“First everything,” she admitted.
Another man with dark hair and a zip-up jacket joined Mr. Hatter’s side. He punched him in the shoulder and inclined his head to his left. Mr. Hatter nodded to him in unspoken communication and then tilted in again.
“Excuse me, Miss Carroll. Now that the surprise is over, I think we should take this to a quieter location. Would you care to join me?”
Oh goodness, this was really happening. She was really his grand prize winner. Adelie wasn’t sure what was more spine-tingling: that she was the winner, or his proximity and the prospect of having been invited somewhere by him. Either way, she’d take it.
Get a grip, she told herself. He's only inviting you because you're his winner.
“Where?” she managed.
“My office. Things will be much calmer there, and I can answer whatever questions you might have.”
Questions. Yes. She had those. Adelie had to admit, after such a bustling, emotional day, some solitude would be nice. She’d been looking forward to escaping the noise and crowds.
“That would be great. Do you mind if my sister comes?”
“Not at all.”
Mr. Hatter waved to the crowd, but it was already dispersing. People weren’t leaving the park, though—they were riding rides and enjoying their day in spite of the contest’s close. Several park guests even commended him on such a fun idea.
Dozens of riddle cards littered the walkways, being picked up by workers in imaginative, baggy uniforms with brightly colored pants in varying shades of the primary colors. Adelie walked in an unbalanced way as if on loose ground, her brain disconnected from the rest of her.
Suzie linked arms with her, slanting in as they went. “You!” she said under her breath. “You said you didn’t even want to come, and now look what happened.”
“I know. I know.” Adelie picked up the pace, scurrying to keep up with Mr. Hatter and his friend. The two men were caught in conversation, speaking in hushed tones a pace in front of them, darting the occasional glance back at Adelie. Every time his gaze connected with hers, it cinched something in her stomach.
What were they saying? Were they talking about her? If so, she wasn’t sure how she felt about all this attention.
“What’s the scoop?” Suzie asked under her breath. “When do you get the money?”
Adelie shushed her. Mr. Hatter said he would tell her. She wasn’t about to be greedy about it or demand the money. This was his offer, his challenge, and he would make good on it, considering the crowds and the news crew that still seemed to be flocking, filming rides and interviewing participants. Wendy and her cameraman lingered near the mechanical caterpillar on his mushroom with another group of people who claimed they’d seen the whole thing happen.
Mr. Hatter and his friend stopped before a house with the words W. Rabbit on the nameplate in the grass out front. It had a thatched roof like the March Hare’s house, kitschy but without the ears.
“In here,” Mr. Hatter said, leading the way around the back. He ambled along a series of steppingstones veering to a misshapen door with a fat knob and a tiny keyhole. Mr. Hatter rested his thumb on a portion of the windowsill. A beep sounded, a small green light flashed, and he turned the too-big knob to enter.
Adelie and Suzie exchanged a look. She would never have guessed the door would open at all, let alone lead into what appeared to be the back end of a prestigious office.
The interior was completely different from the park’s exaggerated details. This was plain and stuffy, devoid of pictures on the walls or anything to add contrast apart from speckled linoleum beneath their feet and the blinds covering the windows.
“My office is just through here,” Mr. Hatter said. He slowed his pace to match Adelie and Suzie’s and led the way down the short hall. Where did this lead out to? She wished she’d paid more attention to the house’s surroundings.
“Did you ladies enjoy your time at the park today?” he asked.
“Are you kidding?” Suzie responded. “It was amazing. The rides, the crowd, the rush. Seriously, we’ve had the best day.”
Mr. Hatter smiled at her as they rounded a corner, but his eyes moved toward Adelie. She was used to Suzie soaking up attention from men. It’d been that way for as long as she could remember. And though Suzie had a great boyfriend right now, Mr. Hatter wouldn’t know as much.
At this point, when they’d meet men the first time, most guys would keep their attention on Suzie for the remainder of the conversation. Not Mr. Hatter. His interest deepened as it landed on Adelie. She couldn’t help but sizzle under the impact.
“And you, my winner? What did you think?”
His winner. She’d never been a man’s anything. Adelie chided herself. She really needed to stop acting as though he had any interest in her aside from being a participant, and winner, today.
Multiple answers strung through Adelie’s mind. She settled on the least confusing one. “I think everything was unexpected.”
“Unexpected?” His brows lifted. “That’s a substantial word.”
Substantial? Adelie thought it over. That could be taken in a few different ways, she supposed. She decided to clear whatever confusion he had.
“I meant it in a good way,” she said. Too good. The words fifty-thousand dollars continued to trumpet in her mind.
They turned another corner and approached a receptionist sitting at the desk. She gave them an acknowledging nod. Mr. Hatter tapped the desk in greeting before leading the way to an office.
The space was bright, professional, and squared. Squared room, squared-off black, leather chairs, even the pots holding plants along the window were square. Still, it was comfortable, as much as an office could be.
“Please, have a seat,” he said, gesturing to a pair of armless, leather chairs.
Suzie took the farthest one with so much exuberance it slid from its place on the floor. “Whoops,” she said sheepishly, scooting it back into place.
Adelie sank into the seat next to her. Mr. Hatter sat in his seat and the other man, in jeans and a button-up shirt beneath a zipped-up jacket, rested his weight against the bar off to the side.
“This is my associate, Duncan Hawthorne,” Mr. Hatter said.
Mr. Hawthorne gave a small wave.
“I want to formally congratulate you, Miss Carroll,” Mr. Hatter said.
Away from the crowds and the pressure of the moment, the pieces began to click together. Her breathing came easier, and her thoughts seemed to be less scrambled. “That’s why you were there at the tea table,” Adelie said. “You were waiting for someone to figure it out.”
“I’d been wandering around March Hare’s house all day,” he said.
“So?” Suzie piped in, her eyes darting from one man to the other. “Fifty-thousand dollars?”
CHAPTER SIX
“Suz.” Adelie dipped her head in embarrassment. Her sister had many childlike qualities, but this lack of filter—or apparent lack of any tact whatsoever—left something to be desired.
Mr. Hatter chuckled and stood from his seat, coming around to slump against the front of his desk. “Yes. About that. How would you feel about a different offer, Miss—can I call you Adelie?”