Innkeeping with Murder - Tim Myers [21]
Elise caught and held his eye, and Alex felt the intensity of her look. In a serious tone, Elise said, “I think your manners are refreshing. Don’t try to change them on my account.”
“Thank God. It’ll be wonderful just being myself.”
Elise added, “Just don’t treat me any differently than you did Marisa while we’re at the inn, okay?”
Alex smiled slightly. “I kept a clean handkerchief available for her crying jags. Do I need to offer the same service to you?”
“No, but thanks for asking. Marisa is something else, isn’t she?”
“That’s one way of putting it.” Alex opened his menu and studied the offerings. When he looked up, he noticed Elise was looking at him instead of the menu.
Alex said, “What’s the matter, do I have bread crumbs on my face?”
“No, it’s just that I took the liberty of ordering for us. Irma wanted to see how I prepared my picata, so I made three.”
Alex smiled. “She’s a hard woman to resist, isn’t she? I’ve never been able to say no to her myself.”
“I think she’s delightful.”
As if on cue, Irma came to their table carrying two steaming plates filled with all of his favorites. Irma knew what Alex liked, since he always ordered the same thing every time he came to the restaurant He noticed that there was also a small portion of veal picata on his plate, along with the spaghetti and the ravioli combination platter he normally requested.
Irma surveyed the table. “What, no wine? You can’t eat my food without a touch of the grape. I won’t allow it.” She called over her shoulder to their waiter, “Marty, bring a nice bottle of Chianti, on the house.”
Elise took her plate from Irma. “So what do you think of my recipe?”
Irma gave out a hearty laugh. “It was delicious. I ate my own in the kitchen, and then helped myself to half
of Alex’s. You can come back anytime, Elise, with or without this fellow here.”
Elise offered her thanks as Irma moved to another table across the room. Alex hadn’t realized how hungry the day’s activities had made him. He ate with hearty gusto and was surprised to look up from his empty plate to see Elise smiling at him.
She grinned and said, “So, how did you like the picata, or did you have a chance to taste it?”
“I missed lunch, and everything was so good.” He kissed his fingertips in the air. “The picata was excellent.”
Elise’s dimples appeared. “It’s nice to see someone enjoy a meal so much. The Dantons were much more critical eaters, even though they always managed to clean their plates.”
Elise abruptly changed the subject. “I’ve been dying to ask you about this, but I really don’t know how to go about it.”
“Tonight, all answers are half-price, and the first one’s free. Ask away.”
“How on earth did your lighthouse get to be built in the mountains? And how did you end up owning it?”
“That’s two questions, but I can satisfy your curiosity with one long, drawn-out story that will probably bore you to tears. It’s all ancient family history.”
Elise shifted her chair a little closer to Alex as she took another sip of wine. “I’d really love to hear about it.”
Alex said, “It all started back in 1883. My great-grandfather Adlai Winston had a farm about forty miles from here in Alexander County. A fellow named J. O. Lackey found a vein of mica on the property next to Adlai’s. Lackey knew about precious stones and such, so he was bright enough to keep looking, since mica’s one of the indicators that there’s a chance of gemstones nearby. Turns out he found thirty-six small emeralds. Well, that got Adlai awfully curious, so he started scouting around on his own property. It soon became apparent he was sitting on a war chest full of emeralds and other precious stones. The biggest one he pulled out weighed in at just under thirteen carats.”
Elisa interrupted. “Mercy. That must have been worth a fortune.”
Alex smiled softly. “Yes, and that’s what Adlai got for the stone. This was all before the federal income tax, too, so the money was