Shades of Earl Grey

conversations could be the most private when you were surrounded by a crowd of people who were busy paying attention to something else.

“Lavender Luxury Lotion,” exclaimed Delaine, digging into her basket of products. “And Green Tea Feet Treat. Marvelous! You know, I wouldn’t be averse to stocking a few of your T-Bath items in my shop.”

“I appreciate the offer,” said Theodosia, “but let’s talk about it later, shall we?”

“Of course, Theo,” said Delaine. “If you’re too busy to discuss it now.”

“Delaine,” began Theodosia, “Timothy Neville tells me that your diamond watch was found in Claire Kitridge’s desk at the Heritage Society.”

Delaine knit her perfectly plucked brows together. “Yes,” she said, “the police called me earlier about that. I meant to tell you. Isn’t it strange? And all the time I’ve been volunteering there, I considered Claire to be an extremely honest and trustworthy person. Salt of the earth, really. It’s funny how people can fool you. And disappoint you, too,” she added.

“Do you really believe Claire stole your watch?” asked Theodosia.

Delaine was suddenly reluctant to meet Theodosia’s gaze. “Well, someone did,” she said vaguely. “Along with everything else.”

By everything else, Theodosia knew Delaine was still stewing mightily about the missing wedding ring.

“When did you first decide your watch was missing?” asked Theodosia.

Delaine shrugged. “I don’t know. Maybe before I went to Savannah for the funeral. Maybe the day I got back. I’m not exactly sure. It’s all a little fuzzy. I certainly had other things on my mind.”

“Is it possible you took your watch off while you were at the Heritage Society?” Theodosia knew that, as a volunteer for the Heritage Society, Delaine spent countless hours there. “Could you simply have misplaced it? If you did, someone might have found your watch and put it in Claire’s desk for safekeeping.”

“Well . . .” said Delaine, “I was there Sunday morning for a while going over the numbers on ticket sales. And things were still in an uproar from the night before.” She shrugged again. “I don’t know, Theodosia. Don’t let’s get into it right now, there’s so much that’s still very painful for me.”

“Please realize,” said Theodosia, “that the Heritage Society’s executive advisory committee wants to fire Claire.”

Delaine looked surprised. “I thought she was just suspended.”

“Delaine, think, please,” urged Theodosia. “This is important.”

Delaine suddenly turned flashing eyes on Theodosia. “My niece Camille was important, too. And her poor dead fiancé. And their wedding ring. What if Claire Kitridge was somehow involved in that tragedy?”

“You don’t really believe Claire is a cat burglar, do you?” Theodosia asked gently.

Delaine pulled a hanky from her small baguette bag and daubed at her perfectly made-up eyes. “I don’t know what to think anymore.”

“Could someone have come into your house while you were in Savannah for the funeral?” asked Theodosia.

“Just Coop.”

“What, Delaine?” said Theodosia loudly.

“I gave Cooper Hobcaw the keys to my house.”

“Why?”

“Someone had to feed Sasha. I couldn’t let my little darling go hungry now, could I?”

Sasha was Delaine’s cat, a seal point Siamese that she absolutely adored.

“No, of course not,” agreed Theodosia.

“Well then,” argued Delaine, “don’t you think Coop would have known if someone broke in or not? He’s a lawyer.” Delaine hesitated, rethinking what she’d just said. “Well... what I meant to say was that Cooper Hobcaw is extremely observant. He would certainly have noticed if a window was ajar or a door unlocked.”

“You’re right,” said Theodosia. At this point she knew it was easier to agree with Delaine than argue with her. But she was mulling over the possibility that Cooper Hobcaw could have lifted Delaine’s Chopard watch and somehow planted it at the Heritage Society.

“Theodosia, this is all so splendid,” exclaimed Brooke Carter Crockett. Theodosia turned to find that Brooke and Aerin Linley were also loaded down with an assortment of T-Bath products.

“Isn’t it just?” agreed Delaine, glad for the diversion. “And do you know, I’m actually considering carrying some of these marvelous products in my store?”

“Is she really?” asked Brooke as Delaine scurried off.

“I think we’ll probably end up retailing everything here and on our web site,” said Theodosia.

“Delaine is a bit of a dragon lady, isn’t she?” said Aerin Linley with a wry smile.

“But a good customer of ours, too,” said Brooke, in a tone that indicated enough had been said about Delaine Dish. “Oh, I almost forgot . . .” Brooke dug in her purse, pulled out a tiny gold box, and handed it to Theodosia. “For you.”

“Brooke! What’s this?” exclaimed Theodosia as she tentatively accepted the little box.

“Not much, really. Just a fun thing I put together.”

“Go ahead, open it,” urged Aerin.

Theodosia carefully lifted the lid on the box, then let out a squeak of surprise. “Is it my teacup?”

Brooke nodded. She had taken the colorful shards of Theodosia’s shattered teacup of the other day, rimmed them with sterling silver and tiny bits of gold, and hung them on a charm bracelet.

Entranced, Theodosia lifted the bracelet from the box. The results of Brooke’s efforts were spectacular. The broken pieces that had looked so sad when they were lying on the floor now gleamed and danced with a whole new life.

“It’s spectacular,” said Theodosia. She clutched Brooke’s hand. “I don’t know what to say.”

“Don’t say anything. Just wear it in good health,” said Brooke. “As we shall continue to drink your tea in good health.”

“But it must have taken so much time to create,” Theodosia protested.

Brooke waved a hand dismissively. “Really, it’s not that big a deal. I buy the silver in small, thin strips anyway and it’s extremely malleable. It only takes a few minutes to outline each piece, then pinch everything into place. From there on it was just straight ahead soldering and jump rings. Jewelry Making 101.”

“Well, it looks like a million bucks,” said Theodosia as she watched the colorful teacup pieces dance and jingle in their reincarnation as charms.

“Think of it more as a priceless memory of your mother’s china,” said Brooke.

“Theo,” said Aerin, who had been watching her with a barely contained smile. “I have an interesting proposal for you.”

Theodosia turned inquisitive eyes on Aerin.

“I have a dear friend who’s the producer for Windows on Charleston at Channel 10. She’s always looking for interesting guests and I mentioned your name—”

“Oh, I don’t think—” began Theodosia.

“And she mentioned that she’d love to have you on!” finished Aerin. “She saw the write-up on you and the T-Bath products in the Style Section and was really intrigued.”

“Theodosia would be perfect, wouldn’t she?” interjected Drayton. He’d come up behind the three of them and overheard part of the conversation. “There’s been such an enormous resurgence in tea drinking. And of course, the Charleston Tea Plantation, the only tea plantation left in the United States, is practically in our back yard. Their American Classic Tea has been the official White House Tea since 1987 and has also been designated Hospitality Beverage of South Carolina.”

Aerin clapped her hands together. “That’s so perfect, Drayton. Exactly the kind of sound bite they’re always looking for. Theodosia could expound on tea lore as well as talk about contemporary tea drinking. Maybe even share recipes.”

“It would be a fun piece,” agreed Brooke.