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.It was exactly what I needed.”“I’m glad you enjoyed yourself and got some rest.” They walked back up the path to a small area beside the vegetable garden.Louise dropped the wilted stems in a churner and began turning the crank.The flowers were immediately mulched.“I have a small confession,” Louise said.Hope looked at her oddly.“I’m allergic to almonds.”Hope was confused then her expression brightened in understanding.“You were matchmaking.”Louise nodded.“Raymond and me?”Louise nodded again.“How did you know to come to the hospital? We’d never met before.”Louise confessed her eavesdropping the night of the play when she overheard her conversation with Faith.Hope began laughing.“And you decided just like that I was right for Raymond.”“You were exactly what Raymond needed, you still are.Now why don’t you go on back up there and find my grandson.”Hours later Hope arrived home she busied herself with mindless chores trying to keep her thoughts off of Raymond.She remembered her sister’s words, she knew Faith was right.Raymond was different.He was nothing like their father or their stepfather.She knew it was also true that she had been miserable since she and Raymond had been apart.She decided to take a chance and give Raymond a call.She called the office and was told that he’d taken a few days off and that she could probably find him at home.She called his apartment.The machine informed her that he wasn’t available.So she decided to drive over to his apartment.Chapter Twenty-sevenThe overcast sky appeared hazy on the horizon.It had been a hot summer day and had promised to be an even hotter night.The still sticky air hung heavy as Hope made her way out of the city.Closely followed by thousands of commuters, she watched as the sun sunk lower on the horizon.It was late afternoon by the time Hope finally left Manhattan.The city skyline vanished in her rearview mirror.The road ahead inched slowly with traffic congestion.She glanced up and adjusted the rear view mirror to see how far she’d come.Then she looked ahead to her future somewhere in Connecticut.Her mind buzzed with the doorman Jimmy’s remark.She had just arrived at Raymond’s apartment when she saw Jimmy in the lobby.“He’s gone to Haven,” he told her.Hope immediately called Louise, who explained that Haven House was the name of Raymond’s home in Connecticut.Fifteen minutes later, she was on her way.Hope followed the GPS directions until it became clear that she was lost.She’d been traveling all day—first, driving nearly five hours straight from Virginia and now another hour into this trip.Oddly enough, she wasn’t at all tired.She was nervous.She had absolutely no idea what she was going to say to Raymond when she saw him.The only thing she knew was that she needed to see and be with him.She wasn’t even sure if he’d welcome her back.But she was hopeful.Hope slowed the car to check the street sign then made the appropriate turns leading her she hoped directly into Raymond’s waiting arms.She traveled along the scenic parkway toward Connecticut.Hope drove through Bedford, Greenwich, Darien and Westport.Suddenly enjoying the beautiful scenery became secondary.She was too anxious to see Raymond.The seemingly endless road narrowed to a single lane.Rural acreage seemed to go on forever broken up only by an occasional barn or farm.She passed a rundown shed by the side of the road.The once bright red paint had faded to a dull wash of memories with painted flecks of muted color.Impatiently, she looked at the dashboard’s digital clock and calculating that it would take just another half hour.Ray shifted the lawn mower into gear and crisscrossed a simple pattern making sure that each blade of grass was properly cut.He adjusted the baseball cap lower on his head then turned the steering wheel to make a second pass.He glanced back, satisfied with what he had accomplished.It wasn’t the precise cutting, and meticulousness of his usual instrument, the scalpel, but it would do.Although he employed a full time gardener and small staff to care for the grounds surrounding his property, he often enjoyed mindless chores like mowing the grass.He removed his sunglasses and squinted against the low hanging sun.He speculated that he had at least another three hours of sunlight.So, he decided to make another pass around the west side before taking a much-needed shower.After his last pass Raymond drove the mower into the shed and walked back to the main house.He peeled off his clothes and jumped into a hot shower that quickly cooled as soon as his thoughts strayed to Hope.Barely dry he dressed and went back outside.He looked around at the pristine lawn and equally perfect landscape beyond.Like a magnet, the memories of this land would always draw him back.Haven House was gently tucked between Stamford and New Haven.On fifty acres of rolling countryside set against the backdrop of Connecticut’s wealthy estates, it was secluded and surrounded by gently rolling hills and imposing manors.Known for its privacy, Haven House was Raymond’s sanctuary.A nineteenth century station on the Underground Railroad, Haven Manor, as it was once called, was pivotal in the long journey from slavery to freedom.Isolated and remote, it provided sanctuary to hundreds of fugitive slaves fleeing the South.Now, over one hundred and fifty years later, the main house had been rebuilt and renovated.The property had been bought and sold numerous times before Raymond finally acquired it, which had recently been granted landmark status.The scent of freshly cut grass mixed with dogwood blooms filled the summer air.It was late evening and the sun hung low in the sky.The treetops were backlit with shades of red, orange and purple.Raymond felt alone in the stillness of his surroundings.He hadn’t heard from Hope in almost a week and a half.Although he’d let her know that the next move was hers, he was beginning to wonder if that was the right thing to do.It hadn’t occurred to him that she would completely cut off all communication [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]