he envisioned her look of surprise once he presented her with the sparkling jewel . she reached into her purse and extracted the terracotta statue . '' i 've been meaning to give this to you . i purchased it at one of christie 's auctions two weeks ago and had forgotten all about it . '' phillip 's eyes were on her and not on the statue

he 'd never committed to a woman in his life . why would he start with her ? how could she even consider changing her life for a man who would no doubt eventually get bored of her and relegate her to the very overcrowded ranks of his ex-girlfriends turned just friends . a scream pierced the air , ripping her from her less-than-happy thoughts

rachel felt a hand around her waist and felt herself being carried through the air . benji was there , holding her . he lifted her up and put her safely into an empty car , behind theirs , and came in beside her . rachel looked down , and watched as their former car went crashing down to the earth . out of breath , stunned , she looked at benji

but by the next day blake 's fantasy world disintegrated and she was whipped back to reality when carl , pequoia 's postmaster of over fifty years , came by and dropped off a telegram . it was from her mother in dallas and it sounded urgent . '' trouble with jerome , '' it said . '' come home . '' *** blake did n't let the evening pass before she packed up her truck and was on her way to
dallas