his family for twenty years. She had never considered remarrying when Debbie was growing up, but now that her daughter was leaving home, perhaps it was time for her to find a companion, someone to date and possibly marry down the line.
Gently, Laurel rocked back and forth, considering her options for a new lifestyle. Micah Davidson walked around the corner of the house with a check in his hand. He came briskly up the steps.
“Good evening, Mrs. Cooper. I’m pleased with the apartment. Here’s a month’s rent.”
Since the man didn’t seem to resent her crabby behavior, his presence didn’t embarrass Laurel now. She wondered momentarily how old he was. He must be in his late forties, for deep, calipered lines had formed around his generous mouth and streaks of gray frosted his dark hair.
“Won’t you sit down?” she invited. “There’s going to be a brilliant sunset soon.”
Micah took the rocking chair she indicated. “This is a peaceful place. Since you live a mile from the highway, you aren’t bothered with the sounds of traffic.”
“Sometimes it’s too peaceful, but I’ve lived here over half of my life, and I’ve gotten used to it. I came to Oaklawn as an eighteen-year-old bride, and I haven’t been out of Tennessee since my honeymoon.”
These weren’t pleasant memories, so she said, “Since you’re a photojournalist, you must travel a lot and have an interesting life. Tell me about some of your experiences.”
“I’ve spent the past year in the Amazon rain forest with a group of scientists.” He grinned in her direction. “That’s the reason today’s deluge in the backyard didn’t bother me. My clothes have been wet most of the time in recent months.”
“Mr. Davidson, please,” Laurel said, and she feared her face had turned as red as her hair. “I’d like to forget that.”
“Sorry,” he said contritely, though his face still gleamed with unspoken laughter. “I’ve written several articles about my experiences in the jungle, and the first one will be published in a few weeks. I’m a freelance journalist, so I pick and choose what I want to do. I’ve worked on most of the continents, and, yes, I have had an interesting life. But I’ll reach the half-century mark on the last day of June. I can’t keep up this pace forever, so it’s probably time to establish some roots.”
“Don’t you have any family?”
“I’ve never been married, but I have four siblings scattered here and there around the United States. Due to the nature of my work, I don’t keep in touch with them, except for an occasional postcard.”
“After living such an exciting life for so many years, do you believe you can actually change and be happy with anything else?” She asked this because she was troubled about how to deal with the changes coming soon in her own life.
Micah stood, leaned his tall frame against a column, and looking down at Laurel, he said, “It’s possible that I will be bored with any other life.” He shrugged his shoulders. “I really don’t know. That’s one reason I took this assignment. It’s leisurely compared to my usual lifestyle, so it’s a good test to determine if I like a slower pace.”
“It’s usually quiet at Oaklawn, but with Debbie’s wedding in August, we’ll have more excitement than we normally have.” She stood, too. “Would you like to look over the house now?”
“That would be great. I’m studying the architecture as well as the history of the homes, and a preliminary viewing would be helpful.”
Chapter Two
They entered the central hall, which boasted a magnificent staircase and a crystal chandelier that had been imported from France in 1835. Laurel explained that this would be the site of Debbie’s wedding.
“We can’t seat many people in here,” she explained, “but since I stood on this stairway during my wedding, just as my mother-in-law did when she was married, Debbie wants to continue the tradition. We’ll have only family members for the wedding itself, and then all of our friends and neighbors are invited for the outdoor reception.”
The house had four huge rooms on each floor with great fireplaces in each room, set off by carved walnut mantels and varnished paneling. That the Coopers had once been wealthy was evident in the priceless antiques and beautiful oil paintings in each room.
When Micah commented on the wealth of her furnishings, Laurel shrugged her shoulders. “There would be wealth if I sold them, but I want to keep the house as it is for Debbie and her children. This house was one of the few in the area not raided during the Civil War. Most of these furnishings have been here for a long time. Legend has it that the Coopers buried their money and that it was never found. But my father-in-law said his ancestors gave most of their wealth to the war effort. None of the Coopers I know have been prosperous.”
In the parlor, Laurel pointed out the Steinway grand piano. “This piano belonged to Debbie’s great-grandmother.” Laurel ran her fingers over the keys, testing the tone.
“Debbie’s father played, and he filled the house with music when he was at home. It’s hardly been touched since his death. But Debbie wants her wedding music played on this piano, so I had it tuned.”
The house was situated on a small hill, and a spreading lawn with large, gnarled trees and spacious gardens added to the mansion’s magnificence. Micah’s camera finger was already itching to photograph the place.
Micah thanked Laurel for the tour and returned to his apartment. The rooms were cool now. He turned off the air conditioner and raised the window facing the large stream, flowing southward at the foot of the hill. He inhaled the fragrance of the landscape flowers and settled down with his laptop to map out an itinerary for his Tennessee research.
Micah kept thinking of the delicate bone structure of Laurel’s oval face that ended in a determined chin, and he couldn’t concentrate on his work. Laurel had experienced a rough life bringing up her child as a single parent, but she’d apparently developed a strong character, while fulfilling her role as a mother. He remembered how her emerald eyes easily flared with anger as bright as a flash of lightning, only to fade just as quickly to the softness of a peaceful ocean. Her auburn hair was cut close to her head like a cap. Since she’d been dressed in jeans, he was well aware of her slim waist above shapely hips, and—
“Whoa!” Micah said aloud.
He shook his head, wondering at his thoughts. It had been a long time since he’d given any thought to a woman. There was no time for romance in his busy schedule, so what had prompted this sudden surge of interest in Laurel Cooper? He decided he was just as well off not to know the answer to that one, and he shifted his thoughts to the computer screen.
By the time they’d finished their tour of the house, Laurel had been completely at ease with Micah, and now she could smile at the way she’d mistaken him for a carpenter. She thought about his interesting life—how much he’d seen of the world compared to her meager travels.
She had eventually become resigned to her restricted life. Since Debbie was all they had left of their son, the Coopers were determined that their granddaughter would be raised in their home. When Laurel had mentioned going to work, or moving into a home of her own, they’d raised such a fuss that it was easier to submit to their demands rather than fight them.
She’d
