“How can you be so certain? About the day, I mean?” Griff’s middle churned.
“’Cause the long visit was on my birthday. I remember I offered them some of my cake and homemade vanilla ice cream. When they accepted, I carried it in and saw the papers sitting right there on Mr. K.’s desk. I didn’t have to read but the first line before I figured it was Mr. K.’s will.”
“Maybe he didn’t sign it until later.” His heart thudded and he tried to rationalize this before he jumped to any conclusions.
She shook her head, and then poured the batter into the round cake pans, scraping the sides of the bowl. “Nope, I didn’t read the middle part, but I did see the last page, you know they call that the signature page. It was all done, signed, dated, witnessed, notarized—the whole shebang.”
“And that was how long before he passed away?” Could it be true? Could Dolly be a witness?
“Two weeks to the day.” Her voice grew sad. “I miss him still. The girls never got over it.” She lifted the spoon and pointed at him, saying, “But now you asking, I wonder what happened to that paper?” Her eyes held sadness. She shook her head. “Maybe it wasn’t a will, maybe something else. Another paper and the two got mixed up, one page of one and another page of another…”
“You doubt what you saw?”
She dropped the wooden spoon back in the bowl. It clanked against the ceramic. “I been holding it back for so long, not wanting to think it was. Not wanting to think the worst.”
“The worst?” He held his breath.
“Coulda been Mrs. K. got Mr. K. to sign another one she’d drawn up the day before he died, forged one of her own and she sold everyone down the river, or the lawyer friend was the thief she claimed he was all along and she had to bring in her own lawyer to protect the King family.”
His middle dropped. Would uncovering the original will expose the truth about all of them, including his father?
***
“What’s this? Something smells delicious in here,” Priscilla cried when she walked in the back door a few hours later with Edward trailing behind her. “Edward picked me up and wouldn’t tell me what was going on.”
She looked to Griff. He shrugged, nodding to the glass cake stand. “Surprise.”
“For me? Chocolate ganache cake.” She squealed with delight, rushing to him and throwing her arms around him. He hugged her back and she kissed him on the lips. “Thank you for thinking of me. You’re so sweet.”
“That has to be a first,” he muttered.
“Funny,” she said, wiggling out of his arms and going around the counter to hug Dolly. “Thank you so much, Dolly.” She kissed her on the cheek.
The older woman blushed. “Ah, shucks, honey. Mr. G. called and said you’ve been working so hard and doing such a great job, he thought of a reward for you and here I am. I made lasagna, too; it’s in the oven on warm.” She tugged off her apron and folded it neatly before storing it in the waiting box. “You two enjoy—”
Griff cut her off. “You’re invited to stay.”
Priscilla’s jaw nearly dropped. Her McGruff actually had allowed someone to breach his protective shield, come into his kitchen and cook, and now he wanted his guests to stay. Well, wonders never cease.
“Please, stay,” she said, looking from Dolly to Edward. “Alex is out of town and Charlie is working late, so, Edward, you don’t have to pick her up until later. And why go back to an empty house to fix dinner, Dolly, when you’ve already done so here?”
“Well, I’ll be. What you think, Eddie, you game?”
His wide smile spread across his face. “I love your lasagna.”
“That settles it,” Griff said, going to the cupboard and pulling out the new aqua blue plates.
Priscilla watched in awe as her husband moved with ease, handing her and the others the placemats, silverware, glasses, and utensils. His easy movements told her more than words could ever convey. He was comfortable in his home. Now, that was a first.
She went up to him, sliding her arms around him and leaning her head against his back.
“What’s this?” he asked, turning to her and enveloping her against his chest. His heartbeat, strong and steady, warmed her.
“I like this,” she murmured.
“The surprise?”
“Definitely. But this, too, us. Family.”
His arms tightened around her. “Family,” he repeated, but it sounded like a foreign word coming from him.
***
“Here you go,” Griffin said, handing over the box filled with Dolly’s cooking things to Edward to store in the trunk of the car. “That’s the last of them.”