“Sounds delicious,” Sully said. “Come in. Melissa is in the living room and anxious to see you. I’ll go put this in the refrigerator and be right back.”

Lovey caught the sparkle in Sully’s eyes and smiled to herself as she went into the living room.

Melissa was getting up when Lovey stopped her.

“Hey, sugar! Don’t get up. I’ll come to you,” she said, and gave Melissa a quick kiss on the cheek.

“It’s good to see you,” Melissa said.

Lovey plopped down on the sofa next to Melissa’s chair.

“I think that man is gone on you,” she whispered.

Melissa laughed. “It’s mutual.”

Lovey grinned. “I love it when a good thing comes together. I came just to satisfy myself you were still in one piece. The whole escaped prisoner thing and him taking you hostage when he stole your car unnerved all of us yesterday. I see your car is back under your portico.”

“Yes. Lon had one of his officers drive it back.”

“So tell me, did you really untie yourself inside the trunk and then get thrown out of the trunk and roll off the road into the holler below?”

“It sounds like an action-adventure movie, doesn’t it? But yes, I did get myself free of the ties around my wrists and feet, and yes, I did get thrown out of the trunk when he hit a big pothole on a muddy road. The trunk lid popped up, and I was trying to get out when he gunned the engine. I went flying out of the trunk, but I didn’t have my balance as I tried to stand and rolled straight down one of those slopes leading down into a hollow. I was sliding and rolling, trying to grab onto all those trees and bushes I kept sliding past. Then I caught myself about two-thirds of the way down.

“The problem became trying to get back up the hill. It was slick from the rain the night before. I heard the police coming, but I couldn’t get up fast enough. Then I got within a couple of feet of the top and could not climb another inch. There was nothing to hang on to. I’d been sliding backwards more than gaining ground, so I was just hanging there, waiting for a miracle. All Sully could see from the road was my hand waving. I can’t tell you how relieved I was when he looked over the edge and then grabbed my hand and pulled me up. You know the rest.”

Lovey shook her head, staring in awe. “You are amazing, honey. Thank God Sully found you, but you absolutely saved yourself!”

At that point, Sully walked in, smiling. “See, baby? That’s exactly what I told you.”

“Yes, and thank you for helping me see it from that angle. Come sit beside me.”

Lovey saw the look in his eyes when he started toward Melissa, and sighed, remembering that kind of love. And then her gaze shifted from him to a painting he’d just walked past. She stared for a few moments, then got up without speaking and walked toward it.