Cider Brook(A Swift River Valley Novel)

Thirty


“You do have your ways, Julius,” Loretta said, sitting on a cushioned lounge chair beside her pool. No New England autumn foliage, but there was bougainvillea, her pots of miniature roses, her avocado tree, warm sunshine, and it was home. Julius had driven down from Hollywood and met her at the airport.


He was next to her on a matching chair. She knew she looked as if she’d done an emotional whirlwind trip to the East Coast, and he looked great. Rested, dressed in his damn country-club clothes. “Finding out the basics about Henrietta was a snap once I had names and dates. That’s the hard part. Piecing together the rest of her story will be tough. Maybe impossible.”

“The money, you mean.”

“Either she robbed a bank or dug up pirate treasure.”

He wasn’t kidding, either. Loretta stared out at her glimmering pool. “There’s something about that town, I swear. Grace Webster’s secret love affair with the jewel thief—”

“Your Duncan’s birth parents.”

Her Duncan. She swallowed. “Then there’s Daphne Stewart’s story. Debbie Henderson. Abused, frightened, dreaming of a new life. And now we have Henrietta Hazelton, rebuilding her life after an unbearable tragedy.”

Julius set his iced tea glass on the table next to him. “It’s every town if we only stop long enough to find out.”

“Do you think this Benjamin Farraday was Henrietta’s ancestor?”

“It’s what she believed. No question in my mind. Wherever her money came from, it helped her to shut the door on her life in Knights Bridge. She had to, in order to go on—to create a new life with her son.”

“I can see Ben and Harry getting together as old men,” Loretta said with a smile. “Smoking cigars, drinking Scotch, talking about Antarctica and skirting the rest. The father who died saving you and your mother. The mother who somehow slipped out of town with a fortune.”

Julius gave a heavy sigh. “Life, huh?”

“Ben would have had a happy life if Zeke had lived and there’d been no money. The cider mill, the general store, the winding roads and the people.” Loretta realized her eyes were misting. She sucked in a breath. “Damn jet lag. Messes with my emotional equilibrium.”

“Your what? Never mind.” Julius got to his feet and took her hand. “Loretta, I have something to say to you.”

She rose, frowning. “You’re not moving East, are you?”

He laughed, but his eyes were intense, serious. “I’m not moving East, but I would if that’s where you are. I’m crazy about you, Loretta.”

“Or just crazy.”

He swept both her hands into his and drew her toward him. “Marry me.”

Her heart jumped. “Julius—”

“You’ll like my daughters. They’re Hollywood lawyers. One works for a studio, one for an agency. We get along great. No strife there. They want me to be happy, and I want them to be happy.” He kissed her on the cheek and whispered into her ear, “Think about it, okay? I know marriage is a big step for you. Take your time. I’m not going anywhere.”

Loretta stood back, gaping at this man she loved. How had it happened? How had her life changed so much in such a short time? She laughed suddenly, a little maniacally. Julius looked taken aback, but she grabbed his hand and held it tight. “I don’t need to think. I don’t need time. I’ve been thinking about this since the day I thought I might have to call the police on you.” She smiled at him, her heart racing. “Yes. Yes, Julius Hartley, I’ll marry you.”

He had a ring. A beautiful diamond. “I’d have gone down on one knee, but I was afraid you might kick me into the pool.” He smiled at her, slipping the ring on her finger. “We’re going to have a good time, Loretta.”

She eyed the ring on her finger, the diamond glittering in the sunlight, and she kissed him. “I feel like a kid. I love you to pieces, Julius. You know you’ll have to go back to Knights Bridge for Dylan’s wedding.”

He rubbed the back of his neck. “Probably for Daphne, too.”

Loretta looked around at her quiet, pretty backyard. “I’m open to change in my life, but this is home for me, Julius.”

“I know, kid. I can do my job from down here.” He slipped an arm around her. “I’m the luckiest man in the world.”

“We’re going to be a couple of fun old people.”

“In thirty years. We have lots of time.”





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