Bluegrass State of Mind(24)

She took a peek into Henry's office as they walked by. It was a big square room with the normal office furniture. All the surfaces were covered with papers and folders as is typical for an attorney’s workspace. As they continued down the hall, Kenna felt Henry's hand sliding lower until it rested just above her bottom.

She smiled and gave a slight shake of her head. "Henry, dear, this is your last warning. If you don't want to pull back a nub and lose your ability to have children..." Kenna said in a slight, singsong voice. She counted to three and then dug the heel of her pump onto his big toe with just enough pressure to get his attention but not enough to make him limp… well, only limp for a couple of hours anyway.

Henry yelped and pulled his arm back to its original location. He shook out his foot and then gave Kenna a full grin. "You're going to be so much fun as a roomie. Come on, let me show you the offices and the library. At the end of the hall on the right is the copy room. It circles around there and you come out behind Tammy's desk. If you agree to rent the space, Tammy will be responsible for answering your phone and taking messages. You can also leave things at the front desk for pickup." They had stopped outside the third office and Kenna took a peek into a nicely furnished library next to it. Old leather chairs sat around a coffee table and a larger conference table. The room ran the length of half the building. From what Henry told her, on the other side of the far right wall was the kitchen that was accessible through the copy room. She looked over to Henry, who now had his hands in his pockets and seemed completely harmless. He was a bit of a snake, but she still liked him. "So, what do you think?"

"I'll take it." Kenna held out her hand and Henry took it and shook it enthusiastically.

"This will be great. Come on, let's celebrate. Tammy! Go get us some drinks, love. We have a new tenant." Tammy gave off a squeal and a couple of minutes later ran back into Kenna's new office with three glasses of champagne.

"You have champagne in the refrigerator at the office?" she asked.

"Sure do. Bottles of it for just this reason. Also have a nice assortment of bourbon. Since you’re a Yankee, I don't think you'd be up to handling that. We'll save it for when you want to seduce me," Henry winked. It was delivered so smoothly that Kenna couldn't help but laugh.





* * *





Kenna left an hour later after deciding what furniture she needed and signing the lease agreement. She had assurances from Henry and Tammy that they'd order the new sign for out front. Kenna couldn't keep the smile off her face as she left the building. She looked up the street and saw Southern Charms. She thought about stopping to pick up Paige for their dinner date when she heard the courthouse clock chime once, indicating it was now six fifteen. Realizing she was late, Kenna turned down the street and hurried to the Blossom Cafe.

As she approached the cafe, she noticed the street was filled with cars. The cafe was packed. She was hopeful that Paige was able to get a table. Kenna thought of the homemade food, and as if on cue, her stomach growled. As she entered the cafe, cheers broke out as all the patrons turned to Kenna and clapped. Kenna's brows knit together , and she realized her mouth was hanging open a little.

"What's going on?" She looked over the happy crowd and saw all the people she had met the other night and some faces she didn't recognize. But there was one face she noticed wasn't in the crowd, Will’s. Well, fine. He was with his wife anyway. Grr! It made her mad just to think about it.

Paige made her way through the crowd and held up her arms. "It's your celebration party, Assistant D.A. Mason! Congrats on the new job and welcome to Keeneston!" The place erupted with cheers, whistles, and an array of welcomes.

"But, how do you know already? I haven't told anyone except Henry and Tammy. It's only been a couple of hours since I left Tom's office."

"You can't keep anything a secret in Keeneston. Besides, Martha called," Roger Burns said as he slowly made his way up front to shake Kenna's hand. "Glad my son did the right thing and hired you instead of that sniveling brat. You'll actually do a good job. Now, let’s eat." Roger made his way back to his table, and the rest of the patrons found their seats, happy conversation flowing through the room.

Paige led Kenna to a table in the middle of the room where Miss Daisy and Miss Violet had already placed some food. Kenna looked at it and couldn't really figure out what it was. There was something underneath some kind of thick cream sauce. Cheese sat on top of that, accompanied by a couple slices of bacon and topped off with a slice of tomato.

Miss Daisy bustled over full of congratulations, "Now sit yourself down for a spell. You must be exhausted after all the excitement."