Page 64 of The Autumn Wife
“I look naked,” Cecile corrected, glancing down to see that the firelight shone through the fabric.
Marie snorted. “Theo will be thanking us for that.”
“He’s waiting for you.” Etta slipped in to close the door behind her. “Impatiently, according to my husband.”
Cecile tugged at the delicate fabric. “I can’t walk outside like this.”
“Borrow my cloak.” Etta pulled the tie at her throat, gathered the blue wool, and handed it to her. “If you leave right now, while everyone is dancing a reel, no one will notice you crossing to the barn.”
Cecile swung the cloak around her shoulders and pulled the warm edges close. Marie tugged the hood over her head. Genny brushed some lint off the fabric. Their eyes had gone suspiciously wet.
“I think”—Cecile’s face hurt from smiling—“I’m ready now.”
Etta pulled the bedroom door open. Blowing kisses to her friends, Cecile swept through and pulled open the outside door to a blast of cool air and music. She ran across the porch in the darkness. Golden light winked through the cracks in the caulking of the barn.
She used that light as a compass as she raced, hurling herself toward Theo, and a bright and loving future.
THE END
