After the lights flashed, he gently touched her elbow and led her to their seats. They stepped through the black curtain and Claire could see the entire theater. Anthony had directed her to a private box above and to the right of the stage. They sat and she beheld the magnificent view, the ornate walls, crowds of nicely dressed people, and beautiful velvet curtain. Too quickly the auditorium darkened and the spotlight hit the stage.

A woman with a German accent began to speak. “Before we begin tonight’s performance, I would like to thank everyone for their attendance. I would like to ask you, the audience, to join us at the Quad City Symphony in thanking the one man who made this evening’s performance, as well as future performances, possible, Mr. Anthony Rawlings.”

Suddenly, the spotlight shone directly into their box. The crowd erupted in applause and a standing ovation. Claire watched as Anthony stood and acknowledged the gratitude with a dashing smile and a wave. He sat back down, and with the light still on them, leaned over and took Claire’s hand. She smiled at him, his eyes were so light. The spotlight turned off and the symphony began.

They hardly spoke during the entire performance other than to comment on a musical piece. When not occupied with applauding, Anthony’s hand gently held Claire’s. The entire concert ended too soon. The lights came up and they stood to go. Whispering in his ear Claire thanked him again. It had been more than she could have imagined. He smiled, and gently placing his hand in the small of her back, led her through the crowd to the foyer. Once outside, Eric opened the door of the waiting car and Anthony assisted Claire as she entered the limousine.

The stark contrast in volume left Claire’s ears ringing as the limousine pulled away from the curb. Her mind swirled with thoughts, the evening had been wonderful—the music, the champagne, the people, the theater, everything. They were riding for a few minutes when she realized Anthony hadn’t spoken since they entered the limousine. Her heart rate increased as she contemplated the possibility that he was upset. She told herself that he couldn’t be. She did everything that everyone told her to do. She kept up appearances and let him do most of the talking. She could feel his eyes upon her, but was afraid to turn and face them. The ringing in her ears turned to silence. Completely devoid of sound, silence. She adjusted her new mask and turned. “That was a magnificent evening, thank you again.”

“Do you really think so?” She wondered if he was asking about the symphony or her.

“I do. The music was performed beautifully and you were right about the conductor.” Her pulse quickened, unable to take the suspense any longer. “Did I do all right?”

“What do you think?”

She considered her answer and all he told her. “I think I did well. I listened to Catherine and to you and did well.” She hoped her voice didn’t expose her insecurity.

Anthony didn’t respond but reached into his briefcase. Claire assumed the conversation was now over and he planned to resume work. She decided that if the conversation was over and he didn’t say that she failed, she must have succeeded. She exhaled. Suddenly, he turned to her and extended a square black velvet box. “I believe you did well.” She liked the tone of his voice, it sounded like the man at the theater. “I have told you that every action has a consequence. That can be negative as we have seen, or positive. I believe you earned a positive consequence.”

“Anthony, I don’t need a gift. I wanted to make you proud. If I did that, then I am happy and that is enough.”

“It is a gift, or at least I believe it was. However, it is not new.” Anthony still held the box before Claire. With the running lights illuminating in the cabin she could see his smile, genuine, not cruel or sadistic. “Is it always going to be this difficult to get you to open gifts?”

She took the box. “You have my curiosity peaked, what are you giving me that is old?”

She opened the velvet hinged box. The lump in her throat made her choke, unable to speak. The dainty white gold chain with a pearl on a white gold cross hung on the satin. The surprise overwhelmed her. She only saw the necklace for a millisecond before her eyes filled with tears. She looked at Anthony again, tears trickling down her cheeks. “How did you? Where did you get this? It was my grandmother’s.”

“It was in your apartment in Atlanta when it was cleaned out. I thought you might want to have it. Do you?”

Claire listened to his words. Her apartment had been cleaned out. Where were the rest of her things? She would need to compartmentalize. Right now, she concentrated on her grandmother’s necklace. “Oh yes, I do!”

He asked if he could help her put it on. She nodded yes, a verbal answer wasn’t required. Next he took the box out of her hand and started to remove the satin board. Claire observed his tenderness as he held the fine chain and delicate clasp. She turned away and he draped the necklace around her neck. Taking the compact out of her purse, she watched as the pearl moved up and down to the beat of her heart.

“Anthony, there isn’t a necklace that you could have bought that would mean more to me than this.” Her tears were dry but he watched as her emerald-green eyes sparkled.

“People that know me well, and they are numbered, call me Tony. You may call me Tony.”

“Thank you, Tony. This is the best night of my life. How can I ever thank you?”

Tony turned off the riding lights in the cabin. Home was still over a half hour away and the window between them and Eric was closed. “I actually have a few ideas.”

  My formula for living is quite simple. I get up in the morning and

Igotobedatnight.Inbetween,IoccupymyselfasbestIcan. —Cary Grant

 Chapter 9

The weather continued to warm. Claire could now sunbathe in her new bikinis. Each time she stepped through the door onto the deck of the pool, she felt like she was entering a resort. She could eat at one of the umbrella tables or read in a lounge chair or swim in the tepid water. The Iowa sunshine resulted in a beautiful golden tan. Her hair, which was always brown, now shimmered with golden highlights contrasting the chestnut shade.

It seemed impossible, but Claire actually felt busy. She would wake, work out, shower, and eat breakfast. Then if Tony were out of the house, the possibilities were numerous. The pool remained a good option. However, Claire preferred that in the afternoon. What she enjoyed beyond anything was exploring the woods. The land around Anthony Rawlings’s estate extended for miles in most directions. One evening, she asked if walking in the woods was permitted. Tony explained that she could probably walk hours and not reach the property line. He never ventured into the woods but had flown over in a helicopter to survey the land, determining the best location for the house. This made her feel better about exploring. He didn’t want her leaving his property without him or his permission, but she could wander and roam and still follow the rules. The fact that even Tony hadn’t been out there made it more appealing.

Claire wanted to learn all about the land, to do this she decided to go different directions each time she ventured through the trees. She discovered areas that the trees were so dense there was no ground vegetation and remained cool even as the temperatures of summer increased. She also found spontaneous clearings usually with flowers. The earlier in the morning Claire went into the forest, the more flowers she would see. There were morning glories blue as the sky above. After the sun’s warmth caused those to close, the white daisies and yellow mustard flowers would fill the void and create a multicolored canvas. With flowers came insects. Claire watched the bees busily pollinating and the multiple kinds of butterflies fluttering about. She decided to check Tony’s library to see if he had a book that would help her classify the different species.