“Ah, you must be Zinnia’s little frenemy!”
Kallie shook her head. “I don’t know what that—”
“You simply must come inside for some tea. Holly, go put the kettle on.” The girl rose from the bench and went inside the cottage, and Basil’s neck cracked as he looked Kallie up and down. “You might have to stoop a bit to fit through the door. Might be more comfortable out here. It is quite a nice view of the stream from the stump. Oh, I’m delighted you’re here. I’ve been dying to hear your side of the story for ages.”
Kallie’s brow furrowed as the little man reached up to take her arm and led her over to the stump he’d vacated. “The story?”
“Oh, you know, all those little adventures she met you on back in her hero days. When you worked for that nefarious organization I always forget the name of.” He tugged on her arm until she sat down. “Ah, here’s Holly with the biscuits. You’ll love these. Don’t suppose you ever tried Tabios Tea Bites, being from Kreyfall and all, but I’m sure they’ll remind you of home just the same. It took some tweaking to get the flavor right using only Evergreen ingredients—texture, too—but I think we’ve managed.”
Holly held the plate out expectantly, and Kallie blinked and obediently took one of the biscuits. “Thank you.”
Basil beamed at her. “You’ll stay for supper, won’t you? I’ve been experimenting with recipes and I love having new people to test them on. Zinnia and Wren will be back by then, so we’ll be a merry party.”
“We could open up that wine from home,” Holly chimed in.
Kallie was sure Basil’s grin would tear his face open if it got any wider. “Excellent notion! This is the perfect occasion.”