by Donna McLean
Pearce Allen leaned toward her without saying a word. A smile curved his lips, suddenly, like a sunbeam breaking through stormy clouds.
Addie melted into his arms. “You, my dear, were wonderful!”
The young couple kissed passionately.
Pearce Allen pushed her away and grasped both shoulders. He said, his tone reproving, “You, my dear, were very, very convincing.”
Addie shrugged and leaned in for another kiss. “You, my pet, forget that I live in Tilda’s backyard. We should secretly nickname her Hawkeye Tilda, who sees all and figures everything out! We couldn’t risk putting her in danger, too. Therefore, I had to be convincing.”
He tenderly shook her by her lovely shoulders. “But did you have to convince her so convincingly? Hanging all over that Dane Donovan—”
“The way you hung all over that Elyse Donovan!” Addie retorted.
“Let’s not argue. We’ve been apart too long.”
“And being apart was awful! Let’s never be apart again.”
Pearce Allen enfolded her in his arms. Addie placed her cheek against his chest, and listened to his heart beating.
The young man said, “I had to act fast. The day Elyse showed up looking for Dane I didn’t have a chance to call you! I thought she could blow our cover really fast, and then the whole scheme would fall apart.”
“And the con artists would escape, just as they had done countless times before, every time the police got near them.” Addie snuggled a little closer to Pearce Allen, who placed his chin on top of her strawberry blond head. “I’m glad it’s all over. It’s tough work, conning a con. Douglas thanks us, by the way, for unofficially assisting with the official investigation.”
“Good thing you recognized Dane’s picture from that research you were doing on your laptop,” the young man commented with an editor’s appreciation for a job well done. “That article on con artists who specialize in scamming the elderly should turn out to be an award winner for you in the field of investigative journalism!”
They laughed. Then he touched her cheek gently, and traced the curve of her chin. “I still feel a bit guilty about deceiving Ms. MacArdan, even though it was for her protection. Are you absolutely certain that Tilda never suspected a thing?” he asked, pondering this minor miracle.
“Not a thing,” Addie said with sublime confidence, and kissed him again.
* * *
Delcie Needles pursed her lips. “Tilda MacArdan! I knew all the time you were up to something!” She frowned. “I just couldn’t figure out what it was, that’s all.”
The little lady laughed. She waved off her friend’s disapproving tone and bent over a yellow tulip, pulling it toward her nose to hide a smile. “Well, ladies, I just had to help Addie and Pearce Allen along, otherwise, the whole town would have known they were after the con artists, and the con artists would probably have heard about it sooner or later, gossip being what it is around here, and then the con artists would take off again and never be caught! So I couldn’t let anybody in on the secret, now could I?”
“But you didn’t know they were con artists,” Delcie pointed out, smugly.
“No, ma’am, I didn’t know that much. But I knew Addie and Pearce Allen were too much in love to break up all of a sudden the way they did, and then, when she went after that Dane Donovan, well, it got me to thinking. I didn’t know what it all meant but it had to mean something!”
Hazel said, “And so you played right along with it.” Her eyes twinkled.
Peggy’s face was downcast. “I really thought the Donovans were the real McGrady twins, and that they would inherit all that money. And Dane would marry Addie—”
“And Pearce Allen would marry Elyse,” Magda said.
“And they would all be very, very wealthy!” Peggy murmured.
“It would have been so romantic,” Magda sighed.
“A double wedding, in the month of June!” Hazel added wistfully.
The volunteer gardeners stopped chatting and their eyes rested upon the beautiful yellow and pink tulip bed that was now in full bloom, with a blue ribbon hanging from the Welcome to Sparrow Falls sign. The ribbon had been awarded to the Official Ladies Garden Club for “Most Innovative Display.”
Peggy and Magda read the sign aloud in unison, and giggled.
Delcie frowned. She was not amused!
Hazel glanced to one side and murmured, “Look, y’all!”
Pearce Allen and Addie window-shopped along the quaint stores of Main Street, hands clasped, heads bent, murmuring to each other softly, as though sharing lovers’ secrets.
“June is the perfect month for weddings,” Tilda MacArdan said thoughtfully.
She smiled.
About the Series
The Sparrow Falls Mystery series features spunky senior citizen Tilda MacArdan, irrepressible redhead Addie McRae, and the mysterious story keeper of the old Scotch burying ground, Morwenna Goss, as they unravel clues and solve cozy mysteries revolving around the Scottish history of a small town in modern day North Carolina. The author, Donna McLean, is fascinated by genealogy, local lore and legend, cats and classic mysteries. She also blogs about and reviews clean books on her author website, comfycozybooks.com.
