Watch the Stars with Me

Chapter 26

Violet was so stunned to see him standing there in his dark pants and matching jacket over the light blue shirt that when her focus went to her child she had missed the first half and quickly lifted her ungloved metal hands to sign. "Sorry. I didn't see. Can you repeat please?"

Aster huffed in irritated before smiling again and signing excitedly. "He found me. Mr. S-T-E-P-H-A-N-O-T-I-S found me when I hid from nanny! Can you believe it? Of all the people in the world!" Aster would have known him anywhere. His face on the sleeve for the collection of photos from his adventures that she obsessively looks through.

Leon watched as the light reflects off of Violet's hands as she continues to sign to her daughter until they both turn to him, Aster with a pleased smile and Violet looking reminiscent of the girl he met all those years ago at the Observatory with a stunning stillness. When she spoke he could hear the changes that age had brought to her, even though they were only in their late twenties now, there was even more maturity in the tone of her voice. "Leon." She stood and brushed her skirt down as she rose. "Kyle had mentioned you would be coming to town for your book tour."

He smiled as he continued his approach. "Yes. I got in this morning. I had heard so much about this place, I thought I would come and see the miraculous Evergarden."

Violet blushed, it hadn't been her last name for more that seven years now, and people often referred to the gardens in front of or two her, but somehow hearing Leon say it, even though his voice had deepened a little over the years, it hadn't lost it's effect on her.

Aster watched, unable to keep up with their lips or understand exactly what they were saying, but she was an observant five year old and noticed the shift in her mother. She never blushed like that when other men spoke to her, not even the suitors that came by every so often. She watched a similar blush rise in Leon's face. When they both suddenly stopped and turned to look behind Leon, Aster giggled as she saw her frantic Nanny approaching. The nanny profusely apologized to Violet and then suddenly all three adult's eyes are on the snickering five year old.

"Aster, apologize to your nanny right now." Violet signs with a serious look on her face.

Aster stifles her giggles and looks up at her nanny with big green puppy dog eyes as she signs. "I'm sorry for making you worry nanny. It will definitely happen again."

The greying nanny signs as she speaks "Oh you!" Before playfully beginning to chase the little rascal.

Leon and Violet stand there for a moment and watch the little girl, her head falling back a little as she runs with giggles bubbling out of her.

"She's beautiful. Just like her mother." He says as he turns to her.

She turns to him with that blush again. "Thank you. You look well."

He smiles. "I am."

For a moment, as their eyes really do meet and connect, the almost feels as though it stops spinning, other that the rambunctious five year old who has not turned the tables and is chasing her nanny.

"Do you have dinner plans?" Violet asks just as the rest of the world begins to turn again.

"I'm afraid I do." He says with disappointment.

She quickly brushed off her disappointment as she continued to search for another path. "Oh, well, perhaps tomorrow evening then? After your presentation? I was planning on going..."

I smiled a sigh before speaking. "If you don't mind sitting at a table with all of my editors and publishers as they try to squeeze me for another book at the best restaurant in town, you're more than welcome to join."

"LaRiveria?" She asked with raised eyebrows.

"That's the one. Do you know it?" He smiles, wondering if she is actually entertaining the idea of joining him at such an awkward meal.

"I know the owners. I would love to join you and your friends." She smiles.

He was a little stunned. How was this happening? How did he go from eating his lunch alone amongst his favorite flowers to making dinner plans with his first love? "Sounds like a plan then. Will Aster be joining us?"

Violet glanced over in time to see the blur of her child before looking back at Leon with a slightly saddened look. "Since she struggles to lip read, I hadn't planned on bringing her to the presentation."

He smiled. "Well, I don't really like talking that much in front of people, so it's mostly photo slides with descriptions and then some questions from the crowd. What if I found someone who could interpret for her?"

Violet's hand lifted to the green pendant at the collar of her shirt as if she could feel Gilbert's approval. "Are you sure it wouldn't be too much trouble?"

"No trouble at all. I feel dumb we haven't thought of doing it before... I know that a lot of my readers are hearing impaired. I'll call my manager as soon as I get back to my hotel and have them work on making the whole thing more accessible." He had looked away in thought as he spoke, a little wrinkle forming by his left eyebrow that Violet was fixated on for whatever reason.

She watched as he came back down to earth from his thoughts with a smile as his eyes landed back to hers. "You said you have dinner plans tonight. Someone special?" She asked, not really sure if she wanted to hear the answer.

He almost laughed. "I suppose I consider him special. I'm meeting Kyle at the restaurant in my hotel tonight."

The blush in her cheeks was increasing as he smirked at her. "How long are you in Leiden?"

"Four days, then we are off on our tour of the country for two and half months." His smile seemed a bit fake to her, but she could place why.

"Where are you landing after the tour?" She asks as they walk back to the blanket and basket she had been sitting at by the waterfall.

As he helped her pack up her things into the basket he responded. "I'm not sure yet. I have a few companies that want me to represent their gear in some ads here in Leiden when I'm not on tour. Here, I'll carry it." He reaches to offer to take the basket and she hesitates, so used to being the one to carrying it while the nanny follows her back to the car, she wasn't sure what she was going to do with her arms as she handed it all over to Leon before he continued talking. "I'll follow you. I'm sort of lost now that I'm not in the asters."

"What?" She asked with an eyebrow crinkle.

"That's where I found her. Your nanny was calling out for her and I thought she was trying to find the section of flowers I was sitting in." He went on to explain how he found her and Violet laughed loud enough that she felt the need to cover her mouth.

"I'm sorry! She's such a handful sometimes." She spoke through the end giggles of her laugh.

"No need to apologize to me. I'm glad it happened." He smiled.

"Me too." Violet said, a little quieter, but Leon still heard it and it still made his cheeks and nose feel warmer.

When they got to the car Leon helped Aster into the car after her nanny got in. Once in the car the little green eyes girl turned to her mother. "Is he coming with us?" She signed excitedly. Oh how badly this five year old wanted to spend time with her favorite author.

"No, he has plans with your uncle Kyle" Violet speaks as she signs to her little girl.

Leon struggled to remember the signs as he spoke. "I'll see you tomorrow."

Violet looked at him. "You can sign?"

He laughed a bit nervously as he rubbed the back of his head. "I'm no pro like you two. I just know some very basics and I'm very slow, as you probably saw..."

Violet raised an impressed eyebrow as she smiled and got into the car. "We will see you tomorrow. Say hello to Kyle for us."

"I will." He says before closing the door. As they drive off Violet watched from her seat as he excited little girl, whose hair was an absolute mess along with the rest of her outfit, waved excitedly at Leon.