Spirit of the Revolution (24 page)

“Well, when would you like to come out?” asked Douglas.

“How about Wednesday morning?” Jolena’s eyes lit up in sudden anticipation, and her eagerness made him smile.

“No problem.” Douglas shot a bewildered glance at Gloria after she elbowed his side.

Gloria cleared her throat. “Jo, dear, we have failed to introduce you to our guests—”

Mathias rolled his eyes as she proceeded to rattle off the name of each person. In all likelihood, Jolena would never see any of them again, so what difference did their names make? Nevertheless, she greeted each of them in turn as if delighted to do so. And then as Gloria’s gaze rested on the last of the lot, he finally understood her motive and the pointed jab.

“This good-looking young man is Tyler Holden, the son of our favorite cousin,” Gloria cooed, smiling in his direction. “I’m sure he could arrange his schedule to accompany you on that ride. After all, I don’t think it wise to ride out all alone.”

Mathias’s eyes narrowed as Sam’s long-winded speech about potential suitors crashed into his consciousness. “You already have a riding partner and therefore, do not require a nursemaid,”
he hissed.

Once again, Jolena bit down on her lip and briefly cast her eyes downward. “Well, I already have a companion who’s very anxious to ride with me, and I don’t want to inconvenience Tyler. But, I thank you for your kind offer anyway.”

“Of course.” Douglas nodded despite Gloria’s exasperated sigh. “Does your friend need a mount as well?”

“No,” Mathias growled. “Your ‘friend’ doesn’t need a mount.”

“No—” Jolena covered her smile with a feigned, quiet cough. “He has his own.” She shot him a questioning glance and he nodded.

Mathias gloated for a brief moment over Gloria’s obvious disappointment.

Gloria tsked, and shook her head. Finally, she said, “Well, that’s fine dear. We’ll expect to see you, and your friend, Wednesday morning.”

After they excused themselves so she could get on with her evening, Jolena turned to face him and said, “You really can’t do that when people are around.”

He shrugged innocently. “Do what?”

“Make me laugh with your little side comments when I’m surrounded. Do you want everyone to think I’m crazy?”

“No one would ever think you’re crazy.” Mathias paused then, and held her gaze. “You played beautifully tonight, Miss Michaelsson. I really enjoyed your concert. Thank you, for such a wonderful gift. I’ll treasure it.”

Jolena smiled over the praise. “You’re welcome—anytime—and thank you, kind sir, for the compliment. And now, if you’re ready, I think we can finally go home. I can’t tell you how excited I am to go riding with you.”

****

Wednesday morning didn’t arrive nearly fast enough. Yet, now that she rode next to Mathias, on his ghostly black stallion, perhaps it arrived a little
too
soon. The first few hours passed in a whirlwind of continuous delight. They’d spent the greater portion of the early morning hours exploring the little known trails in the woods behind the Parkers’ property and now, she desperately wished she had the power to make time stand still, for she wanted this day to last forever.

She glanced over at her companion and eyed the magnificent horse. He anticipated and then responded to his master’s every command. What’s more, her own mount, the beautiful chestnut Arabian named Lacy, seemed aware of his presence. She took it in her stride, though. In fact, the mare even flirted with the stallion a bit.

“I know I should cease being surprised about anything ghostly. But, it never once occurred to me the spirit of a horse would wander the earth. Is it a common thing?” she asked as she leaned away from the sweeping branches of a pine tree.

He shrugged as he gave Beadurinc’s neck a pat. “That depends on what you mean by common. I’ve seen a great variety of animals in their spiritual form. I can’t tell you why for sure. Perhaps they too, choose to remain on familiar ground near the things they love. As far as horses are concerned, many of them who die alongside their masters remain loyally at his side—or hers.”

Her eyes flickered between Mathias and his gorgeous stallion. The way he phrased the comment made her wonder if he spoke from personal experience. He and the horse did seem very familiar with each other.

“You know,” he said, “you might want to think about getting your own horse. As you know, we have a very fine barn that has withstood the test of time. And, you ride very well.”

“Thank you and I’ve considered the possibility, actually,” she replied. “Many times. But it wouldn’t be fair to the horse. My free time is so limited and really, I don’t have enough hours in the day to care for one properly right now. My dad taught me a long time ago, there is more to owning a horse than throwing it hay a couple of times a day. They need love and attention, just like any other pet. Since they’re herd animals, the horse would need a companion, which would take even more time. Maybe one day, after I retire, I’ll buy a couple of them, though.”

“You? Retire? Really?” Mathias grinned as his brow lifted higher with each word he spoke.

“Who knows,” she said. “Maybe one day my hands will be too arthritic to hold the bow, much less the violin, and the ailment will force me into retirement.”

Mathias shook his head. “I doubt it. And speaking of your matchless talent, the lads really enjoyed their concert. They talked about it all night long, in fact.”

“Did they?” The revelation made her smile. “Did the boys tell you they finally got to meet Carolyn? Well, they met her after a fashion, of course.”

He grinned and nodded. “Yes. They said she enjoyed your performance almost as much as they did.”

“That’s Carolyn for you. From the moment I could hold a violin in my hand, she’s ever been my biggest fan.” Jo laughed as she considered the truth of that statement.

“Well, she has competition for that title now,” he countered.

The expression on his face and in his eyes stole her ability to breathe properly. A heated blush colored her cheeks as she simply said, “Thank you.” And then looking for a quick change in subject, she added, “Did Sam tell you about the woman in the green dress?”

“No, I don’t believe so,” he replied.

“Before the concert started, the boys roamed all over the place. If I didn’t know better, I would swear they searched for someone or something in particular, instead of just wanting to explore,” she said. “At one point they even looked a little disappointed, though I couldn’t figure out why.” She waved a hand in dismissal.

“Anyway, Sam stood at the back, near one of the doors when a woman entered the auditorium with her hair piled haphazardly on top of her head. He just stared at the mess, with this look of total distaste and abhorrence. I think he even shuddered before he relieved the tangled knot of its glitzy clip. Her hair tumbled to her shoulders in disarray, much to her utter embarrassment and Sam’s look of total satisfaction. I found it so funny. And then when I asked him about it later, he sniffed and said her hair looked like a nest for birds and that, of a certainty, his actions gave her escort a feeling of tremendous relief.” Calling the scene to mind made her laugh all over again.

Mathias chuckled and nodded. “Sounds like Sam. He had no problem undoing a woman’s hair. Especially if she wound the bun too tight—”

Jo glanced over at him as his voice trailed off. He reined in his horse, who nickered as if to alert, and then took in his surroundings. She found herself following his gaze.

The place was familiar to him, of course. Intimately familiar. However, Mathias didn’t realize until this moment, he rode toward it. Not with the pleasant distraction Jolena presented. Normally, when he visited this place, he just appeared into it and then disappeared when the event ended.

“Mathias?” Jolena extended a hand and rested it very lightly atop his arm. “Are you all right?” The smile he gave her, didn’t reassure her. He could see that much by expression alone.

“Please—tell me,” she begged.

He briefly shook his head and once again, put something resembling a smile on his face. “Please don’t worry, it’s nothing, really.”

“Oh, I see. You can’t tell me.” She dropped her gaze and withdrew her hand.

The notion hurt her. Yet, how to explain without making the situation worse? “This is the—uh, the place we—”

Her hand flew to her open mouth. He didn’t have to tell her that he and the boys left their mortality behind in this very forest. She sat up a little higher and took in her environment from each possible direction. He could see she now envisioned the story he shared, by horrified expression alone.

“Oh, I’m so sorry, Mathias, I didn’t know.” Her eyes begged for forgiveness.

“Shh—there’s no need to apologize. The place is not as traumatic as you seem to think or for the reasons you’re imagining,” he said.

He shook away the somber mood. He had no place for it on this outing, nor did he wish to discuss it any further. Days spent alone in Jolena’s company seemed rare. He wouldn’t waste these precious moments, thinking about things better left alone.

“Come on.” He cocked his head to the side. “I’ll show you the area Sam and I grew up before we built our current house. The place sits just over this hill. The way my mother tells the story, Sam introduced himself to me, well before we could walk—by hitting me over the head with a rock. I returned the favor in kind. We’ve remained the best of friends ever after.”

Jolena appeared grateful for the change in subject and for the return of his playful mood and she joined him in his laughter. They didn’t need to spend this glorious day with any unhappy memories.

“Sounds like something Sam would do,” she said.

Chapter 19

“I really love your house, Jo,” Carolyn said as her gaze roved over each detail of every room they visited. “On my way over I considered giving you an apology for taking so long to come here and see it in its finished state. But, now I’m glad I waited until you put the Christmas decorations out. I feel like I’m in the middle of the North Pole and Santa will come walking in any minute.”

“Thanks.” Jo beamed as she clasped her hands together. She had a lot of fun putting them out this year, mostly because the boys enjoyed the activity just as much as she did, and they helped in every way possible. In fact, they even helped decorate the tree by placing the topmost decorations and setting the angel on the treetop. Then, without any assistance from her, they put up a dazzling display of outside lights. She would never forget the spectacle as long as she lived.

“I know you’ve collected Christmas decorations your entire adult life, but still, I just didn’t know you had so many.” Carolyn picked up an antique Santa Claus for closer inspection and gently set it down beside Johann Andries clock in the sitting room.

“Well, this is the first time I’ve had a house large enough to display them all at the same time,” Jo replied. “Now, come on, I’ve got some cookies and stuff in the family room, and I want to give you my gift, which you’re not allowed to open until Christmas day. Do you hear me, Kay-Kay? Christmas. Day.”

Carolyn laughed as she followed her into the room where a cozy fire awaited them. “Don’t be such a spoil sport, brat,” she said as Jo retrieved a beautifully wrapped gift from underneath her tree. In turn, Kay retrieved a present, just as enticing from her bag.

Jo held the gift aloft. “Promise me,” she demanded.

“Oh, whatever.” Carolyn shook her head as she sat down in the chair opposite the sofa. “I can’t believe you’d wrap my gift as nice as this and then expect me to wait. You should’ve used old newspaper and duct tape. Okay. I promise.” As they exchanged gifts, she added, “I know I don’t have to extract the same promise from you. We’ll be lucky if you get the thing open by midnight.”

“Don’t pout, Kay.” Jo put her present under the tree before handing Carolyn a glass of warm apple cider and a sugar cookie. “You know I’m going to love it no matter what time I open it.”

“Yes, you will,” she replied as she wiped a stray crumb from the corner of her mouth. “But it doesn’t help when I call you at the crack of dawn to talk about my gifts when you haven’t opened any of yours.”

“Look at it this way,” she said as she sat down on the sofa. “Instead of having one exciting conversation, we get to have two.”

“I suppose.” She nibbled a little more at her cookie, looked it over carefully, and nodded. “This is really good. What did you do different?”

“Added a few tablespoons of sour cream.” Jo looked up as the boys filtered into the room, and she smiled her pleasure. “Now tell me, how are things progressing between you and Ray Brennan?”

Carolyn sputtered as crumbs flew out of her mouth in every direction. She wiped them away and said, “How many times do I have to tell you we are nothing more than friends and colleagues? You would think by now you’d be off that kick. Nothing is progressing nor will it ever progress. I feel no attraction to him, whatsoever, I assure you.”

“Methinks she doth protest too much,” Jo teased. “Oh come on, Kay, I really think you ought to pursue the obvious, here. The man is attractive, and you have a lot in common. Besides, you need to get out once in a while—”

“Pul-eeze—” She shook her head and snorted. “Beside, look at who’s talking. Shall I mention the fact that you haven’t had a date in heaven knows how long?”

Jo shot a glance toward Mathias. He gazed at her as if awaiting her response to the accusation. “All right, all right, you win. No more jokes about Ray. So, tell me about work instead. What kind of projects are you working on now?” The innocent question caused a troubled expression to flicker across Kay’s features.

“Oh, well—” Carolyn pursed her lips as she waved a hand of dismissal.

“No.” Jo stopped her. “What’s wrong? Did something happen at work?”

Carolyn’s eyes widened before they dropped to the floor. She looked guilty.

Sam swore underneath his breath. “Sanders, I bet.”

Mathias made his way to the sofa and sat next to Jo’s side. “Ask her what happened.”

“It’s Paul Sanders, isn’t it,” Jo said.