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“Lesley.” The doors to the library glided open and Zane stepped out. As it always seemed to happen, Lesley couldn’t take her eyes off him. Her skin felt hot and sensitive just being with him.
“What do you think?” Zane asked, making a sweeping gesture toward the remodeling effort.
“I bet you feel like you should be wearing a hard hat.”
A saw buzzed loudly, interrupting their conversation. “Let’s go outside,” Zane suggested, leading the way.
As they made their way across the thick lawn, she realized that his limp wasn’t as noticeable. Katydids buzzed at their feet and the scent of cut grass and sunshine followed them.
Zane led her to the viewpoint she’d found on her first visit. The sweeping panorama of Lake Michigan held such exquisite beauty that it stole her breath. To enjoy it with Zane standing beside her heightened her enjoyment tenfold,
“My grandfather used to stand here.”
“I thought you said it was your grandmother’s favorite spot.”
“It was, but after she died, my grandfather came here often. He was never the same after Grandma was gone. It seemed like a part of him died with her.”
“How long did he live afterward?” Her own grandparents had died within nine months of each other. Lesley had been ten at the time, but she remembered the tremendous sense of loss she’d experienced with their passing.
“I don’t know,” Zane said. He walked over to the concrete bench and sat down. Lesley joined him. He reached for her hand, the first time that he’d voluntarily touched her in weeks. “My parents divorced shortly after that summer and my mother didn’t want me to have anything more to do with my father’s family.
“We moved to California, and adopted another name. I didn’t realize it at the time, but she’d kidnapped me. But then, I don’t think any eleven-year-old fully understands what happens when his parents stop loving each other.”
His hand tightened, painfully pinching her fingers, but Lesley was convinced he was unaware of what he was doing. Gradually the pressure decreased.
“I never saw him again,” he said with a heavy bitterness weighing his voice.
“Your grandfather?”
“Or my father.”
This explained so much. Zane had been ripped from the arms of a loving father, taken from the only family he’d ever known and thrust into a new life with a new name, understanding nothing.
“Did your mother remarry?”
He stiffened when she mentioned his mother. “No.” The lone word answered more than her question. With it came the knowledge that it was unlikely he’d allow another woman into his life. Whatever had happened between Zane and his mother had left him wary and embittered.
“The happiest days of my life were spent at this house,” he said thoughtfully. “It’s why I found it. Why I bought it. And why I decided to restore it to its former grandeur.”
All at once Zane stood, as if he couldn’t bear to sit any longer. “Are you interested in going out on the lake?”
Her heart leapt with excitement. “I’d love it.”
“There’s a stairway that leads down to the water. My sailboat’s docked there.” He hesitated and glanced her way, his eyes smiling. “I should warn you, however, that it’s been a good long time since I’ve sailed.”
“We’ll manage,” she assured him.
His gaze held hers for an elongated moment. “I imagine we will.”
* * *
The tractor engine was giving Carl nothing but trouble. He’d spent the better part of the morning fussing over it, to no avail. It was getting to the point where he was going to have to read the manual. Which only went to prove the sorry state of his mind. He’d like to blame Candy Hoffman for that, too.
His back ached from leaning over the blasted tractor, and his mood had been sour ever since he’d gotten back from town that morning. He tossed the wrench back inside the toolbox, and pressed his hand against the small of his back. What he needed was a break.
He picked up the sandwich Mrs. Applegate had set out for his lunch and carried it to his house. One thing was sure, he wasn’t going to get any peace and quiet at the big house. A man couldn’t hear himself think for all the racket going on in there.
Zane wasn’t around, either. Earlier, Mrs. Applegate had said something about him being with Lesley. That left a man to wonder. Zane and Lesley…Well, more power to him. Even a casual observer could tell which way the wind blew with those two. Although Carl couldn’t help but wonder what Zane intended to do about Schuyler.
