"And, honey, the great part is,” Mavis continued, “you don't need to sign up for a two-year program. The center has a set of week-long workshops they do a couple of times a year. They'll be bringing in teachers from all over the country. That's what we're going to. It'll be fun. You'll see."

"Do I have to send my work to London? Harriet asked.

"Of course not. That's just for the two-year program, and then only if you want that certificate."

"What kind of classes do they have?"

Mavis poured hot water from an electric pot sitting on the table over the used tea bag in her floral china teacup.

"They have all sorts.” She pulled a folder from the canvas tote that held her current hand-stitching project. “Let's see here.” She adjusted the tilt of her bifocals. “You could take hand piecing classes. There are several people teaching that. Marla Stevens is coming from Indiana to teach dye techniques."

"Don't you think it's a little soon for me to be taking time off from the business?” Harriet asked. “I mean, it's only been two months since I took over, and during those two months, Aiden's mom was murdered and my studio was trashed and I was held at gunpoint-let's not forget that part. I'm just now getting a normal routine going. I hate to upset the apple cart."

Mavis folded back the cuff of her faded green-and-brown plaid flannel shirt. “That's all true, but with the Loose Threads going to the workshop, your workload will be reduced, and your aunt Beth is willing to come out of retirement and stitch anything that has to be done. I asked her. The Wal-Mart in Port Angeles has tablecloths on sale, so Beth and I went yesterday to get pastel cloths for the guild's mother-daughter tea. We were talking about the workshop, and she said since she's just back from her cruise and still getting settled into her new place, she was only going to come to the open house part. I asked her if she would be willing to cover any emergency stitching that needed doing, and she said of course she would, so there you have it. You're free to come."