Page 110 of The Seven Rings
“You were honest, and that was persuasive.”
“You gave Sonya, and me,” Winter added, “family we didn’t know we had.”
“That was Collin’s wish, or one of them. What I didn’t know that day was you would honor not only his wishes but the dreams he had before he lost Johanna.”
“They’re my dreams now, too.”
“Tell us about some of them,” Corrine prompted. “What you plan.”
“Oh, well. Top goal has to be finding seven wedding rings and how they’ll move someone who won’t be named at the moment out of the manor. In the meantime, we’ll keep going through everything in storage, making use. Taking ownership, one room at a time.”
“I now have a gorgeous vanity in the room I use when I’m here.”
“It was Catherine’s, and that was her room. We put it back. And we found a desk that was Lisbeth’s, and it’s in the room she had. Eventually, I’m hoping to tackle the servants’ quarters, find a use for them, furnish them, and hopefully that lightens up the ballroom so we can open it again.”
“We’d throw some blow-up-your skirt holiday parties with a ballroom.”
Sonya grinned at Cleo. “Wouldn’t we? And there’s a space up there where we’re talking about displaying some of the amazing clothes stored in trunks. A kind of fashion history. If Poole’s Bay had a museum, or there was a way to help fund one, we could donate or lend—whatever it would be—at least some of them. They’ve been beautifully kept.”
“A museum.” Ace pursed his lips. “Hmm.”
“Seed planted,” Paula said.
“Let me give that some thought.”
“Those are very fine dreams.” Corrine’s wistful smile matched her tone. “Collin and Johanna shared some of them. I may not be strong and strapping like some at the table, but I hope if you need an extra hand, you’ll call on me. I’m a hell of an organizer.”
“I can attest,” Trey said.
When the meal ended, and Sonya got up to clear, everyone stood.
“No, please sit, relax.”
“Absolutely not.” Corrine continued stacking plates. “We all ate, we all help. Then, I’m with Anna. We want to see that gift-wrapping room.”
“We can take a little break before dessert.” Cleo led the way into the house.
“I heard a rumor about cream puffs.”
“That’s a fact,” Cleo told Ace. “And they’ll go perfectly with the peach ice cream we made last night.”
“Homemade peach ice cream.” Deuce pressed a hand to his belly. “Somebody should’ve told me.”
“Just stack everything up for now,” Sonya said. “A walk through the house, and upstairs, will help work up a dessert appetite.”
It took time to bring it all in before Sonya could lead the way.
“I see changes already. Good ones,” Corrine decided. “And you’ve framed some of the photos you found, too.”
“With names and approximate dates on the back. You all really helped us there,” Sonya told her. “You and Deuce, Ace and Paula. And Clarice Poole.”
“I remembered this one.” After giving Mookie a quick pat, Ace tapped a photo. “At a party when I was strong and strapping—and younger than these two. Michael and Patricia were already married, and living on the other side of the village.”
He angled his head in thought. “Michael came, as I recall. Patricia, of course, didn’t. A Poole cousin visited from New York or Boston, maybe Chicago. I danced with her a time or two. Julia—one of the Haverton line. Pretty girl. But not as pretty as my own darling.”
He gave her a kiss on the cheek. “I do like dancing with pretty girls.”
“I’d worry if you didn’t.”
