Chapter 35 - The Evening on the Bluffs
As dusk approached, painting the Hudson and Great Lakes basins in magnificent strokes of amber, violet, and deep crimson, we walked out onto the grand master terrace. The evening air was crisp, carrying the clean, sharp scent of pine and cold water off Lake Michigan.
Down on the shore, the waves broke rhythmically against the stone retaining walls, their white foam catching the last golden rays of sunlight. In the far distance, the Chicago skyline blazed like a vast constellation of diamond chips set into black velvet. The city hummed below us in endless, orderly waves—police cruisers patrolling clean streets, freight trucks moving seamlessly between automated terminals, and the ancient machinery of the city turning with clockwork precision under our invisible management.
Adrian set his coffee mug down on the heavy stone balustrade, the evening wind billowing his open shirt collar. He turned me gently in his arms, pulling me against his solid, unbreakable chest, looking down into my dark eyes with an intensity that time could never dull.
"Where to next, Mrs. Vale?" he asked quietly, the wind carrying his words softly out over the lake.
May you like
I smiled, looking out toward the endless, glittering horizon where the golden light met the endless blue sky.
"Nowhere," I whispered, resting my hands over his heart as the steady, familiar beat answered my every thought. "We’re right where we’re supposed to be."
