Chapter 55 - The Jasmine Garden
As the afternoon sun began to dip lower in the sky, I walked out into the central courtyard garden.
The night-blooming jasmine we had planted years ago had grown into a massive, sprawling canopy of deep green vines and delicate white buds.
Alexander was already there, kneeling in the soil, meticulously pruning the lower branches with a pair of silver shears. Despite all his wealth, all his corporate power, he still found his greatest solace with his hands in the earth.
"You are going to ruin your trousers, Alexander,"
I teased gently, walking up behind him.
"They are just trousers,"
Alexander chuckled, standing up and brushing the dark soil from his knees.
He looked at the blooming vines, a look of deep, quiet satisfaction on his face.
"I remember when this garden was nothing but ash and broken stone,"
Alexander murmured, his voice dropping to a reflective tenor.
"And look at it now,"
I said, slipping my arm around his waist.
"It just needed time, and care, and someone who refused to let it die."
May you like
"Just like us,"
Alexander whispered, leaning down to press a soft, lingering kiss against my forehead.
