The Last Rose of Summer

By TIFFANY MAIN-MILAM

A young woman who has given up on hope, and an aged lady who has nothing but hope.

THE LAST ROSE OF SUMMER

...is the heartfelt story of dealing with the loss of great love and holding on to the memorys of the past. This story of the miracle of love will live with you forever.

Set in a small Victorian town in Tennessee, The Last Rose Of Summer begins with a torn

Elizabeth Frances on her journey to find love again. Her loss of great love has been to much to bear. With her grandfather very ill, she spends a long and stormy night beside her grandmother in a cold hospital. There in the middle of a horrible storm, Elizabeth hears for the first time about the great love between her grandparents.

Charlie and Sarah have more passion for life and each other than most could ever dream about. They meet on a cold November night and instantly there lives change. Sarahs parents dont approve of this strange man and with the war around the corner Charlie could leave at a moments notice. There fight to be together engulfs every moment.

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse
• Release date: Aug 17, 2005
• ISBN: 9781467030021

TIFFANY MAIN-MILAM

Tiffany Main-Milam has spent the last year writing her first novel. The story came to her after a night spent with a special person, many years ago. She based this novel on the lives of two special people. Tiffany resides in with her husband and three children in a small Southern town in Tennessee.

Book preview

CHAPTER ONE

Elizabeth Frances sat on the steps of the old cottage. The wind was beginning to pick up and the smell of a storm was in the air. The summer had mysteriously disappeared and fall was just around the corner. The old cottage had a feeling of old and worn, yet a sense of comfort was there. This had been the place that carried all of Elizabeth’s special memories. It was the place she went after her parent’s tragic death and over the years, it came to be her place of escape from the worlds cruel rewards. It was the only place she had found true comfort. Elizabeth’s golden retriever, Riley, sat closely, waiting for a chance to play ball. Riley was Elizabeth’s most loyal companion and always there. The day had been warm and sunny, a beautiful fall day for Rugby. The sunny September afternoon was slowly turning into a gray and dismal evening.

As Elizabeth rose and walked toward the garden, she thought of the work that had been put into the beautiful flowers. Elizabeth had spent many hours in this garden beside her grandmother. She had grown to love this place. A sense of peace and serenity seemed to exist there. The cottage itself had with-stood war and loss of loved ones. The picket fence was in a need of a paint job, but the garden had over powered it all. As she walked throughout the garden, the smell of Rhododendron, lavender and roses filled the air. Elizabeth knew that the summer was about to come to an end and this saddened her. As fall took control and the cool nights set in, the garden would soon begin to sleep. As Elizabeth approached the roses, she realized they were all in full bloom, only one bud remained closed. The wind began to gust about the garden. There was one red rose bud waiting for the sunlight to open her blooms of beauty to the world. This would be the last rose of summer. The last rose of summer is special, for it is the last until next year. Left to bloom alone while her companions sleep. Years ago a rose was often compared to love. The flower with the sweetest scent, a red rose. She touched the rose and wondered, could she really ever love again. Elizabeth would be back later to claim her. She walked softly throughout the garden, occasionally throwing a ball for Riley to retrieve. With each step she thought of her life. Elizabeth tried to make sense of things. She tried to understand how she was all those years ago and why she was different now. When once she was allowed to love, but now she couldn’t. It was hard for her to move on when she loved only what was gone. Elizabeth new only one thing and that is life will carry on. She did have her home and her grandparents, at least for a little while longer.

It wasn’t just the home. It was so much more. Elizabeth loved the small town. She had built a new home and opened a small gift and flower shop. Rugby, Tennessee was an old Victorian town with small cottages and elaborate gardens. The founder of this old town brought a European flare and it still thrives after many changes and challenges. Over the years people had come and gone. Even Elizabeth had left once, just after high school, but the yearning for a more simple life had brought her back. The cottages were nestled under tall pines and large oaks. Everyone had a garden filled with vegetables and an abundance of flowers. Mysteriously time seemed to stand still in this small picturesque place. Rugby was like most small southern towns. It was a place where everyone knew their neighbor and people waved to each other as a car passed. For most everyone who lived there, there was no place better than theirs. The most wonderful thing about this distant community is that when you are there, you feel like you have traveled back in time somehow. Things have stayed the same with the exception of the highway which brings tourists through. Each year more and more people drive through to try to go back in time somehow.

Rain began to softly fall and Elizabeth looked up at the gray sky. She hesitatingly tasted the drops as they fell from the heavens above. The warm rain spattered against her tan shoulders. She was a young and vibrant thirty year’s old woman. Elizabeth wasn’t very tall, but she was beautiful. Her hair was a pale and wispy blonde that just swept across her shoulders. But, the most rememberable things about Elizabeth were those piercing emerald eyes. She could make you laugh for hours and her smile remained in your mind for days. She had an alluring charm, but very few could penetrate her walls. She had one imperfection on her forehead, a small pox mark. This alone had brought many names to which she hated. Tonight was different, her smile had been replaced with intermitted tears. As the rain began to fall more swiftly, Elizabeth ran for the car. She pulled the new Honda out of the driveway and headed toward the highway. Elizabeth loved the smell of a new car. She had purchased just a few months ago. Charlie had tried to convince her to buy a Chevy, but Elizabeth liked the idea of saving on gas and fewer frequent trips to the shop. She put in her favorite Dave Matthews CD that always seemed to ease her mind, and pulled out on the highway. Her thoughts went out to her grandmother. As Elizabeth drove toward the hospital, she felt a numbness throughout her body. The drive seemed to last forever and the rain began to fall harder. The weather man had predicted a night of storms. Elizabeth hoped they wouldn’t be too bad. As she drove the winding roads, she thought of everything. Sarah had been her special warmth. Elizabeth and Sarah had a bond to be envied. From the moment Elizabeth was born, Sarah had loved her, no matter what seemed to go wrong. Sarah had been there. Through a heart brake, loss and despair. Elizabeth trusted only Sarah. Over the years they spent many special moments together. It had been Sarah that taught Elizabeth about gardening, life and tonight she would learn the meaning of real love.

CHAPTER TWO

Jamestown Medical Center was a typical small southern hospital. It was about a twenty minute drive from the old cottage. Rugby didn’t even have a clinic, so any illness made for a trip to the big town. Of course Jamestown wasn’t exactly a thriving metropolis. The town was small and most everything was close. The hospital only had forty beds, so for anything severe, a trip to Nashville was necessary. Elizabeth had driven her grandparent’s to Nashville over the summer when Charlie had first been diagnosed. The hospital was huge, not what they were used to. Charlie and Sarah were terrified. They had rarely left Rugby and only went to Jamestown once a week. After several days of tests they found out it was too late, so they prepared for the worst. The worst had arrived.

As Elizabeth approached the hospital, her throat ached and her shoes felt as though they were filled with lead. She didn’t want to go in, but Sarah needed her.

I am almost their grandma, whispered Elizabeth.

Elizabeth found a parking place and prepared herself for a long night. The rain had stopped, but lightening could be seen off in the distance. There was a thick fog hugging tightly to the earth, almost as if it had something to hide. The smell of fresh rain filled the air. Elizabeth sat in the car for a long time working up the courage to go in. Hospitals bothered her. They were consumed with so much sadness. Finally after much procrastination she got out and walked to the entrance. The door to the hospital had felt like moving a mountain. Once inside, the black -and-white corridor seemed to be about forty miles long. As she walked down the hallway, she remembered a few years back. This had been the last place she had seen Elli. Her first love, a life altering love. Elizabeth turned the corner and arrived at the nurse’s station and dismissed her thoughts.

How is he?

A startled Carol Conner looked up from the novel she was engrossed in.

Oh Elizabeth, I didn’t hear you approach. Sometimes I just check out of this place.

Are there any changes?

No change, honey, but I don’t think he will last much longer, she said.

What about my grandmother, Elizabeth asked?

You know her. She ain’t left his side. She is truly an amazing woman.

Elizabeth’s grandfather had been battling cancer for the last few months and his fight was about to be over. It wasn’t Papa Charlie that she worried about. It was Sarah. Sarah had spent a lifetime caring and loving this man. He had been her life. Would his death somehow change her?

Well, I guess I am in for the night. It was good to see you, Carol.

Hang in their Elizabeth, you’re stronger than you realize and that woman in there is gonna need you when this is finally over.

I know. It’s just … so damn hard.

Carol came out from behind the nurse’s station and gave Elizabeth a hug.

I am here all night, if yawls need me.

Thank you Carol, I needed that hug, you’re a great nurse and a great friend. I know that Grandma has really appreciated all that you have done.

That’s my pleasure, no thanks needed, winking "Yawl ain’t nothing but my favorite. Your granny was there