Noticing that Laura appeared to be daydreaming, Eleanor stood and touched her on the shoulder. "Why don't you and I go for a walk?"

"It's almost dark," Laura said, looking out the back door. "And if Toni wakes up-"

"Toni will be just fine," Eleanor said, handing Laura her jacket. "Come on. Just a short walk down the path. We'll be back before she wakes up, I promise."

With a sigh, Laura quickly finished her coffee and then followed her mother out the door. Arm in arm, they walked silently down the winding path, past the Japanese maple and the sycamores, until they came upon a small iron bench. Brushing away a few dead leaves, Eleanor motioned for Laura to sit, and as they leaned back, Eleanor reached into her pocket and pulled out a pack of cigarettes.

"I thought you quit," Laura said, narrowing her eyes.

"I have one occasionally," Eleanor said, lighting a cigarette. Placing the pack on the bench, she looked out over the rolling meadows, the tall grass gently swaying in the breeze as the fading sunlight turned the green blades to gold. "I think this is my favorite time of the day. The sun paints the sky those marvelous colors, and it's so peaceful. I always come down here when I want to think. It helps put things in perspective."

"Yes, it's beautiful," Laura said, looking up at the orange and crimson clouds. "Toni would love this."

Eleanor looked at her daughter and secretly smiled. Laura was positively glowing, and it was all because she had mentioned another woman's name. Taking a deep drag of her cigarette, Eleanor decided the time was right. "Do you know what I'm most proud of?" she asked quietly.

Turning her attention to her mother, Laura shrugged. "I don't know. What?"

"Our relationship."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, to start, we've always been honest with one another. Don't you agree?"

Thinking back over the years, Laura grinned. "My friends always thought I was crazy."

"Why's that?"

"They'd spend all their time trying to hide things from their parents, and I was coming home and telling you everything. It boggled their minds."

Chuckling, Eleanor patted Laura on the leg. "I have a confession. My friends thought the same thing."

"Really?"

"They couldn't get over the fact that you and I had no secrets. I remember one afternoon when I was talking to Nancy on the phone. It was just after you slept with that boy. Oh, what was his name?"

"You mean my first...Kyle?"

"Yes, that's right. Kyle," Eleanor said, with a nod. "I told Nancy that you had lost your virginity, and she dropped the bloody phone. She was so shocked that you'd confess such a thing to your mother, and she was even more flabbergasted when I told her I was okay with it. After all, you were nineteen, and I knew it was only a matter of time. Oh, you should have heard her going on and on about your three cousins and how they'd never do such a thing at that age."

"Little did she know," Laura said under her breath.

Stubbing out her cigarette, Eleanor said, "Yes, I always wondered what would have happened if she'd found out that her girls had lost their cherries at sixteen."

"Coronary comes to mind," Laura said with a laugh. "Oh, speaking of Nancy, I guess I should try to schedule a day trip. Stop over and say hello."

"Well, if you do, you go alone."

"I thought you liked her."

"I do!" Eleanor said, her voice raising an octave. "But Dorothy just had her second, and if I know Nancy, she'll be prancing around spouting accolades about her glorious grandchildren, and there's only so much of that I can take before wanting to gag."

"I'm sorry I haven't given you any grandchildren yet. I know you want them," Laura said, looking back toward the meadow.

"Yes, I do, but I must apologize for always giving you such a hard time about it. Nancy just has a way of rubbing it in my face at times," Eleanor said, shifting in her seat. "But you have lots of time to have children, and luckily in this day and age, there are lots of ways for that to happen. Aren't there?"

Watching the sunset and in awe of the colors stretching across the sky, Laura was barely listening to what was being said, so a few seconds passed before Eleanor's words sunk in. Slowly turning to face her mother, Laura whispered, "What...what did you say?"

Taking her daughter's hand, Eleanor gave it a squeeze. "Does she know that you're in love with her?"

Laura's jaw dropped open, and a dozen lame denials ran through her mind. Their love had always been unconditional, but she couldn't help but think that this truth could destroy her relationship with the only parent she knew.

Seeing her daughter's jaw begin to quiver, Eleanor shook her head. "There's no need to get upset, Laura. I'm fairly certain that lesbianism doesn't fall under the heading of a dreaded disease. All it means is that I'll never have to worry about the toilet seat being left up when you two come to visit."

Laura's eyes flew open, and whatever fears she had were quickly eradicated by her confusion. Staring at her mother like the woman had just grown another head Laura picked up the cigarettes and quickly lit one.

"I thought you quit ages ago?"

"Yeah, well that was before I dropped a bombshell, and you didn't even blink," Laura said, taking a deep drag of her smoke.

"Technically, I was the one who dropped the bombshell," Eleanor said, snagging the cigarette from Laura's hand and stomping it out.

"Who are you?" Laura said, backing away slightly as she looked at the woman. "I mean, you're taking this awfully well."

"How else should I take it?" Eleanor asked. "It's not like you haven't given me months to come to terms with it."

"Months?"

"Oh, sweetheart, go back and read the emails you've sent to me since Toni came into your life. It was almost as if you were asking for my approval without saying the words. You'd go on and on about how much you liked having her around and how much joy you felt when she'd take another step. You were positively bursting with pride...and with love. You were with that Duane character for over two years, and you never once spoke about him like that."

"I just wanted you to see her how I see her. I wanted you to like her."

"I do, Laura," Eleanor said softly. "She's intelligent, articulate and attractive, but I get a feeling that she's also clueless as to how you feel about her, or am I wrong?"

"No, she has no idea."

"Can I ask why you haven't told her?"

"I don't know that I can."

"Laura, if you care for this woman as much as I think you do, you need to tell her."

"How can I do that, Mum? She's so afraid of being hurt and...and of being touched."

Raising an eyebrow, Eleanor said, "Well, you'd definitely have to get past that, now wouldn't you?"

Laura didn't need a mirror to know her cheeks were now fire engine red. Burying her head in her hands, she mumbled, "I can't believe you just said that."

"Like I said, I've had lots of time to think about it," Eleanor said, grinning at Laura's reaction.

"You're really okay with this, aren't you?" Laura said, looking up.

Eleanor leaned back on the bench and let out a sigh. "To tell you the truth, at first I was very upset. I mean, it's rather shocking when you realize that the one person in the world you thought you knew better than anyone, you didn't know at all."

"Mum, I'm still me," Laura said, leaning closer. "I haven't changed. I just fell in love."

"I know, sweetheart, but you fell in love with a woman, and I wasn't prepared for that. I walked around in a daze for a while, and then on one of the many nights when I couldn't sleep, I came down here to have a talk with God. Oh, you should have heard me, challenging him to tell me what I did wrong. To give me a sign, so I'd understand what mistake I made in raising you, and then a wave of shame swept over me that took my breath away."

"What do you mean?"

"I've always thought of myself as someone without prejudice, but there I was practically yelling at God to give me a reason, as if your love for Toni was somehow wrong...and it's not. I'll be the first to admit that my dreams for you didn't include a woman as a partner, but if this is what you want and Toni is who you want, then that's good enough for me. All that matters to me is that you're happy. You're my daughter and I love you more than life itself, and if I never get grandchildren, so be it."

"I don't know if Toni even likes children."

"Perhaps you should ask her."

"Oh, Mum, what am I going to do?" Laura moaned, again burying her face in her hands. "If I tell her about how I feel, it may be too much for her to handle. If I don't, I'm lying by omission, and I promised her that I'd never lie to her."

"From what you've told me, you know Toni fairly well, so you'll know when the time's right, and until then, I guess you'll just have to continue to be her friend and let God take care of the rest."

"Do you really think God approves of this? I mean, a lot of people think it's wrong."

"Do you think it's wrong?"

"No, I don't," Laura said, straightening her backbone.

"Neither do I and I'd like to think, since God created all of us...neither does he."

Chapter Twenty-Two.

"Where are you taking me?" Toni called out as she came to a stop and looked up the hill.

Laura stopped and turned around. "It's just a little farther."

"You said that hours ago," Toni said, unbuttoning her coat to pull her smokes from the inner pocket.

"It was twenty minutes ago, so stop exaggerating, put those cigarettes away and get your arse up here," Laura shouted as she turned and trotted to the crest.

Glancing at the pack in her hand and then at the steep slope in front of her, Toni dropped the cigarettes back in her pocket, took a deep breath and began her ascent.

After having spent the last two days shopping and sightseeing, earlier that morning when Eleanor headed back to the city to meet a client, Laura and Toni decided to stay behind. After finishing their breakfast, they grabbed their coats and headed out the back door. Neither feeling the need to rush, they casually walked through the garden and past the stand of trees, occasionally pausing to admire the view. The autumn air was crisp, and breath could be seen, and even though the forecast called for rain for the rest of the week, today the sun was shining brightly. Aware of the seasons of Scotland, Laura had on her brown suede bomber jacket, worn to a softness that money could not buy, and Toni walked the fields wearing the leather coat she had purchased two days earlier at a store named Barley's.

Housed in an old brick building off of a side street in Stirling, Barley's had been in business for over a hundred years, selling to the locals the warmest wools and leathers needed to survive when the winter winds began to blow. When they had entered the well-known tourist attraction, Laura wasn't surprised at the overcrowded conditions, and immediately grabbing Toni's hand, she guided her to the back of the store where racks stood filled with leather coats of every length and design. Although unnerved by the throng of people roaming about, flanked by Laura and Eleanor, Toni's anxieties eventually calmed, and within an hour, they had walked out of Barley's with her wearing a thigh-length black leather coat.

"It's about time," Laura said, placing her hands on her hips as Toni finished her climb.

Unbuttoning her coat to allow the breeze to cool her body, Toni was about to reply when she noticed her surroundings and her eyes opened wide. Before her, overflowing with greenery, heather and tall wisps of tan grass were the rolling hills and meadows of Carron Bridge. A short stone wall, as old as the castles that filled the country, separated one field from the next, and a narrow river flowed over rock beds as it lazily wound its way through the countryside. As Toni gazed out over the scenery, she smiled to herself. All that was missing was the sound of bagpipes.

"This is amazing," Toni said.

"I thought you'd like it," Laura said, looking up at her. "When Mum bought the house, I came up to help her move, and one day we went for a walk and found this place. We ended up spending half the day here just enjoying the view."

"It's marvelous."

Hearing Laura move away, Toni turned and said, "I'd like to stay here for a bit, if that's all right with you?"

"I was just going to pull up a rock and sit down. Care to join me?" Laura said, pointing to a large boulder protruding from the ground.

Pleased that they didn't have to leave, Toni went over and sat down next to Laura, smiling as she felt the warmth radiating from the smooth stone beneath her. In unison, their eyes returned to the picturesque landscape, and they watched as the grass swayed in the gentle breeze.

Listening to the sound of the water as it rippled over the stones in the riverbed, Toni filled her lungs to their fullest with the fresh air. Glancing at Laura for a second, she whispered, "Thank you."

"For what?"

Pausing for a moment, Toni picked up a blade of grass, rolling it in her fingers as she thought about the words she wanted to say. "Where do I start?" she said quietly. "For bandaging my arm and not taking no for an answer. For being patient when most would have probably walked away, for giving me a place to stay where I feel safe...and for bringing me here. I'd forgotten that places like this exist outside the pages of a book."

"You're quite welcome," Laura said, the sun paling in comparison to the glow on her face.

Looking in Laura's direction, Toni said, "You look a lot like your mum. You've got her eyes."

"Yeah, but I don't have her height. Damn it!"

Grinning, Toni asked, "Can I ask where your father is?"

"He preferred fishing over family. They got divorced before I was two."

"Oh. Sorry."

"No need to be. Mum and I did just fine."

"So you never see him?"

"Sometimes I do. When I go to visit his sister, Nancy, a lot of times he's over there for dinner, so we chat."

"Must be awkward."

"No, not really, just different," Laura said with a shrug. "I mean, I know he's my father, but it feels more like he's an uncle or just a friend of the family. When I was a kid, I thought I had done something wrong because he didn't want anything to do with me, but my mum explained that there are just some people not cut out to be parents, and he was one of them. I didn't really buy it, but I wasn't about to argue, and then a few years ago I ran into him at my cousin's house. It was the first time we'd actually really sat down and talked. He asked about my job and how I was doing. It was nice, but then the kids woke up from their nap, and he became this bumbling, nervous man. He was so out of his element, and that's when I realized that my mum was spot on. He just doesn't like kids."

"Do you? Like kids, I mean."

"Yes, I do. How about you?"