Heart of Glass
Page 30
Colin reached inside again and pulled out a small silk pouch. He opened it and a gold ring set with a sapphire surrounded by diamonds tumbled into his palm.
“My great-grandmother’s wedding ring.” He stared in awe. “My mother wore it as well.”
“Gold and jewels!” Damian jumped down and headed for the door. “Maybe there’s more out there. I’ll be back!”
Colin turned to Kate. “A Bible, a photograph, and a ring. So many things to choose from, so many things of value, and my mother buried these,” he said.
Kate slipped her arm around his waist, leaned into him, and looked at her sisters. She heard Damian out in the garden. She turned to Marie, reminded of Amelie. Then she looked up and saw the love in Colin’s eyes. In that moment Kate understood Marie Baudier Delany’s choices perfectly; they were symbols of her marriage, her faith, and her family. Marie Delany had buried the treasures of her heart.
The house was quiet. Kate was tucked in bed in her nightgown and on her lap was the heavy French Bible with the Baudier and Delany family history recorded inside. Though she struggled with the French, she could read the names back to the sixteen hundreds. She traced them with her fingertip and tried to picture the men and women who had come before them, especially those who first settled this land.
She heard Colin’s slow footfall on the gallery and smiled as he walked through the door.
“You’re still dressed,” she said.
“I have to return to the sugarhouse to visit the men working the night shift.”
“I forgot it was your turn. You look tired, Colin. Handsome but tired.”
“I am tired, but also invigorated. It’s been quite a day.”
“I’m exhausted but I don’t know if I’ll be able to sleep. I hate to miss a minute with my sisters.”
He sat down on the side of the bed next to her hip.
“You might be too tired to sleep, but the babe needs rest. You’ll see your sisters again in the morning.”
She reached up and traced his cheek with her thumb. “Thank you for welcoming them.”
“They are part of our family too.” He gave her a long, slow kiss and then reached into his vest pocket. “I finally have something I’ve wanted to give you for a year now.”
“You’ve already given me everything my heart has desired and more.”
He took her hand in his and slipped his great-grandmother’s ring on her finger. “At last you have a wedding ring.”
She gazed at the sparkling sapphire and diamonds.
“It’s beautiful, but you know I was perfectly happy without it.”
“You shine brighter than any diamond, Kate. You’re my light and my love.”
“And you are mine.” Kate admired the ring again and smiled. “It fits perfectly.”
“Of course,” Colin said as he shrugged. “It’s been waiting for you.”
About the Author
JILL MARIE LANDIS is the bestselling author of over twenty-five novels. She has won numerous awards for her sweeping emotional romances, such as Summer Moon and Magnolia Creek. With her toes in the sand and head in the clouds, Jill now lives in Hawaii with her husband, Steve.
Visit Jill Marie at www.jillmarielandis.com.
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Also by Jill Marie Landis
Heart of Stone
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ZONDERVAN
Heart of Glass
Copyright © 2011 by Jill Marie Landis
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* * *
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Landis, Jill Marie.
Heart of glass : a novel / Jill Marie Landis.
p. cm. — (Irish angel series; bk. 3)
1. Irish — United States — Fiction. 2. Plantations — Louisiana — History — 19th century — Fiction. I. Title.
PS3562.A4769H423 2012
813’.54 — dc22
2011049848
* * *
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Interior design: Michelle Espinoza
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