Dear, I think you worry too much about whether he knows where you are. I mean, the fact that he knew where you were in school and never bothered you should reassure you, I would think.
Thats true, Antonia admitted. It had been four years since their divorce, and once she had moved away from Virginia, Alan had not tried to see her again. After all this time, he would not go to the trouble of tracking her down, she told herself. There was no reason to think that the caller this morning had been Alan. No doubt you are right, Mother. Still, it makes me feel more secure, knowing that he doesnt know where I live.
Well, I wont tell him, Antonia, Elizabeth said in a patient tone that was guaranteed to set Antonias teeth on edge. Lets talk about something more pleasant. Whats going on in your life?
I saved a foals life today, maybe the mothers, too. And I met a very handsome man, and he kissed me, and I felt as tingly as a schoolgirl, and Im not sure what to do about itif, indeed, there is anything to do.
Thats nice, dear. It sounds quite rewarding.
It was. Antonia felt guilty. Her mother was trying, after all. It wasnt her fault that she didnt understand her daughter. Perhaps she should confide in her mother about Daniel Sutton. Take the initiative to bring about a closer relationship.
At that moment there was a click, and Elizabeth said, with a note of relief in her voice, Oh, theres another call. Im afraid I have to get off, Antonia. Faith Morton is supposed to be calling me with information about the June Gala.
Of course. Im glad you called. Goodbye.
Antonia hung up the phone and turned back to the table and her supper, no doubt cold by now. She found Mitzi crouched on the table, chowing down on the choicest bits of meat on the tray.
Mitzi! Oh, well, Im not hungry anymore anyway. Antonias stomach was alive with nerves now. Talking about her ex-husband had a way of doing that to her.
She thought about the phone call that morning. It had the markings of one of Alans callsjolting her from a sound sleep, the unnerving silence, the hang-up. But then, she reasoned, the same could be said of a dozen other kinds of calls, including a simple wrong number and embarrassed dialer. There wasnt any reason to believe that it was Alan after all these years.
Still, she went to the kitchen door and checked its bolt, then continued around the house, checking each window and doorknob. She had
forgotten to set the security systemone of her first acquisitions whenever she moved into a new placeand she punched in the keycode now, watching as the reassuring red light began to blink.
She went to the window of the living room, which looked out on the front yard. The blinds were closed, as they always were at night, but Antonia lifted the edge and looked out. The moon was full and cast a bright light across the scene, outlining trees and cars. Nothing moved.
For a long time she stood there, gazing into the darkness, thinking about the past, about how she had gotten here. About Alan.
Chapter 3
However, even her interest in this one aspect of her life was not enough to reassure her mother, for Antonia did not approach riding as a social activity at which one needed to be competent, but as a passion. Moreover, she was interested in everything about the animals, not just in learning the proper way to mount and ride. And the one thing concerning horses in which she had no interest was the local hunt club.
Before Antonia finished high school, she knew that she wanted to be a veterinarian and specialize in horses. For that reason she campaigned to go to a respected state university instead of the proper ladies college that her mother had attended. She had traded making her debut for attending the college she wanted, wading through the tedious balls, parties and teas for the requisite year. After that she had dived headlong into her schoolwork, concentrating on the science courses and academic standing that would get her into veterinary college. It had been her ambition to go to North Carolina State University for her professional training. Then she had met Alan Brent.
It had been during her junior year of college. He had been a senior, blond and blue-eyed, handsome, yet able to blend in with everyone else. She had met him at a fraternity party to which she had reluctantly gone with the son of one of her mothers friends. Her date had gotten so thoroughly drunk that he had passed out under the table in the dining room of the fraternity house, and Alan had politely offered to drive her home. She had been amazed and delighted when he called her the next day and asked her out.
Though she had been told by more than one person that she had blossomed into a beauty, Antonia had never quite gotten rid of the inner feeling that she was the tall gawky wallflower she had been in middle school, when she had spent every tortuous cotillion seated against the wall, waiting for the night to end. Moreover, she was still accustomed to towering over many of the young men she met. Alan, however, was as tall as she, as long as she wore flats, and he was popular, poised and handsome. She was tongue-tied and terribly flattered by his attention, and by their fourth date, Antonia was hopelessly in love with him.