appearance, but her voice was kinder and her gaze softer. “I would love to.”
I jolted. Had I heard her right? What had happened to the old Tish? I glanced past her and spied a whirlwind of glittery energy. As the flurry settled, I made out Fiona dancing in a circle overhead.
“I adore the Tuck Box,” Tish added. “I haven’t been in years. It will be fun.”
“Fun,” I murmured.
Fiona whizzed to me and landed on my shoulder. “I worked a little magic.”
Tish didn’t acknowledge Fiona, but she gazed directly into my eyes. “I know you’ve heard what happened to my daughter. Hedda Hopewell is a client of mine. She said you and she talked at the council meeting. When my daughter joined the cult, I started drinking gin. A lot of gin. I went through a terrible bout of self-pity and self-recrimination. One night, I fell in my garden”—she dragged a finger along her abraded cheek—“I grazed the stone wall and...” She hesitated. “And a fairy came to help me.”
“A fairy?”
“I didn’t want to believe it. I thought I was hallucinating. I stopped drinking that instant and blocked the incident from my mind. My scar was my reminder of a life ruined, and I turned inward and grim. But your sweet fairy wouldn’t give up on me. Or so I hear. I haven’t met her. She came to my garden and encouraged my nurturer fairy to try again.”
“She did what?” I gawped.
“I wasn’t socializing,” Fiona stated, and held up a pinky. “I asked for permission from Merryweather.”
“You have a nurturer fairy?” I asked Tish.
“Yes. I saw Zephyr three nights ago for the first time in ages. She was playing a flute. I’m quite partial to flute music.” Tish grabbed my hands. Her cheeks glowed with positive energy. “Thank you. For believing. And for being persistent. Let’s do tea next week. How about Wednesday afternoon?”
“S-sure,” I stammered, still absorbing her transformation.
She squeezed my hands and hurried out of the shop.
As she left, Ulani Kamaka sashayed in. “Miss Kelly, do you have a moment?” She held out a newspaper to me.
I stiffened. “Is this an article about the murder? If so, I don’t want to—”
“It’s not.” She looked at me shrewdly. “Yes, I wrote something, but the piece was turned down. Sharing ordinary news about Carmel is what I do best. I will drive in the proper lane from now on.” She waved the newspaper. “As promised, I’ve written a rave review of your shop. It should help business soar.”
Fiona flew in front of Ulani and waved at her. Ulani didn’t blink. “She still can’t see me,” Fiona said. “Maybe someday. I’m off to a seminar. See you.”
As Fiona took flight, Ulani glanced in her direction. She couldn’t see her yet, I mused, but she was on the verge.
If only my father would be open to the possibility.
Recipes
From Courtney:
These sandwiches are pretty, and delicious, and so easy to make. The trick is to make sure the Brie is at room temperature. If you don’t like Brie cheese, substitute cream cheese.
Brie and Strawberry Tea Sandwiches
(Yield: 6 full sandwiches; 24 quarter sandwiches)
12 slices thin white bread
8 ounces Brie cheese, softened at room temperature, rind
removed
⅓ cup mayonnaise
½ teaspoon sugar
2-4 tablespoons finely chopped fresh basil
12 fresh strawberries, hulled and sliced
more basil leaves for garnish
Trim the crusts from all the slices of bread.
In a bowl, mix the Brie cheese with the mayonnaise, sugar, and basil.
Spread the Brie mixture thinly on all of the slices of bread. Top half of the slices with strawberries. Set the remaining bread slices on top. Cut into rectangles or triangles. If necessary, cover the sandwiches with a damp paper towel or store in a sealed container until needed. You don’t want them to dry out. Garnish with additional basil.
From Brady:
The biggest trick to baking with caramel, my grandmother says, is to let the baked goods cool completely after baking. Wait, wait, wait. Two hours at minimum. Also make sure you don’t overbake these blondies. Dry blondies are no fun.
Caramel Blondies
(Yield: 9 blondies)
2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
1 cup butter (2 sticks), melted and cooled a tad
1½ cups packed brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
½ cup salted caramel sauce, prepared ahead, kept warm (see
recipe below)
½ cup chopped pecans or cashews
fleur de sel
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Butter a 9 x 9-inch baking pan or spray with nonstick cooking spray. Set aside.
In a small bowl, mix the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar