“Oh my god!” Alan suddenly exclaimed from the couch where he was working on his laptop. “You’re Edward!”
Lucas looked up from the papers he was trying to focus on, “What?”
“You’re Edward!”
“What are you…” Lucas hesitated. Zoe called him that too. “What does that mean?”
Alan rolled his eyes before bringing his laptop over and setting it on the desk. On it the browser had been left on an online shopping site and displayed a list of Rosemary Thomas books in order but Alan was only interested in one: Willow Remember Me?
“It takes place in Spain but that isn’t the important part,” Alan announced. “In it Rosemary is investigating an illegal gambler’s den where she meets Edward who is investigating the same thing. At first they don’t really get along but they agree to work together because they have the same goal.”
“And?”
“What do you mean? They get together. Like, really together.”
Lucas felt his face warm, “Oh. So he’s her love interest?”
“Yeah. At the end of the book she finds out he’s a prince and engaged to someone else,” Alan said. “So Rosemary…leaves. She just leaves, poof, disappears never to see him again. But she finds out she’s pregnant later.”
Lucas felt himself run cold. A brief love affair that turns sour? And Rosemary leaves without a trace? A moment of passion that results in a baby? Silas’s words came back to him in a flash, “…once you know it’s Sarah who wrote these books they almost work like an autobiography.”
Now it made sense. Yes, the books were fiction but Sarah relied on her own personal experiences to guide them which meant the truth was woven into the narrative. That’s what Silas meant.
“Get me the books,” Lucas said.
“What? All of them?”
“Yes. Today. Now.”
“Give me an hour,” Alan nodded sensing his desperation. “I’ll be right back.”
Lucas forced an uneasy breath. While he waited he read the blurbs of the other books. The information focused on plot, not the character, which meant he would have to read the books to find answers. But did he have enough time? He only had two weeks to convince her to stay. Even if he managed one a day it would take almost all the time he had left. There had to be a short cut.
With Alan’s browser tab open he spent the next hour searching for outlines of each book. While the descriptions detailed plot highlights they didn’t offer much about the character traits of Rosemary herself and it was the character he was interested in.
“Got ‘em,” Alan announced as he returned with a large shopping bag from the bookstore. “All right we have the Foxglove Files, the Manchineal Tree, To Catch a Cattail, Blackberry Spirits, Sage Advice, Poppy Dreams, Willow Remember Me? This is the one where she meets Edward. Followed by Primrose Dawn and Daisies in Bloom. Primrose is about Rosemary’s pregnancy and Daisies in Bloom follows the birth of her daughter.”
Lucas reached for Willow Remember Me? This was the very same book Silas tried to give him. Silas claimed he read them all so, of course, he would know what was in each book. Lucas felt himself warm as he trembled. He wasn’t sure if it was from embarrassment or rage.
“You know that book came out…” Alan hesitated as Lucas looked up. “A year after Sarah left you. She must have been writing it before she left.”
Lucas grimaced but it left many questions. Why did she wait for the seventh book to write about him? Why wait until the third year of marriage? Taking a deep breath he opened the cover to read the dedication:
As always I must thank my ever dutiful editor Ruth. Without her
encouragement Rosemary Thomas would never have seen the light of day.
And to my Prince, wherever and whoever he may be.
Lucas swallowed back his disappointment. What did he expect? In order to maintain her anonymity she wouldn’t name names and he hadn’t done anything to earn a favorable mention. With a sigh he turned to chapter one.
“Ah…you really should start with the first one,” Alan said but fell silent at Lucas’s glare. “Well, um, you don’t have to. Most of them aren’t direct sequels…more like sequential. You shouldn’t miss too much reading them out of order.”
“Alan, do me a favor. I want you to write an outline of each book with everything you learn about Rosemary.”
“Rosemary?”
“Yes…I don’t care about plot just the character. Her likes, dislikes, family…whatever details are given.”
Alan frowned. Those sorts of details rarely meant much when it came to the plot but then again it was clear Lucas didn’t care about the books. If Rosemary was meant to be Sarah then any detail shared about her could be one about Sarah.
“Right. Okay.” Alan reclaimed his laptop and returned to the couch. It seemed they wouldn’t be getting much work done after all.
As Lucas read his mind wandered and he couldn’t focus on the plot. Suddenly a thought occurred to him and he paged ahead scanning the words looking for the one that concerned him. Finally spotting a mention of Edward he paged back to the beginning of the chapter to read.
* * *
Okay. So this didn’t go as planned.
I took a deep breath calming my racing heart from the shock of my sudden escape. Clearly Harold and I needed to have a talk. If he was going to continue hanging around he would have to improve his early warnings. But that was a concern for another day.
I turned to my rescuer as he too caught his breath. Six foot with broad shoulders, his arms were almost as thick as my thighs. His brown hair was wavy, almost curly, and I immediately wondered what it would be like to run my fingers through it.
Where did that come from?
His dark eyes scrutinized me: confusion, anger, shock, lust, revulsion…it all seemed to flicker in his gaze. Honestly I wasn’t sure what to think about the last two.
“So are you going to tell me why you’re here?” he finally asked his voice smooth and alluring.
Honestly where were these thoughts coming from?
“It’s an illegal gambler’s den,” I answered holding up my camera. “Obviously I’m gathering evidence to shut it down.”
“You’re American.”
“Thank you Captain Obvious.” I rolled my eyes. I couldn’t place his accent but it gave his voice a richness that would send any woman’s heart racing.
“All right. Let’s see those pictures and you can go.”
“Excuse me?”
“This is no place for a woman.”
“Oh really? Misogynistic much?”
“I’m not…Do you not understand what just happened? What those men were going to do to you when they caught you? They could have killed you!”
“Yeah…well, there are worse things. Besides I owe it to my friend to finish what they started.”
“Friend? And where is this friend?”
“The morgue.”
He fell silent.
“The Policía say it was an accident. An accident. A championship swimmer drowned. Anyway you say it, it sounds suspicious. He asked me to help and I’m not leaving until I do.”
“I thought you said they were dead. How did they ask for your help?”
And here we go…
“As I said, there are worse things than death. So what do I call you?”
“…Edward.”
“Rosemary.”
* * *
Lucas leaned back running a hand through his natural wavy hair. Ever since he was little it bothered him. If it was a little tighter it would be curly and if he allowed it to get long it was almost like an afro. A CEO shouldn’t have such soft hair. It just didn’t strike an intimidating profile but did Sarah really like it that much?
He reread the description. It really did seem like she appreciated his physique. So she thought he was good looking. It shouldn’t matter but it made him embarrassed somehow.
It made up for the fact he hadn’t been able to take his eyes off her since he spotted her at the party. His eyes must have run down her curves a hundred times. If he closed them now he could clearly picture her. The now familiar yearning to touch her smooth skin and feel her body next to his bloomed and he could feel his pants tighten.
Lucas set the book down trying to marshal his thoughts. But all he could think about was the purple dress she had worn: the swell of her breasts, the roundness of her hips. And her legs…But it wasn’t the first time he had a chance to see her body. His mind and memory were admittedly foggy but he still remembered their wedding day.
He stood at the altar with Alan beside him. Lucas had already peeked at the rings. They were nothing special. In fact they were rather plain. Her ring didn’t even have a single diamond chip. At the time he thought it an insult but now he knew she had paid for them herself.
She couldn’t spend the money she made from her books freely on the wedding if she wanted to keep it secret. He couldn’t imagine her frustration, torn between wanting the perfect wedding and avoiding the suspicion of her family. Lucas frowned.
Sarah walked herself down the aisle after a single bridesmaid. Her dress was simple, off the shoulder and layered with lace over satin that was somewhat off-white with age but gave it an antique look. The bodice hugged her waist and accentuated her gentle breasts and hips. She was tall, taller than average which meant she had plenty of leg and he remembered thinking it was rather frustrating her skirt hid them from view.
When she reached the altar to face him he was finally able to fully appraise her height. She was only a few inches shorter than himself. That fact alone made him more appreciative of his grandmother’s choice. While Silas didn’t seem to have any issue with Ava’s petite form Lucas much preferred a woman he could look in the eye without stooping.
Sarah had a pleasing face, a smooth jaw and straight nose. Her lips were full and her eyes…hazel. In the warm light of the church they were very green though later when they stepped out to the waiting limo they took on a bluish tinge. Her eyes were fascinating to watch as they shifted depending on the light and her emotions like mood rings.
At the time he pushed these thoughts away not wanting to admire anything about the wife his grandmother chose. It was no secret he had been against it but there was nothing he could do. His grandmother’s edict was very clear. If he wanted to be her heir he had to marry. She expected grandchildren within a year. He managed to convince her he and his bride needed time to learn about each other before they tried to get…intimate.
But he never tried. He never took her out to dinner or even shared a quiet meal at home with her. Ulima’s cooking would have made for an excellent opportunity to find some common ground. For years Lucas lamented that no one around him appreciated spicy food. While he put up with their bland preferences they complained about his breath. Meanwhile he could have been enjoying meals with Sarah.
Bewitching eyes, long legs, spicy food: it seemed everything about her was specifically matched to him. He couldn’t imagine a more perfect fit. And yet he hadn’t seen it, never acknowledged it. He ignored her and slowly she faded into his shadow.
God what an idiot he was!
“Alan, you finished?” Lucas rubbed his temples.
“I’ve only done the first book, but here you go.”
The Foxglove Files
Born in Louisiana.
Education degree from college.
Substitute teacher.
Mother died when she was young.
Raised by her aunt who was also a medium.
First ghost she spoke to was her mother.
Father unknown drifter. No siblings…
Lucas looked at the list Alan made. It really didn’t amount to much, maybe more was revealed with each book. Perhaps it required more thorough exploration like the chapter he had been reading. This wouldn’t work. Glancing at the clock he saw it was only noon. There was still time…Vermont.
“Where did you say Sarah was living?” Lucas asked.
“Vermont.”
“I mean city.”
“Oh,” Alan hesitated looking through his messages. “Brattleboro.”
“How far is that?”
“Drive wise?” Alan called up his phone’s GPS. “Three and half hours, approximate.”
“Right. Let’s go.”
“To Brattleboro?”
“Yeah, let’s go. I want to see where my wife and baby have been living.”