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Chapters (53)
  1. Cover
  2. Everyone loves the ladies of Covington!
  3. Also by Joan Medlicott
  4. Title Page
  5. Copyright
  6. Dedication
  7. Acknowledgments
  8. 1
  9. 2
  10. 3
  11. 4
  12. 5
  13. 6
  14. 7
  15. 8
  16. 9
  17. 10
  18. 11
  19. 12
  20. 13
  21. 14
  22. 15
  23. 16
  24. 17
  25. 18
  26. 19
  27. 20
  28. 21
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  30. 23
  31. 24
  32. 25
  33. 26
  34. 27
  35. 28
  36. 29
  37. 30
  38. 31
  39. 32
  40. 33
  41. 34
  42. 35
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  44. 37
  45. 38
  46. 39
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  48. 41
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  50. 43
  51. 44
  52. 45
  53. Discussion Questions

What of Sarina? She’ll be fine. Her family in India did not want him, but she could return to her parents or stay in Covington. They loved her here and the baby too; let his father and Hannah support them.

Zachary had mastered easing from his bed into the wheelchair, and now he wheeled across the hall and into the unused bedroom from which his mother’s rose bed was visible. Huge pink and red roses were in full bloom. Hannah had preserved his mother’s roses, trimmed them and cultivated the earth around their roots. Much as he hated to admit it, his mother would be pleased.

According to Anna, Hannah and his mother had been good friends. That struck him as ludicrous. Aloof Hannah and his warm and loving mother? And now Hannah had stepped into the role of Sarina’s surrogate mother.

Hannah wielded a great deal of influence with his father. It struck Zachary, then, that if he stayed awhile and cultivated Hannah, he could use her to obtain the land he so urgently wanted, land that would buy his freedom. Perhaps it would be expeditious to bide his time.

Sarina returned with the omelet and coffee to find him in bed as she had left him, but now he smiled at her and accepted the tray with thanks. “She’s sleeping, our baby?” he asked.

“Like a little angel.” Sarina’s eyes clouded. “I wish my mother could see her.”

“It’s a shame she can’t.” He caught hold of her hand. “I sure wouldn’t mind getting out for a bit. If you could help me downstairs, or call Jose and ask him to help me to the car, you could drive me to Weaverville. I’d like to get a video camera and film to take pictures of Sarah and you to send to your family.”

She bent and hugged him. “Oh, thank you, Zack. They will be so happy to get pictures of us all.” He’s changed. The shock of his experience has changed him to the Zachary I hoped he would be.

21

Ida and the Charming Scammer

June and May’s mother, Ida, never failed to inform a stranger that June had been born two minutes prior to May, and that she had gotten the months mixed up, which had been the fault of the medication, otherwise June would be named May and May would be named June.

“Why do you do that, Mama?” June had asked again and again. “I wish you wouldn’t.” It embarrassed her, and in her eyes made Ida appear confused and hardly the strong-willed matriarch of the family she was.