The Love of a Stranger by Jeffrey Anna

Author:Jeffrey, Anna [Jeffrey, Anna]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Romance
Published: 2011-10-07T04:00:00+00:00

Chapter 17

On Tuesday morning, just after he finished his workout, Doug was surprised by a UPS delivery of a small but heavy brown package. He signed for it, preoccupied by the return address—Bynard's Antique Books, Boise, Idaho.

Opening it on his kitchen table, he found a stack of well-used small books. The shipment had to be an error. He had never heard of the Boise bookstore. He lifted out the top book. The cover appeared to be a fabric of some kind. He turned the book and read the spine: “The Winning of the West, Vol. I” by Theodore Roosevelt. He opened the cover to the title page, covered by aged, crisp onionskin. Lifting the delicate paper with care, he saw the publication date: 1905.

Five more like volumes, II through VI, lay in the box. He lifted them out and fanned the ivory pages of each one. A square envelope lay on the bottom of the box. He picked it up and found a folded note inside. He saw embossed initials in one corner—“AM.”

He knew the sender, even before he read the handwritten message:

Thanks for your friendship. Sincerely, Alex McGregor.

Doug did a one-eighty and looked out his kitchen window at the distant smudge against Wolf Mountain he now could spot as her home. He knew she was home. Her lights had reappeared last night. He crossed his arms over his chest while tried to comprehend the enigma who lived on Swede Creek.

His thoughts were a jumble. He had received presents from women many times, things like ties or sweaters he often didn’t like. He could think of few gifts, if any, that had called for deep thought on the part of the giver. How could she have known how much he would treasure so fine a gift?

His desire to call her outweighed his determination not to. He plucked the receiver from the wall phone and punched in her number, which for some arcane reason, he had memorized. He heard one burr before he made a different decision, hung up and headed for the shower.

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