Matt shook his head. “Your job’s going to be a whole lot easier if you learn from the start not to ignore Aunt Lila’s orders. I’ll never hear the end of it if I desert you now. Besides, it won’t take that long to see the property.”
Amy bit her lip in an attempt to stop the frown in progress. The same sparkle she’d seen in Aunt Lila’s eyes now simmered in Matt’s. While she didn’t want to start off on the wrong foot with her new employer, she wasn’t all that convinced Lila would really be upset if she took a rain check on the tour. If she hadn’t known better, she’d think Matt had his own reasons for wanting to stick around. Sighing, she realized he probably wanted to get to know her better. After all, he’d brought a stranger into his aunt’s home. He was probably having second thoughts and needed some assurance that he’d made a wise choice.
“Okay.” Amy gave in. “But just a quick tour.”
Then after dinner, she’d call her parents and assure them she was okay. In fact she was better than okay. As she met Matt’s gaze, she couldn’t help but feel her fresh start was going to be everything and more than she’d dreamed it would be.
As Matt carried the last suitcase into the grand foyer and up the wide, twisting stairway, he tried to see this house through Amy’s eyes. Was she intimidated by the high ceilings, Palladian windows, tapestry fabrics and miles of the finest polished mahogany? Or, despite the grandeur, did she feel the warmth, love and coziness that lingered from years gone by?
Matt set the suitcase next to a lopsided pile of boxes and bags. Amazingly, everything on the floor had been stuffed into the trunk of her mid-size car. And yet, considering she had just moved to Lexington, it wasn’t much at all.
“Is there anything else I can help you move?” he asked, thinking she might have left a rented moving trailer parked at the motel.
Amy shook her head, and as if she read the curiosity in his eyes said, “When I came to town two weeks ago on my scouting trip, I put the majority of my things in storage.”
“And that same trip you found a place to work and live?”
“Yeah, I thought I’d found the perfect job. I was going to be the leasing agent at a small apartment complex. Free rent was one of the perks. Not to mention the flexible hours and that I could have afforded to at least take a part-time load at the university this fall. But that all fell through this morning. There was a mix-up. Apparently, the man who hired me didn’t know the owner had already hired someone else.”
“Wasn’t there anything you could do?” Matt asked with great concern.
“Not really. The person they hired had already moved into the apartment. You know what they say about possession being nine-tenths of the law. The man who hired me claimed he tried to telephone me when he realized what happened, but I’d already left Ohio.” Amy rubbed her eyes and pushed her hand through her thick brown hair. “Even if I had a strong case, I don’t have the means nor the inclination to take them to court.”
Tilting his head and offering a wise smile, Matt said, “Things have a funny way of working out.”
Amy merely rolled her eyes and walked to the window. As she tentatively pushed aside the sheer drape, creating a small opening to peek through, Matt studied her profile for clues as to what she might be thinking and feeling. But her stoic countenance gave little away. Swallowing hard, he found himself at a sudden loss for words, wondering if he were crazy for bringing this woman into his aunt’s house. What on earth had possessed him? She was a stranger, and in this awkward, silent moment, he felt it profusely.
But she was a beautiful stranger.
While her eyes followed a restless black thorough-bred across a distant pasture, he watched her. He loved the way her silky dark brown hair graced the tops of her shoulders. And anyone with such fair skin certainly couldn’t spend endless hours in the summer sun. Instead, he imagined her sitting on his aunt’s veranda in the old rocking chair, sipping cold lemonade and nibbling on sugar cookies. With perspiration glistening on her slender neck, she would gently fan herself.
Matt turned away and took a deep breath. This was his loneliness talking. He’d always thought he’d be married by now. Instead, he had been best man to a string of cousins, and by the end of the summer he’d be the only unmarried Wynn cousin. And he didn’t even have a prospect in sight. That was, until he’d held Amy in his arms. Even though he’d been terrified during the life-threatening ordeal, he’d found a certain comfort in holding her close. It was as if his subconscious had taunted, This is what it would feel like to hold a woman you could love for a lifetime.
Shaking his head, Matt physically tried to suppress the ridiculous thoughts. While it was true he felt an unexplainable bond with this woman, it wasn’t love. Love didn’t happen in a flash or even in an hour. Real love, like the kind his parents and grandparents shared, took time to grow and mature. Glancing at Amy, he promised himself he wouldn’t blow their newfound connection out of proportion. They had survived a dangerous moment together. It was only natural he should feel drawn to her.
Feeling more confident, Matt moved to Amy’s side. As they stared out the window in silence, he resisted the urge to casually drape his arm across her shoulders. When he turned his head, he found her studying him with curious eyes. He smiled, and when he did, her composure cracked, and he saw the distrust, confusion and sadness she tried to hide. In that moment, Matt could only wonder why God had brought this woman into his life.
“How about that tour?” he asked, suddenly anxious to stretch his legs and inhale the fragrant Kentucky air.
They hadn’t walked very far when Matt realized Amy skillfully redirected the conversation each time it headed her way. While Matt wasn’t trying to be nosy or rude, he did wonder what had brought her to Lexington and why such a beautiful woman would be content to work for his aunt for the summer.
There were so many things he wanted to ask her. But as he’d learned from his horses, patience was a virtue. Given enough time, she would tell him everything he needed to know.
As they left the formal rose garden and started to follow the trail that wound around a small hill behind the estate, Amy stopped to take one last look at the large two-story white farmhouse, the expansive lawn and the series of white barns.
“It’s postcard perfect,” she said, admiration showing in her eyes.
Matt inhaled deeply, pleased by her enthusiasm. Next to family and friends, there was nothing he loved more than this one hundred acres.
“No matter what season it is, the view from here is spectacular.” Matt shielded his eyes with his hand as he let his gaze shift from the horses in the pasture below to the main stable with the towering clock tower and chimes that could be heard across the property, and then finally to the huge shade trees surrounding the house. The wooden swings he and his cousins had played on as children still hung from the sturdy branches. Someday, his children would swing beneath those oaks.
He felt Amy’s gaze upon him like a warm shadow. “This farm means a lot to you,” she said. He couldn’t be certain, but he thought he heard envy in her voice. And that made sense. His roots went deep, while she had yet to replant. It was as if she carried her heart and soul in a small container, transporting them from city to city, looking for the right place to dig in. Respecting her privacy, he resisted the urge to ask her what she was searching for.
“The land’s been in my family for five generations. It’s where I find my strength. It’s where I’ve learned who I am and what I’m going to be.” He hoped he didn’t sound lofty or arrogant. That wasn’t his nature. But it was hard to put into words how this place defined