To love and to honor Read Online Free Page A

the gray stone walls of the house, perennials put on a flower show of gorgeous color; humming birds poised above red and pink hollyhocks; a bee reeled drunkenly from out the depths of a mammoth regal lily; a great yellow moth fanned black-streaked wings on the tall, light-blue spike of a second-blossoming larkspur beside a rosy clump of phlox; a cloud of small yellow butterflies hovered above the orange king and lemon queen calendulas. On a window ledge a cat, black as the wings of a dragonfly hovering above a clump of tawny

    zinnias below her, regarded with blank topaz eyes a robin cautiously bathing in the shallows of the pool. Green chintz on white wicker chairs matched the lawn in shade. A light salty breeze shook fragrance from the flowers and spicy scent from a windbreak of balsams. Cindy's attention returned to the man beside her.
    "It is nice here. Sarah Ann Parker has been a wonderful housekeeper and friend. She kept up my garden while I was away. Is your tea the right strength?"
    "Perfect. This toasted canape is tops. What's the spread?"
    "Mushrooms. Try one of the lobster salad rolls. They are something to write home about. I can say that as I didn't make them."
    "No, thanks. I am reserving space for the brownies. I'm a chocolate addict."
    Gourmand, I'll bet. He actually licked his chops when he looked at that plate, Cindy thought.
    They chatted about local matters till, after asking permission, he lighted a cigar.
    "Now, may we talk business?" Cindy inquired eagerly. "I am anxious to hear a report of what you have accomplished."
    "No more anxious than I am to get ahead with the matter." He drew a sheaf of papers from an inside pocket of his gray coat. "At long last I have succeeded in getting an answer from your husband."
    "My husband! Glory be, I had almost forgotten I had one. I haven't, really. We'll have the table cleared, you may want me to sign something. Signing papers has been the major occupation of my life these last years."
    She tinkled a small silver bell. Sarah Ann Parker emerged with a promptness that suggested she had been watching from the windows of the kitchen in the east ell.
    "How's tricks. Trader?" The familiarity of the woman's greeting deepened the red of Armstrong's already sufficiently ruddy face. "I hear Ally's come for a visit with you. How is she?"
    "Fine. Still young and smart for your age, I see, Sarah Ann." His unctuous voice had sharpened to razor edge.

    Holding the laden tray Sarah paused halfway to the door which opened into the kitchen.
    "Smart? Why not, Trader? I'm only sixty, five years younger than you. Wearin' bach buttons in your coat-bachelor buttons an' you a widower. Kinder got the signals mixed, haven't you. Trader?" She winked broadly at Cindy. A moment later the door to the kitchen closed with a bang.
    "That seems to be that," Armstrong breathed a sigh of relief. "Even as a girl Sarah Ann Parker had a tongue sharp as a serpent's fang. Age hasn't dulled it. My sister, Alida Barclay, wants to meet you, Mrs. Stewart. She will call, after which we hope you will dine with us."
    Having observed the social amenities he drew a letter from a long envelope, tried to tilt back in the chair, which refused to tilt, and laid the paper on the glass table.
    "This is from Kenniston Stewart in answer to my letter asking if he would consent to the annulment of the marriage."
    "Consent} That was a silly question to ask. He wants his freedom as much as I want mine."
    "Asking his consent is a matter of form to be filed with the records of the case."
    "Does he say why he didn't answer my question, shall I sell the oil holdings?"
    "Read the letter aloud. I'd like to hear it."
    Cindy picked up the sheet of paper, skipped the formal beginning, read:
    I have been away from the base on an assignment, have just received your letter and Mrs. Stewart's [so he thinks of me as Mrs. Stewart, that's a laugh] re the sale of our holdings. I am in no position to advise. Fortunately a fellow officer, an