Ashley is my brother’s name. I left him in charge, thinking I would only be gone for four days, tops. He bugged me to trust him and leave him as boss while I transported our father’s body here to England for burial. But I wouldn’t have left so much on his shoulders if I’d known I’d be detained longer.”
Her soft heart heard the misery in his tones and she reassured him. “Not to worry. We’ll be at the hospital soon and, once there, you might see some positive signs. With any luck, I’ll be able to leave you there. Now, wouldn’t that be lovely?”
She hoped he didn’t take offence at how cheerful she became at the thought of his departure from her personal space. It wasn’t so much that she hated his being with her; she just wanted to see the man reunited. In the quick glimpse she’d had of him, he’d left a lasting impression. He had to be the handsomest man she had ever laid eyes on, and that was with her favorite male cinema idols added into the equation, as well.
She dressed quickly. Knowing he was aware of her nakedness filled her with an intense shyness, even if he couldn’t see her body.
Her grandmother was busy wiping the countertops, flitting around the kitchen, humming under her breath, when Carrie glided into the room. “Oh, my goodness, darling, you startled me! What are you doing up at this hour? Why, what a silly question—of course you’ll be going in to the school early. You are so efficient. Those children are lucky to have such a caring and capable person to be their teacher.”
Catching her breath, she stood with the towel clutched in her tiny, birdlike hands and beamed at her attractive granddaughter. She nodded her head and giggled.
“Silly me, you’ll be hungry. I’ll just fry up some eggs and make toast for you.”
Carrie put her arms around the frail shoulders and squeezed. “No, thank you, my love. I’ll eat something at the hosp-, ah, school later. I really must be off now. Bye-bye.”
* * *
The white-haired woman gazed out the window, watching her granddaughter walk up the brick path and stop to smell a scarlet rose. A stop she made most mornings.
The old man approached, his slippers muting the sound of his arrival. “Who were you nattering with? Or are you getting even more dotty, talking to yourself?” The old whinger acted as pleasant in the morning as later in the day.
“Oh, you silly man. About scared me half to death, sneaking up like that,” Carrie’s grandmother said in the tittering way she knew would annoy him. “I was just saying goodbye to Carrie. She’s leaving early today.”
“Confound it, where is she going at this time in the morning? Normally the lazy girl hugs her mattress until the last minute.”
“She’s off to work, and you know very well that she’s never lazy. She sleeps in because she’s usually up until all hours marking papers.”
What the old woman didn’t tell him was that Carrie had forgotten her briefcase, an unheard of occurrence, and that the school’s doors didn’t open for at least another hour. She also didn’t tell him that their granddaughter had an unusual sparkle in her eyes and that Carrie’s normally brisk steps had slowed to a saunter, revealing a new sexiness in her swaying hips.
“That girl needs a husband.”
“That girl’s glowing.”
“Eh, what?”
“Nothing, my sweet man, nothing.”
“Harrumph.”
Chapter Four
By the time Carrie arrived at the hospital, she was footsore and sweating and had more adrenaline pumping than she could ever remember feeling.
“I can’t believe you walked all this way. I told you to take a cab. Look how much time you’ve wasted.”
“And I told you, if you don’t stop your crabbing I will sit right down and not move. You are the most annoying man. If I explained it once, I’ve explained it a hundred times—I don’t have the money for taxicabs.”
“Okay, we’ll fix that shortly. Let’s find out what they’ve done with me, and be forceful
Her soft heart heard the misery in his tones and she reassured him. “Not to worry. We’ll be at the hospital soon and, once there, you might see some positive signs. With any luck, I’ll be able to leave you there. Now, wouldn’t that be lovely?”
She hoped he didn’t take offence at how cheerful she became at the thought of his departure from her personal space. It wasn’t so much that she hated his being with her; she just wanted to see the man reunited. In the quick glimpse she’d had of him, he’d left a lasting impression. He had to be the handsomest man she had ever laid eyes on, and that was with her favorite male cinema idols added into the equation, as well.
She dressed quickly. Knowing he was aware of her nakedness filled her with an intense shyness, even if he couldn’t see her body.
Her grandmother was busy wiping the countertops, flitting around the kitchen, humming under her breath, when Carrie glided into the room. “Oh, my goodness, darling, you startled me! What are you doing up at this hour? Why, what a silly question—of course you’ll be going in to the school early. You are so efficient. Those children are lucky to have such a caring and capable person to be their teacher.”
Catching her breath, she stood with the towel clutched in her tiny, birdlike hands and beamed at her attractive granddaughter. She nodded her head and giggled.
“Silly me, you’ll be hungry. I’ll just fry up some eggs and make toast for you.”
Carrie put her arms around the frail shoulders and squeezed. “No, thank you, my love. I’ll eat something at the hosp-, ah, school later. I really must be off now. Bye-bye.”
* * *
The white-haired woman gazed out the window, watching her granddaughter walk up the brick path and stop to smell a scarlet rose. A stop she made most mornings.
The old man approached, his slippers muting the sound of his arrival. “Who were you nattering with? Or are you getting even more dotty, talking to yourself?” The old whinger acted as pleasant in the morning as later in the day.
“Oh, you silly man. About scared me half to death, sneaking up like that,” Carrie’s grandmother said in the tittering way she knew would annoy him. “I was just saying goodbye to Carrie. She’s leaving early today.”
“Confound it, where is she going at this time in the morning? Normally the lazy girl hugs her mattress until the last minute.”
“She’s off to work, and you know very well that she’s never lazy. She sleeps in because she’s usually up until all hours marking papers.”
What the old woman didn’t tell him was that Carrie had forgotten her briefcase, an unheard of occurrence, and that the school’s doors didn’t open for at least another hour. She also didn’t tell him that their granddaughter had an unusual sparkle in her eyes and that Carrie’s normally brisk steps had slowed to a saunter, revealing a new sexiness in her swaying hips.
“That girl needs a husband.”
“That girl’s glowing.”
“Eh, what?”
“Nothing, my sweet man, nothing.”
“Harrumph.”
Chapter Four
By the time Carrie arrived at the hospital, she was footsore and sweating and had more adrenaline pumping than she could ever remember feeling.
“I can’t believe you walked all this way. I told you to take a cab. Look how much time you’ve wasted.”
“And I told you, if you don’t stop your crabbing I will sit right down and not move. You are the most annoying man. If I explained it once, I’ve explained it a hundred times—I don’t have the money for taxicabs.”
“Okay, we’ll fix that shortly. Let’s find out what they’ve done with me, and be forceful
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