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GARBED IN Asuit and tie and armed with a dozen yellow roses and a box of Godiva chocolates, Mitch rode the elevator to Clarise Harper&039;s third-floor apartment in the retirement complex His letter from her was in his briefcase, and the foriven him a broad clue that this was a woman ould expect a suit - and a floral tribute - just as Roz had instructed

She wasn&039;t agreeing to ahim an audience

No mention of Rosalind, or any of the occupants of Harper House, had beenthe bell and prepared to be char and persuasive

The wo, hardly more than twenty, dressed in a simple and conservative black skirt, white blouse, and low-heeled practical shoes Her brown hair orn in what he supposed wo to flatter her young, thin face

Mitch&039;s first impression was of a quiet, well-behaved puppy ould fetch the slippers without leaving a single tooth ie Please co you"

Her voice suited the rest of her, quiet and well-bred

"Thank you" He stepped inside, directly into the living rooe of antiques His collector&039;s eye spotted a George III secretaire chest and a Louis XVI display cabinet a the various styles and eras

The side chairs were probably Italian, the settee Victorian - and all looked reat deal of statuary, heavy on the shepherdess and cat and swan themes, and vases decorated within an inch of their lives All the china and porcelain and crystal sat on stiffly starched doilies or runners

The walls were painted a candy pink, and the tweed beige wall-to-as buried under several floral area rugs

The air smelled like the inside of a cedar chest that had been bathed in lavender water

Everything glearandeur, the quiet puppy would chase it down and banish it instantly

"Please, sit down I&039;ll inform Miss Harper that you&039;re here"

"Thank you, Miss"

"Paulson Jane Paulson"

"Paulson?" He flipped through the family tree in his mental files "A relative, then, on Miss Harper&039;s father&039;s side"

The faintest hint of color blooreat-niece Excuse ht when she slipped away He h the furniture and condemned himself to one of the side chairs

Moments later he heard the click and step, and the woh she was rail thin, he wouldn&039;t have said frail, despite her age More, he thought at first glance, a forh and whittled down to the basics She wore a dress of rich purple, and leaned on an ebony cane with an ivory handle

Her hair was a pristine white helmet, and her face - as thin as her body - was a e Her mouth, thin as a blade, was poppy red

There were pearls at her ears and her throat, and her fingers were studded with rings, glinting as fiercely as brass knuckles

The puppy trailed in her wake

Knowing his role, Mitch got to his feet, even ht bow "Miss Harper, it&039;s an honor to ht it to within an inch of his lips "I&039;rateful you were able to find the time to see me" He offered the roses, the chocolates "Save a nod, which ht have been approval "Thank you Jane, put these lovely roses in the Minton Please be seated, Dr Carnegie I was very intrigued by your letter," she continued as she took her seat on the settee and propped her cane on the arinally"

"No, ma&039;am Charlotte, where my parents and my sister still live My son attends the university here, and I relocated in order to be close to him"

"Divorced from his mama, aren&039;t you?"

She&039;d done her research, Mitch thought Well, that was fine So had he "Yes, I ae isn&039;t a flight of fancy"

"It certainly isn&039;t I confess my marital difficulties were primarily onones "I&039;h in recovery now for reat deal of distress and unhappiness during our ood man, and we have a cordial relationship"

Clarise pursed her bright red lips, nodded "I respect a s If a man can&039;t hold his drink, he shouldn&039;t drink That&039;s all there is to it"

Old bat "I&039;m proof of that"

She continued to sit, and despite nearly eight full decades of wear and tear, her back was straight as a spear "You teach?"

"I have done At theof faraphies Our ancestry is our foundation"

"Certainly" Her gaze shifted when Jane came in with the flowers "No, not there," she snapped "There, and be careful See to the refreshuest can&039;t be expected to sit here without being offered basic hospitality"

She turned her attention back to Mitch "You&039;re interested in the Harper family"

"Very much"

"Then you&039;re aware that the Harpers are not only my foundation, but a vital part of the foundation of Shelby County, and indeed the state of Tennessee"

"I am, very keenly aware, and hope to do justice to their contributions Which is why I&039;ve come to you, for your help, for your memories And in the hope that you&039;ll come to trust me with any letters or books, any written docuh and detailed account of the Harper falanced up as Jane cae tray "Let me help you with that"

As he crossed to her, he saw the woman&039;s eyes shoot over to her aunt Obviously flustered, she allowed hiirl"

"Miss Paulson would be your great-niece on your father&039;s side," Mitch began easily, and took his seat again "Itto have soled her head, regally "Duty to family is paramount I would assume, then, you&039;ve done considerable research to date"

"I have If you&039;ll permit me" He opened his briefcase and took out the folder he&039;d prepared for her "I thought you y - a family tree - I&039;ve done"

She accepted the folder, wagged her fingers in the air On coold chain

While she looked over the papers, Mitch did his best to sn the weak herbal tea

"How ift, Miss Harper, as you&039;ve not requested my services It&039;s I who request your help in a project I&039;er to explore"

"We&039;ll be clear, Dr Carnegie, that I won&039;t tolerate being asked for funds down the road"

"Absolutely clear"

"I see you&039;ve gone back to the eighteenth century, when the first of o back further?"

"I do, though my plan is to focus more on the family here, in Tennessee, what they built after they ca roles in both, as well as society And most ies, births, deaths"

Through the lenses of her reading glasses, her eyes were hawklike Predatory "Why are household staff and servants included here?"

He&039;d debated that one, but had gone with his instincts "Simply because they were part of the household, part of the texture In fact, I&039;m in contact with a descendant of one of the housekeepers of Harper House - during your mother, Victoria Harper&039;s, childhood The day-to-day life, as well as the entertaining the Harpers have been known for are essential eleave a regal sniff "The sort servants are privy to?"

"I assure you, it&039;s not my intention to write a roh faesturing toward the file, "certainly has had its triuedies, its virtues and its scandals I can&039;t and won&039;t exclude any that my research uncovers But I believe your faacy, certainly stands above any of its very hus and scandal add spice - spice sells"

"I won&039;t argue with that But certainly, with your input, the book would have a stronger weight on the plus side, we could say"

"We could" She set the folder aside, sipped her tea "By now you&039;ve certainly been in contact with Rosalind Harper"

"Yes"

"Andshe&039;s cooperating?"

"Ms Harper has been very helpful I&039;ve spent so A tribute to what your fa to Shelby County, and a tribute to charreat-great-grandfather who built Harper House, and his son who preserved it during the War of Northern Aggression My grandfather who expanded andits history and its traditions"

He waited a moment for her to continue, to speak of her uncle&039;s contribution to the estate But when she stopped there, he only nodded "Harper House is a testament to your family, and a treasure of Shelby County"

"It is the oldest home of its kind consistently lived in by one fa to compare with it, to my mind, in Tennessee, or anywhere else It is only a pity my cousin was unable to produce a son in order to carry the family name"

"Ms Harper uses the family name"

"And runs a flower shop on the property" She disled fingers "One hopes that her eldest son, when he inherits, will have h I see no indication of it"

"Your family has always been involved in commerce, in industry, in business"

"Not at hoie, as my cousin Rosalind is hardly the best source for our family history You may deduce we are not on terms"

"I&039;m sorry to hear that"

"It could hardly be otherwise I&039;m told that even now she has outsiders, and one of the in Harper House"

Mitch waited a beat, saw that he was expected to verify "I believe there are houseguests, and one is also a distant relation, through Ms Harper&039;s first husband"

"With a baby out of wedlock" Those brightly painted lips folded thin "Disgraceful"

"Adelicate situation, but one that happens, very often in any faends I&039;ve heard regarding the house, the fa woman who may have found herself in this same delicate situation"

"Balderdash"

He nearly blinked He didn&039;t believe he&039;d ever heard anyone use that term in actual conversation

"Ghosts I would think a man with your education would be hosts add spice And the legend of the Harper Bride is common in the area Certainly it has to be mentioned in any detailed fa if a house as old and rich in history as Harper House didn&039;t have so the story"

"I know the story, and even as a child had s romantic; I do not If you&039;re skilled or experienced at your work, you&039;ll certainly find that there was no Harper bride who died in that house as a young wohost is reputed to be Not since the story began buzzing about"

"Which would have been?"

"In randfather&039;s time, from all accounts Your own papers here," she said as she tapped the folder, "debunk any such foolishness My grande, as didworandmother, and all of her children who survived their first five years, lived well past their forties"

"I&039;ve heard theories that this ghost is a uest or a servant"

"Each nonsensical"

He fixed a pleasant sreement "Still, it adds to the lore So none of your faendary bride?"

"Certainly not"

"Pity, it would havechapter in the history I&039;d hoped to find someone who&039;d have a story to tell, or had written of it in a journal or diary But as to journals or diaries, in ato add some to my research, to use them to personalize this family history Do you have any that your randmother&039;s perhaps, your own mother&039;s, aunts&039;, cousins&039;?"

"No"

Out of the corner of his eye he saw Jane open her ain

"I hope you&039;ll allow me to interview you more in-depth, about specifics, and whatever anecdotes you&039;d care to share And that you&039;d be willing to share any photographs, perhaps copy them at my expense for inclusion in the book"

"I&039;ll consider it, very seriously, and contact you when I&039;ve made my decision"

"Thank you I very ot to his feet, offered his hand "Your fareat interest to me, and it&039;s been a pleasure to speak with you"

"Goodbye, Dr Carnegie Jane, show the man out"

At the door he offered his hand to Jane, sht into her eyes "It was nice to meet you, Miss Paulson"

He walked to the elevator, then rocked back and forth on his heels as he waited for the doors to open

The old wo she didn&039;t want to share And the quiet little puppy knew it

ROZ STROLLED HOMEthrough her woods in the best of all possibleHer season would begin with a bang, the ould be long, hard, and physical - and she&039;d love every inning to , the twenty-five - pound bags were going to march out the door

She just felt it

The fact was, she ad The huht that spilled through the branches, the loose and li of her own muscles

Hardly a wonder they were loose and liasms, for God&039;s sake And Mitch was a man of his word Stick with me, he&039;d said, and it won&039;t be the last time

He&039;d proven just that in the ht