Lacey's Retreat by Lenora Worth

Author:Lenora Worth
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2002-12-15T00:00:00+00:00

The forest was rich with the hues of autumn. They followed a well-worn path that carried them between century-old moss-draped live oaks and craggy-kneed bald cypress trees. Sprinkled in between, tallow trees with leaves upturned in brilliant shades of burgundy and red shot up like sparks from a fire. The woods were ablaze with fall. The very air smelled of ancient, rich earth combined with damp, refreshing wind.

Earth, wind and fire, Gavin thought as he watched Lacey. She moved like a forest creature among the flowers and shrubs. She looked so natural here in her element. And she was natural—in every deed, in every action. From her simply styled hair to her minimal use of makeup to the very essence of her being, Lacey was real, genuine, honest, graceful, unhurried and unabashed.

Belleza. Beautiful.

Gavin had to remind himself to breathe. He’d never been so affected by a woman. He’d had lots of girlfriends, lots of lady friends, lots of women, all of whom would gladly have married him for his father’s money and power, if not for love.

Some of them had actually claimed to love him.

But Gavin had always held back. He’d always kept his distance. Somewhere deep inside his soul, he knew that there was such a thing as real love. And he had been waiting to find it, even if he didn’t believe he deserved it.

He looked at Lacey in her pearls and ruffles and felt his heart falling away from his body like a leaf gently letting go of a tree. It was as if something dark and decadent had died inside his soul, and in its place something new and clean had emerged to be reborn. And he wondered if Lacey and her fabled Aunt Hilda might be on to something.

Maybe this place did heal people. Maybe these vast, never-ending gardens did bring a perfect peace, a renewed hope, a rebirth to lost souls. Maybe here, in this secluded retreat, he could find the path back home again.

Another impossible dream?

He lowered his head, closed his eyes in a quick, gentle prayer, then glanced up to find Lacey looking back at him. “Gavin?”

“Yes?”

“Are you doing okay back there?”

He shrugged, not yet ready to reveal all that was in his heart. “I’m just a bit overwhelmed. This place is—well, I’ve never seen anything so beautiful.”

Lacey nodded her understanding. “The chapel is right around this curve. There’s a grape arbor between the chapel and the family cemetery. We can picnic there, if you want.”

He did want. He wanted this kind of peace as a constant in his life. He wanted her in his life. He wanted to wake up knowing he had something pure and simple and precious to get him through each day. He wanted to wake up with her next to him, and go to sleep with her by his side each night. He wanted to experience God’s rich and unconditional blessings with the woman who had shown him that hope never dies.

But first, he had to finish the job.

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