Dane’s face. Those blue eyes fixed on her.You owe me.It wasn’t just what Dane had said, it was the way he’d said it. The way he’d looked at her.
Whenshe’dsaid it, she’d been joking, sort of. There was enough talk circulating about the Knudsons, so playing nice for Willadeene and the Honey Bee Ladies Society seemed logical. It was the right choice for both of them, surely he saw that? Or not.Because now I owe him.
“Nicole said it was an interesting morning.” Aunt Mags glanced at Tansy over the teacup’s rim. “Something about her mother stirring up trouble?”
Tansy shrugged.
“No matter how many times your aunt asks me to join the Honey Bee Ladies Society, my answer will remain the same.” Mags sighed with feeling. “At least untilthatwoman is gone. Willadeene Svoboda is the worst sort of gossip.”
“Is there a good sort of gossip?” Tansy asked, scratching Jammie-cat’s stomach as he stretched.
“No, I suppose not.” Aunt Mags took another sip. “What was she after this time?”
Tansy shrugged again, remembering the gleeful look in the woman’s eyes. It wasn’t hard to figure out what the woman was thinking, butwhyWilladeene was so determined that she and Dane were athingwas the real mystery. It was too far-fetched—even for Willadeene Svoboda. Since no one would believe it, there was no need to worry.So, stop worrying.
Jammie-cat yawned and went back to sleep. “Life as a cat—one of Aunt Camellia’s cats—has to be pretty awesome, don’t you think?” Any of Aunt Camellia’s pets, for that matter.
Aunt Mags’s finely arched brows rose. “If the idea of bathing oneself with one’s tongue, eating vile-smelling canned food and fending off the occasional flea or an overabundance of dog slobber is your idea of awesome, then I suppose.”
“Poor Oatmeal.” Whenever the massive Saint Bernard mix got stressed, he began to drool uncontrollably.
Tansy laughed. Honey Hill Farms’ animal menagerie wasn’t just cats, goats, a parrot and guard donkeys. There were also five dogs of varying age, size and personality. While they were all technically Aunt Camellia’s, all the Bee Girls did their part to care for all the animals on the farm.
Curling around Jammie and Beeswax had an instant soothing effect on the dog but left the felines in a puddle that required a bath. Giving the cats a bath wasneverfun. “Fine. Maybe not.”
Aunt Mags grinned and went back to studying the sky. “You know, Poppa loved this time of day.”
Tansy nodded. She could remember sitting, in this very chair, on Poppa Tom’s lap.
“He said he’d send all his worries and stresses with the sun—knowing they’d be there to greet him in the morning.” Mags sat her teacup down, folded her hands in her lap and looked at Tansy. “But he did try to work through whatever was weighing on him first, talk it out, so he had one less worry.”
Tansy stared into her tea and then sighed. “It’s Dane. He’s just... He’s so... And I let him make me so... He picks and I react—every time.” An impatient groan slipped out. “Willadeene showed up and it was like—” She broke off, searching for just the right words. “Almost like she’d caught us doing something wrong?”
Thankfully, Aunt Mags didn’t say anything.
“We were arguing, as we do.” Tansy glanced at her aunt. She didn’t mention her deliciously inappropriate thoughts about Dane seconds before she’d collided with him. Or that she’d been red-cheeked and more rattled than she’d been...maybe, ever. “But I saw Willadeene and she was wearing a certain look.” Maybe Tansy should have handled things differently? But how? “Dane doesn’t like the woman—it was all over his face—but he managed to control his temper even when she kept on watching and smiling and saying how nice it is to see ustogetherandgetting along.”
“He shouldn’t like her. I have no doubt Kate started the rumor—but Willadeene was the one to make sure everyone heard it.” She frowned. “If I were a gambler, which I’m not, I’d bet on it.”
Even though it turned her stomach, she’d been thinking along the same lines.
“Why was Dane out and about instead of manning his booth—and staying out of trouble?” At the jingle of a tiny bell, Aunt Mags’s green eyes scanned the porch.
“He didn’t have a booth, he was looking for Leif. So distracted and worried that he plowed into me and wound up gouging his chest with the corner of a shipping crate.” She rubbed her chest. “Which had to hurt.”
“Nicole says Leif Knudson is nothing but trouble.” Aunt Mags lifted one perfectly manicured hand so the newest porch companion, Butters the one-eyed Chihuahua mix with an extreme underbite and wild tufts of untamed fur, could jump up onto her lap. “But the poor boy didn’t stand a chance, did he? With Harald as his father and Dane for a brother.” Butters turned several circles before curling up into a tiny ball on Aunt Mags’s lap.
For the second time that day, Tansy found herself defending a boy she barely knew. “I don’t think Leifwantsto be trouble.” She ran a hand along Beeswax’s back. “He came to the Junior Beekeepers meeting with Dane. Honestly, he seemed...sad.” She kept on petting the cat until Beeswax’s lion-worthy purr started. “So did—does—Dane. Seem sad, I mean.”
“It’s no secret that theirs is not a happy home, Tansy.” Aunt Mags rested a hand on Butters’s back. “Mostly from their own making, I might add.” She shook her head, finishing her tea and setting her cup on the table. “It’s also no secret that Willadeene has been targeting the Knudsons since Harald divorced Willadeene’s pal, Beulah Zink—beforethis most recent fiasco of a divorce to Kate.” She sighed. “You being nice to Dane—”
“I wasn’t beingniceto Dane. We were trying not to attract attention.”
“And it backfired.” Aunt Mags waited for Tansy’s nod. “I’m sure she’s already concocting reasons for this sudden change between you two—reasons that will likely cast you as the victim and Dane as the villain.” She shrugged. “Really, dear, you have nothing to worry about.”
Her aunt’s attempts to comfort her weren’t helping. She didn’t give a fig about Dane but Dane wasn’t the only one impacted by this sort of talk.Poor Leif.“No one will believe it. It’s ridiculous.”
“Is it?” Mags asked, stroking Butters’s head. “After a lifetime of exchanging barbs and making each other miserable you’re suddenly getting along. It’s suspicious, and that’s all it takes to plant a seed.” She paused, smoothing Butters’s wiry hair. “Willadeene Svoboda is very good at plantingthosesorts of seeds.” Mags sighed. “I wouldn’t worry. Any fallout will land on Dane Knudson’s very square, very capable shoulders, which should make you happy.”
