Heart of Stone

Burning

Isabella stood on the bridge that led to her small garden, studying the new addition she'd asked the groundskeeper to add for her. She hummed softly as she contemplated it, unsure of how to start. She wanted her garden to be as beautiful as those she'd seen on other people's properties, complete with vegetables and fruit in addition to her flowers, but she wanted to do it all herself. She didn't want to leave it up to the gardeners.

Hesitantly, she pulled her phone out of her pocket and scrolled through the contacts. Her finger hovered over Eloise's name, remembering how irked Alexander had been that she'd spent any amount of time with his wife, but she only smirked in amusement and clicked on her name.

The phone rang for a few moments before someone answered.

"Hello?" Eloise's voice came through.

"Eloise? Hi, Isabella here. Are you busy?" She asked.

"No, I'm not busy. How are you?" Eloise asked politely.

Isabella sighed slightly.

"I'm doing alright. I just needed some guidance; I decided to go ahead and start the vegetable garden like you suggested. Would you be free to maybe come help me out?" She asked hesitantly.

"Oh, yes! I'd love to. When were you thinking?" Eloise asked enthusiastically.

"Everyone is gone until the afternoon. So now would be a good time, that way we can avoid any unscheduled interruptions." She suggested.

"Great. Let me just get myself together and I'll be on my way." Eloise replied.

After Eloise made sure Luna was set with her morning routine, she dressed in her gardening clothes and hopped in her SUV, making her way over to the Pearson estate. Isabella was waiting for her on the front steps, and she greeted her warmly, making Eloise once again feel a certain camaraderie with the girl that was supposed to be her sister-in-law.

"Hey, thanks for coming. Nobody else here really encourages my gardening hobby." Isabella said, giving her a small smile.

"It's not a problem, I'm just happy to be able to help. There're not many people in high society who truly have a passion for gardening, and it's a bit funny that we both do in this situation that I'm in." She said.

She followed Isabella around the side of the house to her garden again, and she showed the more experienced woman her newly tilled patch of soil.

"This is perfect, the cucumbers will do well here. Do you have any fertilizer?" Eloise asked.

Isabella nodded and retrieved a bag from the nearby shed. She knelt down beside Eloise and they spread it out over the fresh soil together, the sun already making the air hot and sticky.

As they continued mixing the soil, Isabella felt happiness come over her. Something about the older girl's presence felt soothing to her and being out in nature with her doing this thing that brought her so much peace just lifted her spirits.

"You know, I wanted to do this for a long time, but it wasn't until I got older that I had the confidence to tell my mother what I really wanted to do with my time." Isabella confessed.

Eloise gave her a kind smile, using her fingers to make holes in the soil for the seeds.

"Gardening isn't for everyone. There are people who get it, and those that just don't. For those of us who get it, we experience a completely different world than those who don't." She said.

Isabella nodded thoughtfully, carefully considering Eloise's words as she gently placed the seeds into the holes.

"If I'm successful with the cucumbers, I'd like to try tomatoes and bell peppers next. Do you think that's a good idea?" She asked.