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I held her hand all the way across the courtyard, where she stopped and smelled every floe passed

She touched her nose to one bright red rose “I’ve never s so sweet Did you plant these?” She closed her eyes and savored it

“No, they were here when I bought the place I hired a gardener to keep all the plants and flowers No telling how long some of them have been around” I pinched off a red bloom and handed it to her “Now you can take that scent with you” She put her nose to the flower once more, and I noticed the color matched her lips

We walked hand in hand to the other tower, and once ent inside, I led her down the long hallway on the allery

As she walked into the roo” She took off, walking to the far side of the roohest hung paintings “Your mother painted some of these?”

“I keep hers mixed with the others, all but for this one” I walked to the si my mother had done of a fruit basket when I was a child, and she walked across the roo this one I was one of her last We’d gone to the market down the street from our home where she’d chosen the fruits by their colors” I pointed to the one, empty banana peel next to the bowl “I ate that on the way home”

She met my eyes with a sood Hers is better than most of these The colors are so ives it that classic look Like it was painted a century ago”

She stared closely at the painted as if taking in every stroke “Show me more of her work”

“How about you see if you can find them Stand here and see if you can point them out” I pointed to a place in the s with a finger curled to her lips

Then suddenly, she took off toward one “That one, there Is that you?”

“No, it’s actually raph She wasn’t happy with the outcome, so she rarely painted portraits”

“She should have done ood at them”

“I agree And you have a good eye” I waited as she stepped back and chose another painting, and we spent another few hours lounging around the rooame And all I could think about was how special she was

Da?

CHAPTER EIGHT - CARRIE