Student of letters, Micah Yardley wants one thing: to meet the poet Jefferson Dering. After hearing his idol speak at Harvard, Micah travels to Jefferson’s home in nearby Wroxham, entertaining visions of discussing poetry over dinner and drinks. What he experiences exceeds anything he ever anticipated.<br><br>Jefferson finds Micah mesmerizing and passionate, everything he has ever wanted. But after getting caught in a compromising position with another young man a decade earlier, he exiled himself from Boston and from affairs of the heart. Jefferson represses his longing for Micah, but his tumultuous emotions cannot be contained.<br><br>Micah denies the truth of his desire for Jefferson. Jefferson refuses to act on his passion for Micah. But all it takes is a single kiss in Wroxham's haunted church to change the course of their lives ... and ignite the flame that could fulfill a generations-old promise.

A Hidden Beauty

You are the awakening of everything that is good inside me.


How can you say you’ve done nothing to merit my regard? You have already done more than you could possibly know, or more than I could describe. That does not mean I will not attempt to describe why you deserve my esteem. I can only assure you that you are not insignificant. In many ways, you are the most significant person I have ever met. I admire so much about you.


You are extremely brave. First you had the courage to travel to Wroxham and introduce yourself to me, a perfect stranger. It would have been far easier to simply stay in Boston, but you did not choose the easier option. You also had the courage to begin our correspondence again. It is difficult to apologize when you feel you have acted foolishly. God knows I owed you an apology and I did not have the strength to write a simple letter.


Chapter 38