Pennies From Heaven (The Bella Novella Collection Book 3) (4 page)

Cecil and Lily stared at the envelope and the groom-to-be read the words out loud: “Shady Pines Travel Service?”

“Mm-hmm. Open it.”

Lily opened the envelope and pulled out several papers. Her eyes grew wide and she gasped. “Oh! Oh, oh, oh!” She threw her arms around her father’s neck and then shouted, “We’re going to Paris!”

“Paris?” Cecil looked a bit taken aback. So did his mother, whose face grew pale. Her eyes filled with tears. She excused herself to get another glass of tea. Strange, since her glass was already full.

“What’s that about?” Jenna gestured to Mrs. Davidson as she whispered the words: “She seems upset.”

“No idea, but I’ll figure it out.” I rose and headed to the beverage table, tea glass in hand. I’d get to the bottom of this, if it took all of my sleuthing skills to do so.

CHAPTER FOUR

Ah, la vache!

Translation: Oh the cow!

(Holy cow!)

It took a bit of finagling, but, with Lily’s help I finally managed to figure out the reason for Mrs. Davidson’s emotional departure. Oy vey. What a mess.

I headed back over to Jenna and Cassia, who both gave me curious looks. “Well? What happened?” Jenna tapped her foot in anticipation of my answer.

I leaned in close to whisper so that the others wouldn’t hear. “Before we left the Rigas’s place, I heard Cec’s parents say they had a gift for them. I had a feeling it was a honeymoon trip, and I was right. Nothing like Paris, I’m afraid. Problem is, it’s a done deal. Now they have two honeymoons—one to someplace amazing and another one to someplace, well, normal.”

Cassia sighed. “How awful. But that makes sense. I mean, the groom’s family usually pays for the honeymoon, right? So I’m not surprised they put together a plan to surprise Lily and Cecil.”

“What sort of plans had his parents made?” Jenna asked. “Did you hear that part?”

“Only partially. From what I could make out, Mrs. Davidson’s brother owns a timeshare in Gulfport, Mississippi. He’s letting Cec and Lily have it for a week.”

“They can go to Mississippi anytime,” Cassia said. “This is
Paris
we’re talking about, the opportunity of a lifetime. Paris waits for no one.”

“Well, sure, but the last thing Lily wants to do is hurt her mother-in-law’s feelings, you know?” I paused, deciding I’d already said enough. “Anyway, you didn’t hear all of that from me, okay?”

“Sure, Bella.” Jenna ran her hand across her belly, and for a moment I thought she might be ill.

“You okay?” I asked.

“Mm-hmm. I think that potato salad hit me the wrong way, is all. That, or the heat. Can you believe it’s already this warm out? What’s the summer going to be like if the spring is sweltering?”

From the table behind me I heard Mrs. Rigas sniffling. I turned to discover she had tears in her eyes.

“Mrs. Rigas, are you okay?” I took a couple of steps in her direction, worry setting in.

“Lily’s going to go to Paris and she’ll never want to come back.” Mrs. Rigas sniffled.

“Aw, she’ll come back to Splendora,” I said. “I speak from personal experience. I’ve been to Europe and I came back.”

“Lily’s different. She’s completely infatuated with Paris. I saw this once in a movie.
Sabrina
.”

“Sabrina?” Uncle Laz took a bite of watermelon and spoke around it. “I thought her name was Lily.”

Mrs. Rigas used her napkin to wipe her damp eyes. “No, the
movie
was
Sabrina
. Audrey Hepburn went to Paris and her whole life changed.”

“Audrey Hepburn?” Uncle Laz scratched his head. “I thought we were talking about someone named Sabrina.” He took another bite of the watermelon. “Weird.”

“Yes,” I explained. “Audrey played Sabrina in
Sabrina
. The movie.
Sabrina
. Starring Audrey Hepburn.”

“I haven’t been this confused since Ben Carson endorsed Donald Trump for President.” Uncle Laz shrugged. “But that’s okay. Don’t try to explain it to me. It’ll probably confuse me more.”

“Stop. Saying. That.” Earline clenched her teeth as she glared at Uncle Laz.

“Saying what?” He put the watermelon down and stared at her, wrinkles forming on his brow.

Her gaze narrowed as she muttered the words, “Donald. Trump.”

“Ah.” Laz gave her a playful look. “Donald Trump, Donald Trump, Donald Trump. Is that the name I’m not supposed to say?”

“Laz, if you care about me at all, you’ll stop.” Dwayne Neeley stepped into place alongside my uncle. “Last time we got Earline riled up about politics it didn’t end well. She had to take a nitroglycerine tablet and I very nearly had to call 9-1-1. Please. Stop.”

I rested my hand on my uncle’s arm, hoping to convince him to play nice. “And remember, Uncle Laz, you’ve had heart issues, as well. No point in adding stress when it’s unnecessary.”

“Okay, okay.” My uncle turned and took a couple of steps toward the food table, but I was pretty sure I heard him whisper the words “Donald Trump” under his breath.”

“I heard that, Lazarro Rossi!” Earline called out. “And I forbid you to speak that vile name on my property again or else. . .” She clutched her heart and grew pale. “Or else. . .”

“Mama?” D.J. stepped into the spot beside her. “Mama, are you okay?”

“I. . .I. . .” She kept her hand on her heart and then slumped into a chair.

“Everyone back away from her and give her space.” Bonnie Sue reached inside her oversized purse and came out with a church bulletin, which she waved in Earline’s face. “She needs air.”

“She needs
prayer
,” Twila added, and then knelt down in front of Earline.

“Air. . .and prayer.” Jolene pulled a chair close. “So, gather round, folks. We’re gonna pray for Earline.”

“So, are we gathering around or stepping back?” Laz asked. “I’m confused.”

“I feel like the yard is spinnin’.” Beads of sweat popped up on Earline’s upper lip. “And who turned up the heat? It’s swelterin’!”

“Laz.
Laz
turned up the heat.” Bonnie Sue shook her head. “But we’ll get you cooled down, Earline. Just put all thoughts of you-know-who out of your head and your blood pressure will go back down to normal.”

“Who’s you-know-who?” Mrs. Rigas asked.

“The one whose name we’re not supposed to mention,” Cecil’s mother put a finger over her lips. “So, shh!”

“Wait, who?” Mrs. Rigas asked once more.

“Donald Trump!” Bonnie Sue and Twila hollered in unison.

“Oh, I like him.” Mrs. Rigas offered up a confident nod. “Voted for him in the primaries. He’s quite the businessman, isn’t he? He’ll get things done in a hurry. From what I understand, half of Splendora is in Trump’s corner. Well, all but Jenny Conner up at the hair salon. She’s voting for Hillary. Or was it Bernie? I honestly can’t remember.”

D.J. slapped himself on the forehead then muttered something under his breath.

“Did we ever pray?” Twila asked, then pursed her lips. “I can’t remember.”

“No, but I don’t know what all the fuss is about.” Mrs. Rigas took a seat on the bench next to Earline. “What we need in this country is someone who’ll get the job done. Someone with business savvy. We all know there’s only one candidate who fits that description.”

“Oh my.” These words came from Mrs. Davidson, who paled. “My daughter’s in-laws are voting for Donald Trump?”

“You’re not?” Mrs. Rigas’s perfectly plucked brows arched. “Who are you voting for, then?”

“I. . .I. . .Well, I like to keep that to myself.” Mrs. Davidson said, as she wrung her hands together.

“We’ve got to turn this country around.” Mr. Rigas squared his shoulders, commanding the attention of everyone in attendance. “As a business owner, myself, I speak with some degree of authority. Trump’s the man to keep this country afloat. Financially, I mean.”

“Mom, Dad, please!” Lily gave her parents a warning look. “Not now.”

Mrs. Rigas didn’t seem to take the hint. She went off on a tangent about all of Mr. Trump’s finest qualities. This, of course, got Uncle Laz wound up about how he knew more than Trump about how to run a business.

At some point Earline, still seated on the bench, dropped her head down onto the table and began to pray. Aloud. For the Rigas family. And for anyone else who might not vote her convictions.

To my right, D.J. cleared his throat. We’d been through this before. Hopefully he would figure out how to turn things around.

Sure enough, his words, “How’s it going as city manager, Mr. Rigas?” took the conversation in a completely different direction. “You enjoying your new position?”

“Very much. And Splendora’s growing like a teenage boy on a steady diet of double cheeseburgers. New businesses popping up everywhere. Much of this is your doing, Bella.” Mr. Rigas gave me an admiring look. “And you too, D.J. Opening the wedding facility was a great idea. Now a new hotel is going up on the Interstate. After that, an iHop, just a few miles south of here.”

“Ooo, iHop.” Bonnie Sue licked her lips. “I love pancakes.”

“Point is, Splendora’s the place to be, and before long folks’ll be coming from all over to spend time here. It’ll be easier than ever, now that the Grand Parkway has come through.” Mr. Rigas reached for his cup of sweet tea. “We’ll keep on growing, growing, and growing. The bigger, the better.”

“Not sure I agree with that.” Earline mumbled, her forehead still leaning on the table. “I like Splendora just like it is.” She lifted her head and glared at Mr. Rigas.

“Me too. Just hope she doesn’t get too big for her britches,” Jolene added.

“Wait. . .what did you say, Jolene?” Twila looked flabbergasted by this statement. “
Who’s
too big for her britches?”

“I’m not talking about you, Twila, though I can certainly see why you might think I was, what with those Spandex pants stretched to capacity. I’m referring to the town.” Jolene rolled her eyes. “Would someone please pass the chocolate cake?”

This, of course, led to a major squabble between the two ladies. I used the excuse to check on the children, who were eating cupcakes at a nearby table with my sister, Sophia and her husband. Their chatter felt tame in comparison to the adults. From a distance I caught a glimpse of Mrs. Davidson. She whispered something in her husband’s ear and then the two of them walked across the lawn, away from the chaos. I didn’t blame them.

A couple of minutes later, Lily and Cecil joined me at the children’s table.

“Great. This is just great.” Lily shook her head. “Our parents hate each other.”

“No they don’t.” Cec spoke the words but I noticed the strained tone. “I’ve never know my parents to hate anyone.”

“Till now.” She sighed and plopped down onto the picnic bench.

“Everything will work out okay. And don’t worry about the honeymoon thing. We can go to Gulfport any time, Lily. I don’t mind.”

“Are you sure? Your parents won’t be offended?” Her gaze traveled to his mother, who swiped her eyes with the back of her hand.

“Last I checked, they weren’t coming with us on our honeymoon.” Cecil’s cheeks flamed pink. He reached to take Lily’s hand and gave it a squeeze.

“Well, I know, but the very last thing on the planet I’d want to do is upset my future mother-in-law.” Lily looked my way. “What would you do, Bella?”

I hated to cause more confusion, but spoke my mind. “Girl, I’d go to Paris, but that’s just me. I can’t tell you what to do. Surely his parents will forgive you.”

“Listen to Bella, Lily.” Cecil slipped his arm around his bride-to-be’s shoulder. I’m guessing Mama’s a little jealous that we’re going to Paris. That’s her motivation for reacting so strongly. But even at that, she wouldn’t keep us from going to see the Eiffel tower in person. And just for the record, they told me that they’ll give us some traveling money. That will be their gift to us.”

“Really?” Lily’s eyes glistened. “That’s so sweet of them.”

“Yep. So, settle in, Mrs. Davidson. You’re going to see the Seine, traverse the tower and amble the art museums.”

“I can’t wait.” The dreamy expression in her voice shared her thoughts on the matter. “I’m looking forward to every single minute.”

Cecil’s nose wrinkled and I could tell he had something else on his mind. I was just about to step away and give the couple some privacy when D.J. approached.

“I do feel like we should talk about my parents, though.”

“What about them?” Lily asked.

“Nothing to do with the honeymoon. Just something. . .in general. I hope you won’t take this the wrong way.” Cecil raked his fingers through his hair. “But all of this will just take time.”

“What will take time?”

“The stuff with my parents. This is all quite an adjustment for them.”

“All of. . .what?” Lily looked genuinely confused.

“It’s hard not to just state the obvious, babe, but my family doesn’t, well, come from money.”

“Huh?” Lily looked more perplexed than ever.

“I’m just saying it’s hard not to compare yourself to others when the others live a completely different lifestyle than you. That’s all.”

“I. . .I. . .” Lily shook her head and I could read the confusion in her eyes.

I tried to think of something helpful to say, but nothing came to me. I’d just opened my mouth to attempt something reasonable when D.J. stopped me.

My sweetie put up his hand and said, “Let me take this, Bella.” He gestured for Cecil to take a seat and then rested his hand on the back of the chair. “I know exactly what you’re going through, Cecil.”

“You do?” Cec and I spoke in unison.

“Yes.” D.J. nodded, his gaze on me but his words directed at Cecil. “When I married Bella I was a nervous wreck. The Rossi family was, well. . .”