Try as he might, he could not keep a couple of tears from escaping.
After his headache lightened, he dressed and hauled himself into his wheelchair. Later, he rolled to the living room window and watched Tooty playing with Harris. She was holding his hands and swinging him round and round. Her wavy, shoulder length hair wasn't in its usual ponytail and it danced freely about her face and shoulders. She was wearing shorts that revealed shapely legs and her blouse had fallen off one shoulder in an innocent seductiveness that she was unaware of. She looked radiant and alluring.
Miles cursed and rolled away from the window and back to his room. Pulling to his desk, he opened his laptop and tried to concentrate on writing, without success. Tooty's sensual innocence plagued him. He wanted to…no, he wouldn't allow his thoughts to travel there. She was barely out of her teens and he was thirty-eight, for God's sake.
Shortly before noon, he heard a light rap on his door and Tooty's voice. "Miles, are you okay? I haven't seen you all morning. Are you hungry?"
He groaned and rolled to open the door. "I'm fine; been getting some writing done. I need to catch up on the past month."
"Can I bring you some lunch? I made bologna sandwiches."
He hated bologna. "Ah no, I'm not hungry. Do you have an apple or orange?"
"Oh, yeah. Let me grab some for you." She ran to the kitchen and returned in a flash, handing him a bowl of apples and oranges. "I got all the emails and correspondence caught up. Harris is taking a nap, so I'm going to proofread your latest chapter."
Miles noticed her blouse had slipped again. She had a lovely neck and shoulder. His body reacted and he quickly backed into the room, reaching to shut the door. "I've got a lot of work to catch up on. I'll talk to you later." He practically slammed the door in her face.
* * *
If it hadn't been for Miles being so cranky, Tooty would have been the happiest person on earth. She loved her home and her property, but most of all she loved the way Harris had taken to the change in their lives. She'd created a special play area for him where she could watch him from the front window. He had a little patch of grass and nearby dirt to make roads for all his toy cars and trucks. Together they'd created a town from cardboard boxes. Tooty smiled at the businesses they'd painted with watercolors: Hank's Feed and Seed, Shop til you Drop Truck Stop, Dixie's Cuppa Joe, Boot Bustin' Barn, Big Bertha's Steak House, Sizzling Sicily, Ace Hardware, Beautyluscious Beauty Shop, Cowgirl Creations, the post office, and various other local establishments. They were only limited by the number of boxes they could scrounge up.
While Harris napped, Tooty sat on the couch and started reading Miles' latest rough draft. With a red pencil, she made notations and grammar corrections. This was the part of her job she loved. There weren't many pages and it didn't take long to finish. Leaning back, she gazed lovingly around her new home. She adored the mismatched antique furniture creating such a homey atmosphere. Instead of stripping all the old wallpaper and painting the walls, she'd left just enough to maintain the character of the home.
Her eyes rested on the old clock hanging over a buffet in the dining room where wallpaper remained. The hands never moved past eleven thirty-five and she wondered what it would cost to have the lovely time piece repaired.
Suddenly, Beatrice's clue echoed in her mind. The circle surrounds Annabelle's timeless treasure. Two words in the clue stood out: circle and timeless. The clock face was a circle and the clock was broken or timeless. Is that why the word is underlined?
Tooty's heart raced and she jumped up and rushed to the claw foot buffet, pulling a dining chair next to it to stand on. She lifted the heavy ornate piece from the wall and set it on the dining table, running her fingers over the intricate carvings. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary when she prodded and
After his headache lightened, he dressed and hauled himself into his wheelchair. Later, he rolled to the living room window and watched Tooty playing with Harris. She was holding his hands and swinging him round and round. Her wavy, shoulder length hair wasn't in its usual ponytail and it danced freely about her face and shoulders. She was wearing shorts that revealed shapely legs and her blouse had fallen off one shoulder in an innocent seductiveness that she was unaware of. She looked radiant and alluring.
Miles cursed and rolled away from the window and back to his room. Pulling to his desk, he opened his laptop and tried to concentrate on writing, without success. Tooty's sensual innocence plagued him. He wanted to…no, he wouldn't allow his thoughts to travel there. She was barely out of her teens and he was thirty-eight, for God's sake.
Shortly before noon, he heard a light rap on his door and Tooty's voice. "Miles, are you okay? I haven't seen you all morning. Are you hungry?"
He groaned and rolled to open the door. "I'm fine; been getting some writing done. I need to catch up on the past month."
"Can I bring you some lunch? I made bologna sandwiches."
He hated bologna. "Ah no, I'm not hungry. Do you have an apple or orange?"
"Oh, yeah. Let me grab some for you." She ran to the kitchen and returned in a flash, handing him a bowl of apples and oranges. "I got all the emails and correspondence caught up. Harris is taking a nap, so I'm going to proofread your latest chapter."
Miles noticed her blouse had slipped again. She had a lovely neck and shoulder. His body reacted and he quickly backed into the room, reaching to shut the door. "I've got a lot of work to catch up on. I'll talk to you later." He practically slammed the door in her face.
* * *
If it hadn't been for Miles being so cranky, Tooty would have been the happiest person on earth. She loved her home and her property, but most of all she loved the way Harris had taken to the change in their lives. She'd created a special play area for him where she could watch him from the front window. He had a little patch of grass and nearby dirt to make roads for all his toy cars and trucks. Together they'd created a town from cardboard boxes. Tooty smiled at the businesses they'd painted with watercolors: Hank's Feed and Seed, Shop til you Drop Truck Stop, Dixie's Cuppa Joe, Boot Bustin' Barn, Big Bertha's Steak House, Sizzling Sicily, Ace Hardware, Beautyluscious Beauty Shop, Cowgirl Creations, the post office, and various other local establishments. They were only limited by the number of boxes they could scrounge up.
While Harris napped, Tooty sat on the couch and started reading Miles' latest rough draft. With a red pencil, she made notations and grammar corrections. This was the part of her job she loved. There weren't many pages and it didn't take long to finish. Leaning back, she gazed lovingly around her new home. She adored the mismatched antique furniture creating such a homey atmosphere. Instead of stripping all the old wallpaper and painting the walls, she'd left just enough to maintain the character of the home.
Her eyes rested on the old clock hanging over a buffet in the dining room where wallpaper remained. The hands never moved past eleven thirty-five and she wondered what it would cost to have the lovely time piece repaired.
Suddenly, Beatrice's clue echoed in her mind. The circle surrounds Annabelle's timeless treasure. Two words in the clue stood out: circle and timeless. The clock face was a circle and the clock was broken or timeless. Is that why the word is underlined?
Tooty's heart raced and she jumped up and rushed to the claw foot buffet, pulling a dining chair next to it to stand on. She lifted the heavy ornate piece from the wall and set it on the dining table, running her fingers over the intricate carvings. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary when she prodded and