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“I’ll try.” She checked the time. “I need to get to the inn. Thank you for agreeing to be at the big reveal on Monday.”
“Wouldn’t miss it for the world.”
Josie gave the woman a brief hug before heading off in the direction of the inn. She thought over Birdie’s advice for changing Lane’s mind about the sale. She wondered if that was possible.
CHAPTER SEVEN
Wherewasshe?
The following morning, Lane paced back and forth in the small bit of open space left in the living room. He’d started gathering items and placing them in the living room. It seemed as though his aunt had every drawer and closet crammed full. She didn’t seem to believe in getting rid of anything.
Her desk was crammed full. The four-drawer file cabinet next to her desk was also full. And the small shelf on the other side of the desk had boxes lining each shelf. There were financial papers dating back to his grandparents and a few to his great-grandparents.
He had to admit that some of the older papers he found interesting. It was amazing how the prices of items had inflated over the years. He set aside some of the documents. Other papers with no personal data were placed in a big black garbage bag he’d found under the kitchen sink.
Knock-knock.
At last. He strode to the front door and swung it open. Jo smiled at him. Her cheeks had a pink glow while her eyes glittered with happiness. No one could fake that look. Her joy started on the inside and radiated outward. It filled him with a warmth he hadn’t felt before.
He refused to acknowledge the sensation with a smile. He cleared his throat. “You’re late.”
The smile fell from her face. “I am?” She looked confused as she glanced at her watch. “Only three minutes. I got waylaid with some questions about the bicentennial.” She stepped inside. “Will you be staying for the celebration?”
“I don’t know if I’ll still be here.” It depended on when he got this bungalow cleaned out. Although he’d have to delay his departure if he had some interested buyers. If a quick sale wasn’t possible, he’d have to reach out to a real estate agent on the island. “But even if I’m here, I won’t be attending.”
“Why not?” Disappointment rang out in her voice. “It’ll also be a celebration of your aunt’s life.”
His gaze met hers. “Why would that matter to me? I didn’t know her.” He held up a hand, stopping her from speaking. “And before you say anything, she didn’t want to know me either.” He didn’t want to discuss the subject any further. He turned to all the work piled up in the living room. “I was hoping you could help me figure out what to do with her clothes. She owned a lot. They were jammed into the closets in both of the bedrooms. I think half of them still have the tags on them.”
A smile returned to Jo’s lips. “It sounds like your aunt. She had two weaknesses: clothes and shoes. I would say purses came in a close third place.”
He nodded. “There’s box after box of shoes. I don’t know about the purses. I left all of that stuff in the bedrooms. But I think we need to get the clothes out of here first so there’s room to work.”
“What I think you should do is sort the clothes. The new things and gently worn items can go to Second Love.”
“What’s that?”
“It’s a second-hand clothing shop in town.”
He looked at the heaps of clothes on the back of the couch, on both chairs, and on the dining room table. “I can’t do this myself.” He noticed that Jo didn’t immediately offer to help him, not that he could blame her. When he turned his gaze to her, she stood silently by the doorway as though she couldn’t wait to leave as quickly as possible. “What is it going to cost me to get you to help me sort these clothes so they can go where they need to be?”
There was a twinkle in her eye. She had a price. Why was he not surprised? Everyone had a price. The trick was finding out their price.
“Okay. Out with it,” he said. “How much?”
“I want you to attend the time capsule ceremony on Monday.” She opened her mouth as though she were going to say more but then thought better of it and pressed her lips together.
“That’s it?” He felt like he was missing something. “You just want me to be there to watch them dig up some old junk?”
He noticed the flash of irritation in her eyes before she resumed a neutral look. “Yes.”
It was a total waste of time—time he could put to better use. His gaze moved to the heaps of clothes and immediately felt overwhelmed. “Fine. I’ll be there.”
“Good. I was thinking about burying a new time capsule so that a hundred years from now, the next owners or maybe the owners after them could dig it up and learn some interesting things about us.”
He shook his head. “No, Jo. That’s a bad idea.”
Her brows drew together. “Why? I’m sure we could find some interesting stuff. We could even include some of Sandra’s stuff. It only seems fitting.”
