Chapter 150
After lunch, Cecilia suggested heading back to the hotel, but Shirley had the bright idea of asking Hogan to take her for a spin down the shopping strip.
Hogan didn’t object and, after telling Zachary to scoot back to the hotel to tackle some work, he led Cecilia straight to the
commercial street.
Shirley and Cecilia were old pals, chatting and laughing away, while I, as the third wheel, felt like a sore thumb sticking out. I was caught between a rock and a hard place – to trail along or not.
After a bit of wandering, Cecilia halted in front of a time–honored tea shop.
“Hogan, mind if I pop in for a look?” She asked sheepishly.
“Planning to buy some tea?” Hogan saw right through the young lady’s thoughts and said, “For the folks back home?”
“Not exactly.” Cecilia whispered, explaining, “Mrs. Hilary Zade’s a big tea person. I thought, since we’re in Pinecrest Hollow and I can snag some for her.”
As soon as she finished, both Hogan and Shirley were slightly taken aback. Cecilia caught the odd look on the man’s face and tentatively asked, “Is it not cool?”
“No, not at all.”
Shirley jumped in, “Mr. Zade, look at Cecilia. All the way to Pinecrest Hollow, and instead of sightseeing, she’s all about pleasing her future mother–in–law.”
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“Shirley.” The young lady blushed with embarrassment, “Stop teasing me. I’m just super grateful to Hilary and want to do my part as a junior. If it weren’t for her encouragement, I wouldn’t have just up and come here without even a heads up.”
Hilary’s encouragement. So, Hilary was in on Cecilia’s trip to Pinecrest Hollow too?
Hogan shared my curiosity, “She knew you were coming?”
“Yeah, she mentioned that the climate here is different from Rivertown. She was worried you wouldn’t take good care of yourself, so she gave me a few pointers.” Cecilia patiently explained, and then shifted gears, “Hogan, you’re not mad at me for butting in, are you?”
She looked up at Hogan as she asked, eyes brimming with panic.
“No, why would I be?” Hogan responded nonchalantly, “Let’s go pick
out some.”
Cecilia breathed a sigh of relief, “Alrighty.”
As they walked side by side into the tea shop, Shirley followed and seeing me rooted to the spot, asked with a smile, “Ms. March, feeling under the weather? You look a little off.”
I gathered myself, my mind flashing back to that box of contraceptives and kept mum. Was that also Hilary’s idea?
Cecilia spent over an hour choosing the gift, finally settling on one with a four–figure price tag. She was visibly shocked when the salesperson announced the cost but managed to keep her composure, murmuring, “Mrs. Zade should like this.”
Quite the smooth talker. But that one’s price was a month or two of
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her salary. Looked like she was going all out to charm Hilary.
I knew Cecilia’s financial situation and Hogan clearly did too. So, when she whipped out her credit card, he stepped in, “Wrap that one up along with the other two.”
He directed this to the shopping guide.
Cecilia was stunned, “Hogan, what’re you doing?”
“Doesn’t Mr. Irwin also love tea?” Hogan said calmly, with a gentle look, “We’re here already; can’t go back empty–handed.”
“But this is too much.” Cecilia hastily refused, “Hogan, I can’t accept
this.”
Hogan’s lips curved into a faint smile; he uttered in a soft tone, “What’s mine is yours. Why keep score?”
Shirley chimed in, “Yeah, Cecilia, Mr. Zade said so himself. You’ll be family soon enough, right? What’s his is yours!”
The gifts cost nearly four grand. With a wave of his hand, Hogan paid for them all.
In his words, it was a gift for the father–in–law. Suddenly, my stomach turned, and I gagged, making an excuse to step out of the
sales area.
I didn’t make it far before bending over, retching a few times, then spitting up some acid. I barely touched my lunch and hadn’t had much to eat since. Yet now, hunger pangs hit me out of nowhere.
“Xaviera?” A crisp voice suddenly rang in my ear, “When did you come down the mountain?”
I looked up to see Timothy, who was decked out in sportswear,
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standing a couple of steps away, staring at me in disbelief.
“This morning.” I feigned composure, “What are you doing here?”
“This morning?” Timothy gawked at me, “Your foot’s still not healed. How did you manage to get down? Xaviera, why do you always worry me that much?”
Of course, I wasn’t going to tell him I was chasing down clues. about FreeMan, let alone that I was planning to strike a deal with Hogan. All I could do was downplay it, “I am here for work, after all.”
“This won’t do.” Timothy pulled out his phone, “After I talk with Sean, I’ll take you back to the hotel.”
“No.” I quickly interjected, “I’ve still got work to finish. Don’t worry;
I’m fine.”
Timothy couldn’t argue with me and finally agreed not to escort me
back to the hotel.
“Just make sure you clock out before dark.” He said sternly,
“Otherwise, I’m coming to get you.”
A bit of a pain. But at least he was reasonable. After all, I, too, wanted to get back to the hotel before nightfall.
