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

“I’m just making sure you are really here,” Jefferson murmured as Micah patiently withstood the minor assault. “That I have not fallen asleep.”


The sound Micah made—half-sigh, half-gasp—went straight to Jefferson’s arousal. “Sleep. You have no idea how badly I long for a decent night.” Pulling away, he dropped his satchel to the floor and shook the snow from his hair. “But that will have to wait a little bit longer. I’ve much yet to do this Eve, and I refuse to skip a step of it.”


It was all Jefferson could do to respect the distance Micah put between them, and not immediately invade his personal space again. “What do you have to do?”


His eyes twinkling, Micah simply smiled as he quickly shed his coat. When he peeled off his gloves, Jefferson realized they were the pair he’d given Micah in Boston.


Chapter 47