Two weeks later, on a Saturday, there was great excitement at the Alden home. The whole family was going to town for a special event. Violet was extra eager to get to Greenfield.
Grandfather smiled down at her. “I know you didn’t do every bit of the plan,” he said. “But you did come up with the best ideas. I’m very proud of you.”
Violet beamed. She’d brushed her hair and checked her outfit in the mirror more than once. She was wearing jeans and her favorite purple sweater. “We haven’t seen the finished product,” she told her grandfather. “I’m super excited to see how everything looks all together.”
Benny came hopping down the stairs to the front hallway. “Where are our aprons?” he asked. “We have to have them. And they have to be clean and neat!”
Henry and Jessie laughed as they came down the stairs behind Benny. “This might be the first time I’ve heard Benny insist on something being clean and neat,” said Jessie.
“Well, they are important items for the celebration, after all,” said Henry.
“Don’t worry, Benny,” said Jessie. “I have the aprons in my backpack. They’ve been washed and ironed.”
Benny looked relieved. “I sure wouldn’t want to look messy,” he said. Everyone laughed. Benny had never minded looking messy before.
As the Aldens drove to Greenfield, Benny said, “There’s a big surprise just for us—Dawn said so!” He bounced up and down in his seat.
“We know, Benny,” said Henry. “She also said we’d be surprised to see who’s working at Delilah’s now.”
“I just can’t wait to see how all of our ideas turned out,” said Violet. “It was kind of hard to go back to school this week. I kept thinking about what the final touches would look like.”
“I wonder what kind of party there’s going to be,” said Jessie. “It’s nice and warm today, so I think it will be outside.”
“I know something about it,” said Benny.
“What’s that?” asked Jessie.
“There will be plenty of…doughnuts!” Benny sang as he bounced. “Surprises and doughnuts! Surprises and doughnuts! We all love surprises and doughnuts!”
Grandfather and the children laughed.
Mr. Alden parked the car around the corner from Delilah’s. Benny wanted to race ahead, but Mr. Alden turned to talk to the children.
“This is a big day for all of you,” he told them. “Not only did you help redecorate Delilah’s, but you solved an important mystery for the shop. You’ve made some people very happy. You helped bring two brothers together too.” He hugged each of his grandchildren.
“And now, let’s celebrate!”
The Aldens could hear the sounds of people laughing and talking before they came around the corner. The first thing they saw, though, were the balloons. Blue, green, and white balloons were tied with ribbon to the newly painted bench out front, to new planters on either side of the bench, to the front door, and even to the waste bin and the streetlight in front of Delilah’s.
Children marched around, eating doughnuts and wearing blue and green party hats. Adults chatted, sipped coffee, and nibbled on doughnuts. Everyone seemed to be smiling.
“I see Officer Washington!” cried Benny. He waved to her.
“Congratulations,” said the officer. She came over and introduced herself to Mr. Alden. “This is a good day to celebrate the beautiful new shop,” she said. “I hear you children had a lot to do with that.”
“We just did some of the painting last weekend,” said Henry. “And we gave Dawn and Steve some ideas. They did the rest.”
“It’s not really a new shop, is it?” asked Jessie. “At least, I hope it hasn’t changed too much.”
“Go and see,” said Officer Washington. “I won’t hold you up.”
The Aldens went into Delilah’s.
“It’s so much brighter!” said Violet. “Look! The pictures are up again.”
Delilah’s had had a makeover: Gone was the flowered wallpaper. In its place were two cream-colored walls and two bright blue walls. Along the edges of the walls was a stripe of pale green trim. The posters and photos looked wonderful against the newly painted walls.
Gone too were the curtains. The windows were bright and shiny; sleek blinds were there to keep the sun out when needed. The wooden trim and the counter had all been sanded and polished smooth. From the ceiling hung bright globe-shaped light fixtures.
“Aldens!” called Dawn. She was wearing a blue apron now. It was the same shade as the walls and the same shade as the aprons the Alden children had.
“What do you think of our shop now?” asked Dawn.
“It’s great,” said Jessie. “I love the matching aprons. Does Steve have a blue one too?”
Dawn nodded. Steve, wearing his blue apron, was just coming out from the kitchen with a new tray of doughnuts. And right behind him came two more people, also wearing blue aprons.
“Nathan!” called Jessie.
“And Charlie too,” said Henry.
Charlie smiled as he approached. “I never did get used to people calling me that name. I’ve decided I like going by Dave better.”
“But aren’t you afraid people will know about your old business?” Benny whispered.
“Oh, that’s old news. I’ve got a new business I’m proud to be a part of.” Dave put his hand on his brother’s shoulder.
“And now we’ve got all the help we could need,” said Steve. “I lured Nathan back to Delilah’s too.”
Nathan blushed a little. “It was easy. Steve’s going to let me keep a notebook while I’m learning. No more sneaking in at night to practice.”
“You all look like a team now,” said Jessie. “We should put on our aprons too.” Jessie pulled the children’s aprons from her bag and handed them to her siblings.
“We’d make a great picture,” said Dawn, looking around at all of Delilah’s workers.
“A real photo opportunity!” said Violet, holding up her camera. “Why don’t we go outside? We could stand under the new sign. We didn’t get a good look at it when we got here.”
“Not yet,” said Steve. “You haven’t gotten your big surprise, Aldens.”
Steve made the children wait at one of the tables. He went back to the kitchen and came out with a baking tray.
“Presenting The Alden!” said Steve, putting the tray down in front Benny, whose eyes grew. On the tray were rectangular doughnuts covered with pale green icing and blue and white sprinkles.
“You children get the first taste,” said Dawn.
Violet took a picture of the tray first. “They match the new decor!” she said. “Everyone should get the first taste!”
Benny, Violet, Jessie, and Henry each took a doughnut. Then Grandfather, Steve, Dawn, Dave, and Nathan took theirs. There was quiet munching for a few seconds.
“Mmmm!” said Benny. “I’m glad there are more! These are amazing!”
“There’s something special in this doughnut,” said Henry. “I don’t know what it is.”
“We can’t tell you!” said Nathan. “It’s a secret ingredient. But if you keep tasting, you might figure it out yourself.”
Everyone laughed.
“Can we take our picture now?” asked Violet.
“Sure,” said Steve. “In fact, I think the Greenfield News team has arrived. They can take our picture for the paper.”
“Wow,” said Benny. “We’ll be famous.”
Back outside, the first person to greet Delilah’s team was Hilda Ramirez. She hugged Dawn and shook hands with everyone. “You folks look great. And the shop does too! I really love your sign.”
The children stepped back from the door. Above it was a big new sign, made out of polished wood and shiny metal.
“‘Delilah’s Doughnut Shop,’” read Benny.
A man with a camera came up to the group. “Are these all the helpers?”
“Well, everyone, face me, and we’ll take some photos for the paper. Say apple fritter!”
When the party was over, Steve and Dawn let the Aldens take home the rest of their special doughnuts. There would be more batches coming soon to Delilah’s.
In the car, Benny looked into the paper bag of doughnuts. He’d promised to wait till after dinner to have his.
“Why are you looking so hard at those doughnuts?” asked Violet. “I can’t believe you want to eat more already. Do you?”
“I’m thinking,” said Benny. “These doughnuts are the same shape as a boxcar!”
“That’s true,” said Violet slowly. She looked into the bag Benny was holding. “I’m getting ideas for redecorating our clubhouse. Thanks, Benny!”
“You’re welcome,” said Benny. “Doughnuts make everyone think better, don’t they?”
