Arthur’s chest expands like a wall, and his head ticks up a notch.
The attorney goes on. “Though I had a myriad of preventative measures in place in the event you decided to dip your hand into the trough, I will remove those constrictions. This is now wholly your company, and my only hope is that you are mature enough to know that you worked for everything you have. You have learned the business inside and out, and it is entirely up to you if it grows. Be the man I always knew you could be. Enjoy this life, my son.”
Arthur blows out a silent thank you to the ceiling. Payday has come. And now I feel like a sack of trash for what transpired in the garden on that last night of his life.
My lips part, and I shoot Jasper a look.
Another admission of guilt? Jasper’s brows hike with his amusement, and I shrug as if to signify it might just be that.
“And then there is Warwick.” The attorney broadens his smile in the direction of the jovial man himself. “To Warwick, my friend, my ally, and on occasion the enemy of both mine and yourself.” A light titter circles the room. “I leave you Telenational in its entirety—including its Sky phones division, Sky Plus Provides, and small entities within the company.”
“Telenational?” the word echoes around the room, and it even leaves my lips as I look to Jasper.
“Did you know Quinn owned Telenational?” I whisper his way.
Telenational is one of the biggest cell phone providers in this country. Jasper and I are on the plan, as is the inn. Not only that, but we both have the latest model Sky phones. Telenational rose to fame a couple of years ago when it was able to undercut its competitors’ fees by half and now owns the lion’s share of the telecommunications market.
He shakes his head with caution as I look back to the attorney.
“Warwick”—Joseph continues—“I only hope this is not to your detriment. There were words we shared regarding the corporation. I hope by the time this is revealed you have heeded them. Understand that with great power comes great responsibility—and you owe that responsibility first and foremost to yourself. Be wise. Be shrewd, but not to your own undoing. Have a wonderful life, my true friend.”
“Bizzy”—Georgie pulls out her phone and holds it up to me—“I’ve got a Sky phone, and the thing is a piece of crap.”
A laugh breaks out in the room, and Warwick raises his hand.
“Georgie, I’ll personally be glad to look into any issues you’re having with it,” he volunteers with a grin.
“You bet, big boy,” she says it in the sultriest voice she can muster, and another round of laughter ensues. “Expect a few chocolate chip cookies as payment—among other things.”
“Georgie.” I elbow her. “I thought you switched to the attorney,” I whisper.
“Turns out, the pauper was the king just like in that story.”
“The Prince and the Pauper.” I nod her way. “Word of advice: Steer clear of royalty until we solve this homicide.”
“Come to think about it, that man did have killer moves—in the bedroom.”
Fish yowls, Muzzle her, Bizzy.
I’d rather have her committed.
The attorney looks around the room. “And there is one more disbursement left to detail. Bizzy Baker Wilder.” He nods my way.
Disbursement? Fish’s ears pique to attention, as do mine.
“Bizzy, my friend, my loyal employee, you have taken such good care of the Country Cottage Inn, it is safe to say you have treated it as if it were your own. Therefore, I bequeath to you the Country Cottage Inn itself along with the cottages and the acreages of land that it’s settled on. However, it will be up to you to pay all necessary fees and logistics that go along with it. I hope that this is a blessing to you rather than a curse. I have instructed Arthur to continue aiding you in any manner possible. Cheers to you and cheers to all. Carry on now in this life. Smiles all around. Onward and forward.”
The room breaks out into a microcosm of conversations all at once.
Georgie grips me and lets out a deafening moan of delight.
Jasper looks as if he’s about to fall out of his seat.
Fish lets out a sharp mewl, Bizzy, does this mean what I think it does?
I nod blindly. “I think I just inherited the inn.”
Chapter 14
“You own the inn,” Jasper says as he takes another bite out of a chocolate chip cookie.
“We own the inn,” I counter as the two of us snuggle up on our sofa back at the cottage. The twinkle lights on the tree are flashing, but it’s still bare of any ornaments. “The inn is ours. What’s mine is yours, remember?”
Fish belts out a sharp meow from her perch on the sofa. Don’t forget about me. I’ve always suspected I owned this place.
As soon as the reading of the will wrapped up, I asked Georgie not to breathe a word just yet regarding my newly acquired hunk of real estate. I snapped up a leftover platter of cookies and peppermint bark, and Jasper and I headed back to our cottage. Of course, not before we snapped up our
