Goodbye, Mr. Regret

"What's silhouette papercutting? Never even heard of it."

"Even if you haven't, Lorenzo said it's a lost art. That means it's rare-and probably worth a fortune."

A few people nearby were whispering among themselves.

Sheila's face paled noticeably.

Sallie, on the other hand, felt a little relief; at least she hadn't embarrassed herself.

Lorenzo stood up and walked over to Jessica, his manner incredibly polite. "Excuse me, miss, may I ask who made this piece?"

Vince chimed in immediately. "She did."

"Really?"

Jessica's hand, but Larkin beat him to it, practically

Jessica back to his seat, coaxing her to sit down beside him. The old man held her hand tightly, as if he couldn't bear to let go. He

family's home. All that remains of it now is a

brought it to life so beautifully. That little boy there—that's me, when I was a child. And the woman beside him

papercutting, and his praise for Jessica was nothing short of

heard Larkin say it depicted the Zimmerman family's ancestral

estate was now a landmark heritage

the air was thick with admiration

again. "Larkin, would you let me get a word in edgewise? I'd like to shake this young lady's hand too, but you haven't given me half a chance." Lorenzo had once

guest today, Lorenzo relented.

for heritage preservation. Not long ago, I heard from my old colleagues that nobody has yet applied to get silhouette papercutting registered

barely restrain himself from dragging Jessica off to

couldn't help but