Page 1 of Dion

Chapter 1

She didn’t wantto think. The balmy spring afternoon was too lovely to spoil bythinking dark thoughts. She’d come to the country home in themiddle of nowhere to escape and try and get some ideas of her designson paper.

She would take a swimin the lake, it would be cold of course, but she wasn’t goingto make that stop her. Besides, she loved swimming and if the waterwas bracing, then it presented more of a challenge.

Yes, she decided –she’d take that swim after her run. The house was far enoughaway from neighbors so she wouldn’t have the inconvenience ofsomeone stopping to talk. Checking to make sure the front door waslocked, she bounded down the steps of the porch, stopping to inhalethe scent of peonies and daffodils at the sides of the building.

She wasn’t herefor the most part, but she had someone overseeing the property andkeeping up the place. Melvin had been with the family since hermother was a child and continued to make sure the place was wellkept.

Turning to the left,Odette started her power-walk which turned into a sprint before long.A slender woman, topping just over five foot three with dark-brownhair pulled back into a tight ponytail, her body was athletic withwonderful breasts and legs long enough to eat up the ground.

Odette Billings wasstrikingly beautiful with a flawless caramel complexion, large, darkeyes and a pointed chin.

Taking the time toappreciate the verdant green foliage and the flowers, she could feelthe tension slowly ebbing away. The conversation with her sister hadupset her even more than she’d thought. It’d been abattle between them for years and every time Odette felt as if shewas the one in the wrong.

It was always thesame argument. Their father wanted to see her to make amends. To makeup for the years he’d been absent from their lives and explainwhy he’d walked away from his wife and two daughters, leavingtheir mother to raise them.

She wasn’tinterested in hearing his excuses and she’d told Lydia thatmuch, but her elder sister, by two years, wanted to make peace.

"He said he wasfrightened and wary of responsibilities."

"He was afather, and as far as I heard, being a parent is scary. It doesn’tmean you get to run away from the job. I don’t want to see him.You don’t want me to see him." She’d finishedangrily. "What I have to say won’t be pretty.

He waited for Mom todie to come out of the woodwork. I get it, I‘m a fairly famousdesigner and he figured he could come and hone in on that. What doeshe want? Money? Because if that's the play here, he is shit out ofluck."

"He isn’tafter money."

"How do you knowthat?"

"Well, he hasn’tasked me for any." Lydia told her stiffly. "I’m notexactly hard up, you know. My practice is doing very well." Hersister was a pediatrician with her own private clinic and catered tothe rich and famous.

They’d bothdone very well for themselves and had their mother to thank. GloriaBillings had pushed them to be the best they could be and to followtheir dreams.

"Now that we’rewell established, he suddenly wants a reunion."

"He’ssick."

"I don't care."

"He’s ourfather, and the only parent we have alive."

"It just goes toshow that life is unfair. He’s alive and Mom’s dead.Makes me wonder."

"Maybe it's fora reason."

"I don't want tosee him."

"How can you beso stubborn!"

"I’m beingrealistic. You’re being sentimental and stupid. The man iscoming around because he wants us to take care of him. He hooked upwith some woman who wasn‘t able to give him children and now hewants back into our lives. I’m not interested."

"This discussionisn’t over."

"It is now."She’d turned off her phone after that. Inhaling the bracingair, she continued on her walk a few more minutes before picking upthe pace until she was running along the winding path. It was lovelyhere and she’d contemplated giving up her apartment and livinghere.

It would suit her,she thought. The wide-open space, the isolation, the solitude. Shewasn’t like her sister who craved the city lights and thenightlife. She liked the quiet because it helped her to think andcreate.

She could have horses- a few livestock as well, shaking her head, she stopped at thebubbling stream, enchanted by the water. All around she wassurrounded by the spectacular beauty of nature. The greenness of thetrees towering above with the sprinkle of flowers dotting theluxurious grass carpeting the ground.

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