New York, Summer, 1921 . Your new neighbor across the lake is the mysterious bachelor , Dutch. His reputation for excess and extravagant parties precede him in the prohibition era. But after an invitation to one of his soirees, you discover your...
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You withdrew your hand with polite haste, reminding yourself to maintain your composure.
"I'm sure Mr. Osborn will be delighted to hear you've arrived," you said with the tone of a gracious host. You turned to your butler.
"Alfred, please see that Mr. Shih and his associates are set up comfortably in the guest quarters."
He nodded to one of the footman who rushed over to gather their bags.
"Now if you'll excuse me, my cousin and I must retire for the night," you said with a smile and quickly made your way to the terrace. Harrison followed.
"Is that the Shih that Tom told you about?" Harrison whispered, glancing back inside.
"Yes!' you replied fretfully in a hushed voice, "I have to get to Tom."
Harrison grabbed your elbow with urgency.
"Go. I'll stay here and keep an eye on everything. Let me get the chauffeur."
"No!" you grabbed his arm to stop him.
"The engine...he can't know that I'm gone." You wrung your hands with uncertainty. Your plan was out the window now. You had to think. Your eyes drifted down to the dock, then across the lake.
"I'll row," you said and moved quickly down the steps to the dock. Harrison followed you.
"You sure you can row all by yourself?" Harrison asked dubiously.
You carefully stepped into the kayak and positioned yourself. Harrison knelt down and handed you the oars.
"I can do this," you said with determination. You gripped the oars and smiled at the weight in your hands. You haven't held one since that day Tom showed you how to row on the river. His faith in you was unwavering then. It always has been.
"I should come with you," Harrison said suddenly.
"No!" you snapped with a stubborn stare.
"I can do this."
Harrison gave a resigned nod and pushed the boat away from the dock. You started rowing as quickly as your arms would let you. Harrison soon became a silhouette in the distance as you rowed faster towards Tom, your love, your life.
Finally you came upon his dock. Your arms ached. Every sore muscle was a comforting reminder of that fire Tom stoked inside of you. It extinguished long ago, replaced by tedium and torment. You shamefully surrendered to its absence.
But inside you, something rekindled. Each dip of the oar sent a spark through you, forging something greater, something renewed.
Tom's words echoed in your mind, your heart.
"You're so much more than this.....There's no one you can count on but yourself....There's a fire in you..."
You rang his door with urgency. His butler answered the door and gave you a startled look when you rushed past him.
"Mr. Parker! Please, I must see him!" Your voiced resounded in the grand hall.
Tom appeared at the end of the hall, alarmed by your voice.
"Violet?' he rushed to you with concern, "Darling what is it?" he grabbed your arms and tenderly pulled you to him.
"Shih!" you shouted breathlessly, "Richard!"
Tom's eyes widened. He squeezed your arms and bowed his head to meet your gaze.
"Calm down, my love," he said kissing your forehead, "Start from the beginning."
You swallowed and took a deep breath. Your heart had so many things to say but your lips couldn't keep up.
"Some men arrived tonight, acquaintances of Richard's. He said...he said he was taking clients of his skeet shooting tomorrow, but...they came early and called just now. The one man introduced himself as Shih. There was something suspicious about him, Tom. Richard mentioned that you join them tomorrow. I think he means to ambush you," you crashed into Tom's arms and held him with all your strength. Your arms screamed with fatigue but it invigorated you. A reminder of the lengths you would go to be with your one true love.
"Tom, he knows. He dug deep enough and found everything out. We must leave tonight," you pleaded against his chest. His heart raced like Darling on an open track. He kissed the top of your head and sighed.
"No," he whispered.
You pulled away and stared at him, stunned.
"Tom, they found you, don't you understand?" your tone was desperate and frustrated. How could he be so calm and collected about this news? These men tracked him for years and filthy, rotten Richard pointed the way right to Tom.
"I'm through running," Tom said, cupping your cheek. His face was adamant and unyielding, but his eyes held a misty melancholy to them. For the first time, you considered that his life turned out not as he planned either. He went to war, leaving his only love behind. Injured and distressed, he saw an opportunity to make himself worthwhile. An orphan at six, he floundered his whole life for purpose, until one day, he met a fiery flower from a family of means. His penniless heart fell madly in love and as fickle as fate can be, she loved him back.
Fate tested him, though, sending him to war at 20, away from his love and the only family he ever knew. It changed him, as the horrors of man are wont to do. This time, though, he had a purpose and her name was Violet. She was extraordinary and only a man of equal measure would do. So when the opportunity presented itself, he took it, and all the consequences along with it. Nothing on the surface mattered, his name, his appearance, as long as he got back to her.
His blooming blaze.
His vivacious Violet.
You.
You, who were engaged, living with a monster of a man. You, who seemed only a shadow of the girl he loved. You, who scoffed at his advances with a chill in your heart.
No amount of planning could have prepared him for that. He was certain he lost you for good and it would all be for naught.
He was mistaken. You simply had your own role to play.
Now, the endgame was upon him. His ruse was up. As clever and careful as he was, it was only a matter of time.
But you saw something else in his eyes, something unexpected.
It was relief.
"I'm through with the deception and lies, with this charade of decadence. It's served its purpose. It got your attention and here we are," he said pulling you back into his arms.
"Here we are, my Violet," he whispered in your ear.
"Let's just go to England like we planned. He will be an ocean away. He'll never find us," you pleaded
"No, Violet. They'll always find us. Shih and his men have chapters all over the globe. They're not to be trifled with."
"What will you do?" you asked, breathing him in. His scent was comforting but intoxicating. Your nerves started to settle but a flare of desire raced through you.
"I'll face them, not as Parker or Dutch, but as Tom. I came for what is mine, and nothing will get in my way. This ends tonight," his voice was fierce and reckless, only aiding in increasing your desire. But there was fear too.
"Richard will stop at nothing," you said with a sob. The thought of him at his most rageful terrified you into an inconsolable cry, "My family...the orchard."
Tom pulled away and brushed a tear from your cheek. He smiled slowly and looked past you.
