“She became ill shortly afterward.”
My heart squeezed.
William continued.
“Daniel contacted her office months later to ask about the fellowship. By then she had stepped away.”
“So he knew Adrian’s family even before the foundation.”
“Yes.”
Another piece of the past shifted into place.
Not fate.
Not some elaborate plan.
A series of ordinary connections.
A city where talented people crossed paths.
A woman who had once seen promise in me.
A husband who remembered.
A son who became his friend years later.
William studied my face.
“I found that photograph while going through Caroline’s papers after my stroke.”
“Does Adrian know?”
“No.”
I looked toward the conservatory.
Through the glass doors, I could see Adrian kneeling beside Mia while she pointed at something growing in a large ceramic pot.
William followed my gaze.
Then he said quietly, “Perhaps you should ask him why he really bought Blackwell & Reed.”
