Amber House (37 page)

I stopped that thought. I saw that he was watching me, almost like he knew what I was thinking. I stepped away from him.

“I’m hoping we’ll move here now,” I said.

He gave a little nod. “You will.”

I smiled at his confident tone. “You know something I don’t know?”

“Oh, man,
so
many things,” he said with a grin.

“Shaddup,” I told him, chuckling. I rubbed my forehead. Where once I’d had an enormous lump. Hadn’t I? And now it was cool and smooth. “I had this dream. I wish I could remember it. But it’s like it’s floating just beyond my grasp, you know? And there was something …” My voice trailed off. “Something important.”

“Tell me,” he said.

The words slipped loose. “It
is
possible.”

His eyes widened.
Green eyes filled with hope.

Why had I thought that?

“What’s supposed to happen?” I asked, feeling an urgency I couldn’t understand.

It seemed for a moment like he had something he wanted to say, but then he only smiled. “We’re just gonna have to wait and see. Right?”

He reached up, touched beside my eye, showed me his fingertip. “A tear,” he said.

It glistened, catching the light. I closed my eyes.

What if he slid his hand along my chin? And parted my lips with his thumb? And leaned in so close that my breath became his breath, his breath became my breath?

What if he finally, finally — gave me that kiss?

We have learned that it apparently takes a village to do quite a few things in life, including getting a story idea onto a book shelf. We owe many people thanks for turning
Amber House
into a book.

First among those, our Gramma and Commander, Lore and Lundi Moore, who shared a love of old things, and our Boy, Sinjin Reed, who shares a love of storytelling and who contributed many helpful ideas to this book. These three have always backed us in all our endeavors, no matter how insane. Next, to our earliest reader and “Negative One,” Jessica Wanderscheid. Jecie — your enthusiasm gave us the will to keep on, even during the daunting submission process.

Endless thanks to our first heaven-sent blessing, the amazing, gentle, insightful, patient, fearless agent Jennifer Weltz, of the Jean V. Naggar Literary Agency.
Amber House
is a much better book for her criticisms and suggestions. Thanks also to the wonderful Jessica Regel and Laura Biagi at JVNLA.

We further thank Heaven for our second blessing, Cheryl Klein, whose keen, meticulous eye is simply staggering. Unceasingly cheerful and encouraging even while delivering dagger-sharp criticism, Cheryl is the kind of editor every writer should be so lucky to have. Also at Scholastic, we must thank our tenacious production coordinator, Elizabeth Starr Mayo; our designer, Whitney Lyle; and our publicist, Lauren Felsenstein.

Finally, our thanks to other friends who took the time to read and comment: John Hicks, David Leiwant, David Naggar,
and Tammie Stickney. Thanks to Maureen Grady and Nancy Harewood, who helped to imagine an early version of this story. Thanks to Deborah, who made sure all things nautical were shipshape. And thanks to the folks at Annapolis Small Boat Rentals, who gave us a map and a boat with which to explore the beautiful waters of the Severn River and the Chesapeake Bay.

And thank you all, gentle readers — we are grateful.

Kelly Moore first conceived of
Amber House
while in law school, and an early draft of the story was written in the mid-1980s. When her daughters Tucker and Larkin Reed discovered the manuscript a few years ago, the three decided to rewrite it together. Tucker currently attends the University of Southern California, while Kelly and Larkin live in Jacksonville, Oregon, in a house full of antiques. Please visit their website at
www.theamberhousetrilogy.com
.