But if she did, she never would have left—never found her own path. Never made her way into the night—where another man slept in a candlelit room of his own.

Chapter 15

Chapter 15

Tessa dropped the cold washcloth in the sink and blinked into the mirror. Beneath puffy lids, two bloodshot eyes met her gaze. Since leaving Richard last night, she barely slept. Late morning sun streamed in the bathroom window, almost mocking in its cheerfulness. Head pounding, she popped two aspirin and let the water soothe her throat. A tube of concealer sat on the shelf next to her new Macy’s lipstick. Why bother? She couldn’t hide the fact she cried half the night. The situation was what it was.

Her phone buzzed, and Richard’s name popped up. Again. All morning, she ignored his calls and texts. Answering now would just be weird. She powered off the phone and jammed it in her pocket. She wouldn’t need it anyway. Not with Jonas. Half an hour later, still blotchy and raw, she pulled up beside the barn.

When he saw her face, Jonas started almost imperceptibly.

She braced for questions, but in an instant his expression cleared.

Nodding his greeting, he climbed into the van and shifted his gaze out the window.

He was a private man. Her business was her business. Unclenching her jaw, she relaxed. Simple silence was his gift to her that noontime.

How many more car rides did she have? The gazebo was almost complete. When they last discussed a timeframe, he reckoned he would finish by the end of the week. Come Friday, she’d hand him a check, say, “thank you very much,” and never speak to him again. Back to hours alone in the garden with no company but her own thoughts and an empty calendar.

Empty except…

She cranked the gearshift, lurching onto Route 45. Empty except for one very important event—an event briefly forgotten between the trip to New York and the utter shock of Richard’s offer. An event that was now a quagmire of complication.

The Midsummer Ball.

She blinked achy eyes and refocused on the road. The ball was her baby. She made a commitment to Mrs. Diefenderfer, not to mention to Claire and Richard. The hors d’oeuvres, the decorations, and a hundred other details remained to be finalized. With little time left, she still had so much to plan. She couldn’t just abandon it now.

Once in the driveway, Jonas took his toolbox and headed for the backyard.

Her mother’s kitchen offered refuge. Slumped at the table, she scrolled through floral designs, the images dancing a conga line before her eyes. She closed her laptop and stared out the window. Shadows shifted, indicating the passage of hours in a way she could reckon had she been born a druid in a time before time as she knew it.

A tap-tap-tap came from behind.

She jumped and swung around.