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

What I do know…I think of you, when the sun rises and shines across my face, when the sun sets and I feel the first chill of night. I hear you, standing amidst a group of cackling strangers or alone in my room, with your poem to me propped on my knee. I know that I have never placed a person in this regard before. None has ever captivated me as you do, and I am coming to accept that you enthrall me in ways other than cerebral.


Reading over my note, I fear I’ve likely said too much, but this is my fate, and I shall accept it. Be well, Jefferson. I worry for your health when the winds whistle outside my windows. I would be very distressed should you fall ill, so please grant me this favor and heed your wellbeing.


Indulge me in one more apology. I have put off writing this letter as long as I could. I cannot keep my fingers from shaking, and consequently, I cannot keep the lines straight. So I apologize if my hand is not legible.


Chapter 37