Heavenstone 02 - Secret Whispers

bestowed on any stranger. And there was never any doubt in my mind that she saw herself treating anyone with respect as a gift bestowed from high above to them.
    “I’ve made no conquest, Lucille. We’re not engaged or anything. He’s just visiting for a few days.” I couldn’t help sounding a bit annoyed, even though I wasn’t sure why I should.
    “Of course you’re not engaged, but one look at his face when he looks at you tells me you’ve made a conquest. Don’t be embarrassed. All I’m saying is that he makes a very good first impression. I think you’ve had enough experience to know it takes time and great caution before you invest in any relationship. At least, I hope you have.”
    Where I got the nerve to say it I don’t know. Maybe it was Cassie’s touch, but I held my ground and replied, “You and my father haven’t been seeing each other all that long, have you, and you have invested in a long relationship.”
    She smiled, but not coldly or coyly. It was more like a high school girl’s dreamy, soft smile.
    “No, not terribly long, but when you reach ourages and have been through so many emotional battles and journeys, you develop a deeper wisdom. Just like an experienced diamond cutter can tell you almost instantly whether a diamond is worth a great deal or not, your father and I can peel away what’s necessary to see what is truly in our hearts, and we’ve both found gold. I hope you do as well.” She turned and went to the door. “I’ll see you downstairs, and over the next day or so, I hope to help you to see exactly what you’ve found. You seem a tad unsure. I only wish to help you build your own self-confidence, Semantha.”
    My mixed feelings lingered, but now I was thinking that I might have misjudged her again and been unnecessarily harsh when she was only trying to be happy for me. Oh, why did everything have to be so complicated? For a moment, I actually wished I did have Cassie at my side. But then I quickly reminded myself that I had to be my own person now, sink or swim.
    I hurried to get ready, afraid that Daddy would frighten or intimidate Ethan so much that he would cut his stay short, but when I started down the stairway, I could hear them both laughing. They were already having cocktails.
    “Well, here’s our little princess now,” Daddy declared when I entered the living room.
    He and Ethan were sitting across from each other. Ethan rose. Daddy looked at him with delighted surprise and nodded at me before rising himself.
    “White wine, Semantha?”
    “Yes, please, Daddy.”
    He went to the marble bar to open a fresh bottle of Chardonnay, Lucille’s favorite.
    “You look terrific,” Ethan said.
    I had decided to wear the strapless aqua blue dress I had worn for Daddy’s last birthday party. I expected to hear Daddy say something about it, but he didn’t. Mother had once told me that Daddy was as oblivious to what she wore as any stranger might be. He hadn’t been that way with Cassie, but she was right when it came to her or to me. “But,” she had added, “he never fails to tell me how beautiful I look. It’s a standing joke for him to ask me if I have just bought a dress, even though I have worn it two or three times.”
    I did notice, however, that Daddy never seemed to fail to remark about Lucille’s clothes. At least in that regard, his behavior toward a woman other than Cassie had changed, but then again, I wasn’t there when he had first begun seeing Mother. Perhaps he had given her as much attention then, too. Cassie, of course, had blamed Mother for Daddy’s indifference.
    “She lets him take her for granted. She never surprises him,” she had said. I should have known back then, sensed how unnatural it was for a daughter to be so critical of her mother, but, like Daddy, I made excuses for her. Cassie was just too intelligent to be anything but objective and honest.
    “Let’s wait for Lucille before making any sort of toast,” Daddy said, handing me my glass of wine. “Now, then, Semantha, you didn’t tell me Mr. Hunterwas majoring in business and had won his college’s coveted future entrepreneur award. How could you overlook something like that?”
    “I didn’t know about any award,” I said, looking at Ethan. “You never mentioned it, or I would have remembered.”
    “Oh, modest, eh, Ethan?” Daddy said. “Let me give you some quick advice. No one blows your horn better than you do yourself. I don’t care whom you hire