The Secret

August awoke to the sound of angry voices in the next room. She recognized Graeme's among them, and she quickly pushed herself up in bed to feel the soreness in her body that had finally caught up to her. The sun had moved in the sky to a late afternoon hour, making her wonder how long she was out.

As if sensing August awake, Graeme's familiar bristly face appeared in the bedroom doorway where he paused to look at her from across the room. His expression was not one she could read—his eyes like a dark storm rolling back to let the sun break through. August held her breath looking at the beauty of him from afar like this, wondering what he was thinking. She was suddenly desperate to know.