Colleen stood quietly in front of her bathroom mirror, studying her reflection. Even at eighty-three, she carried herself with an easy vitality that made people assume she was younger. Tall and slender, she had kept a strong, athletic figure throughout her life, and she took quiet pride in how well she had maintained herself. She knew she was still noticed. The thought pleased her, though she had never relied on it. She w...

A year had passed since William announced to Colleen and the world his love for her. The dust had settled. Their families had adjusted to the new reality, and what had once seemed impossible had gradually become simply part of life. William and Jo had divorced amicably. There had been difficult conversations, sadness and change, but ultimately there was respect between them. Jo now ran the property development company the...

For two days after seeing Colleen in that bedroom, William could barely concentrate. The image kept returning to him. Before that day, he had already been convinced that Colleen was a goddess. Seeing her standing before that full-length mirror in that dress had simply confirmed what he had been trying not to admit to himself. She was his perfect woman. The beauty. The grace. The softness. The innocence. She seemed to poss...

William had barely driven a few minutes before he pulled the car over. He switched off the engine and sat there in silence, staring through the windscreen. His heart was still pounding, and his mind was racing in every direction. He couldn’t get Colleen out of his head. The image of her in that dress kept replaying in his mind. It wasn’t simply that she looked beautiful. It was the way she had stood in front of him with s...

William’s head was spinning. He had walked into Colleen’s house expecting nothing more than a quick visit. She had asked him to call in, and he had assumed there was something she wanted to discuss. He certainly hadn’t expected to find her standing in front of her bedroom mirror dressed like this. Colleen looked at herself from one angle, then another, smoothing the fabric of the dress over her waist. “Well?” she asked, s...

The week had started like any other. William was going about his usual routine when his phone buzzed. He glanced down at the screen and immediately stopped. It was a message from Colleen. For a moment, he simply stared at it. He had given Colleen his number some time ago, telling her to contact him if she ever needed anything or there was an emergency. Since then, there had been nothing. She had never called. Never texted...

William found himself thinking about Colleen far more often than he was prepared to admit. She seemed to have slipped quietly into his thoughts and taken up residence there. He thought about her when he was driving, when he was working, and especially in the quiet moments when there was nothing to distract him. Even when he was with his wife, his mind sometimes wandered back to Colleen—the way she carried herself, her war...

William lay awake in the darkness, the digital clock on the bedside table glowing 3:02 a.m. Beside him, his wife slept peacefully, her breathing slow and even. He stared at the ceiling. No matter how hard he tried, his thoughts drifted back to Colleen. Not simply the image of her standing barefoot in the garden, laughing as the summer breeze caught her dress, but the ease with which she carried herself. She seemed untouch...

The weeks had slipped by more quickly than either of them had expected. William had been busy with work and family commitments, while Colleen had been preparing for the move from the cottage she’d called home for nearly half a century. Their regular cups of tea and easy conversations had paused, though neither had forgotten the other. One warm January afternoon, William found himself driving past the property. On impulse,...

Colleen had lived in the same weatherboard cottage for almost fifty years. At eighty-three, she still watered the roses every morning, polished the brass letterbox every Sunday, and waved to anyone who passed. Age had softened her step but not her wit. When she finally decided it was time to sell, she wasn’t sure who would come to look. She imagined young couples with children or retirees looking to downsize. She never ex...