Page 71 of Honey Drop Dead

“That’s a wonderful idea,” Theodosia said. “And we could actually still promote it. By word of mouth, anyway. I’ll phone a few of the nearby B and Bs and tell them we’re doing a special Honey Tea. There’s always a good chance they’ll send some of their guests our way.”

“I love that idea,” Haley said. “The neat thing about being in the Historic District is having all sorts of small businesses clustered around us. We can all work together and benefit from a kind of reciprocity.”

“A quid pro quo,” Drayton agreed.

Then Haley smiled, hunched her shoulders forward, let out a wide yawn, and said, “Tired.”

“Then hustle your bustle upstairs,” Theodosia said. “Chill out with your little cat Teacake in your apartment and take it easy. Lord knows you deserve it. Especially after last night.” She peered at Haley. “Did you talk to Ben today?”

“He called me a little while ago,” Haley said.

“And he’s doing okay?” Theodosia said.

“No harm done?” Drayton asked.

“He’s still angry,” Haley said. “But I guess he’ll get over it.” Then she yawned again, gave a tired wave, and wandered back into the kitchen.

“Can you believe she worked the entire day after last night’s chaos?” Drayton asked.

“Yes, I can,” Theodosia said. “Because Haley’s got moxie.”

Drayton smiled. “There’s a word you don’t hear much anymore.”

“I’ll tell you someone else who knows how to hang tough—and that’s Philip Boldt. He’s not only trying to get his restaurant up and running, he’s constantly supporting and cheerleading for Holly.”

“A fine young man,” Drayton said.

“Actually, that fine young man invited us to dinner tonight at his ghost kitchen.”

Drayton frowned. “What are you talking about? You mean the place is haunted?”

“No, it’s because the Boldt Hole isn’t officially open yet. So Philip is making do with a limited takeout menu. People stop by a window in this cute little back alley and pick up their orders—thus a ghost kitchen. Or customers can place their order through delivery services like Grubhub or Uber Eats.”

“Ah, like a drive-in,” Drayton said. “But we’d be dining at a table?”

“That would be the general idea, yes.”

“Sounds good. Count me in.”

Theodosia looked at her watch. “We should take off in another ten or fifteen minutes. But first I need to make a phone call.”

“Calling Riley? To see how the Claxton investigation is going?” Drayton asked.

“Actually, this is a just-in-case kind of phone call.”

“Sounds mysterious.”

Theodosia smiled. “It kind of is.”

23

Theodosia drove down Broad Street, then over to Queen, her sound system oozing moody jazz as they headed for the Boldt Hole.

“This is nice,” Drayton said.

“You mean the music?”

“Really the whole package. Music, fine dining, good company.”

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