she was staying there, and they only had one guest right now, so it wasn’t hard to figure out who the woman was. “Are you Liz Weston?”
Liz looked down at her outfit. “How did you guess? Did Jane tell you I was going to clean out a house that has been closed up for six years?”
Andie laughed. “It’s kinda obvious, plus you’re our only guest.”
Liz smiled, but she seemed a little down in the dumps.
“It’s hard going through all your family memories, isn’t it?” Andie asked.
“You sound like you know what you’re talking about.”
Andie glanced around the lobby. “Well, not personally. All our family memories are here. My parents and sister and I didn’t live at the inn, but my grandparents did, and we always spent a lot of time here. But I used to be an appraiser at Christie’s, and many of my clients were clearing out old family estates, and I know there are a lot of memories that bubble up. You should take your time and be kind to yourself.”
Liz looked about to burst into tears, so Andie rushed over to the cookie tray. “Cookie? Brenda made them from scratch earlier today.”
That got a smile. Liz took a cookie. “You know, it is hard. I haven’t been back to the house in a long time, and Dad has been in Tall Pines for six years. There’s a lot of dust, and I guess before that, he wasn’t that great of a housekeeper.”
“Are you selling it?” Andie asked.
