Total pages in book: 57
Estimated words: 53717 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 269(@200wpm)___ 215(@250wpm)___ 179(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 53717 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 269(@200wpm)___ 215(@250wpm)___ 179(@300wpm)
She nodded. “I’m forever grateful to him. Mom and I used to talk about trying to go on a dig together after I graduated college but… obviously, it never happened and I was determined to do it on my own. I just never expected this dig to keep getting extended as often as it has.”
They lay in silence, her story settling inside him as he thought about their shared loss and how much she’d loved her mother. “Thank you for telling me,” he said.
“I don’t mind talking about Mom. It makes me feel close to her, as does being on the dig. But I have a lot to make up to Dylan and Dakota.”
Her love for the kids was obvious. “You’re setting a good example for them about being true to themselves.”
“I appreciate you saying that. I fight the guilt daily.” She shook her head, as if ridding her mind of unhappy thoughts. “Now, how about some us time before I have to meet the girls for breakfast?”
She didn’t have to ask him twice. He reached out and pulled her into his arms, his lips coming down on hers when her phone rang from her nightstand. She must have gotten up for it during the night.
With a groan, she rolled over and answered the call. By the time she hung up, he knew from the gist of the conversation the girls wanted to come see her and their time together was over.
Chapter Three
Two Months Later
Charlie packed the last of her things and zipped her large duffel bag closed. She looked around her trailer to make sure she hadn’t accidentally left anything behind.
Nope.
Even the picture of the twins that had sat on the table beside the bed was safely tucked away for the trip home.
Her flight was one day away, as they had today for their drive back to civilization. A one-night stay in a hotel tonight, a flight to New York tomorrow, and she’d settle into another hotel and see her girls. Then, she’d have to find herself an apartment and a job. But the twins were her priority, along with her newly discovered situation.
Though Noah lived in a much more exclusive area than she could afford, there were neighborhoods nearby she might be able to manage. Prior to the dig, she’d worked for a museum and though she hadn’t wanted to take money from Noah, he’d insisted on contributing for the girls, which had enabled her to compile a small savings. She’d refused to continue to take from him while she was away but he insisted on resuming his payments now that she was home. As long as she got a good-paying job, she’d be fine.
“Knock, knock!” Professor Jerome Wilson said, accompanying his rap on her open door. Jerome had led the dig and had been the person who hired her in the first place.
“Come in!”
He was nearing sixty, his hair a silvery gray, and he was a nice-looking man. He also had a wife at home who was even more understanding than Noah since he went from one excursion to the next.
“You’re all set to leave, I see,” he said, taking in her closed duffel.
“I’m ready to be home.”
“I can understand how much you miss your girls. But I have a proposition for you, and it would give you six months before you have to leave again.”
Leave again? Not happening, she thought. “Jerome, as much as I appreciate whatever it is you’re going to offer, there is nothing that can convince me to leave my daughters again. This dig was the opportunity of a lifetime for me. We’ve excavated and catalogued artifacts that would never have been seen otherwise and I loved the excursion. But I’m done.”
Disappointment flashed across his face, the twinkle in his eyes dimming. “What if I told you I’m heading a group going to Alexandria to search for Alexander the Great’s tomb?”
She stared in disbelief. “Not only has that been considered lost but people have searched for years. Calliope Limneos-Papakosta has been there for years.”
“And I’d like to meet up with her. Aren’t you interested?”
She closed her eyes and gave the opportunity serious thought. Not even a hint of desire. Would she be fascinated to read about it? Of course. But she was tired and would love to find a job like her mother had, and like she’d had before her dig, in a New York City museum.
“I’m sorry, but my main title is going to be mommy from now on. I’ll find a job and I have your letter of reference to help me.” She smiled, but he didn’t return the gesture.
He shook his head, his displeasure clear. “I’m quite disappointed.”
She raised and lowered her shoulders. “I have to do what is right for me.” She wouldn’t apologize for her decisions.
“Well, I respect your choice. I’ll see you when our ride arrives.” He tipped his head and walked out of the trailer.