~. All rights reserved.<br >an copyright 1987.<br >~roduction or utilization of<br > by any electronic，<br >nown or hereafter invented，<br >g and recording， or in any<br >tern， is forbidden without<br >~rlequin Enterprises Limited，<br >)ntario， Canada M3B 3K9.<br >no existence outside the<br >no relation whatsoever to<br >names. They are not even<br >known or unknown to the<br >*/ention.<br >ing of the words<br >CE， HARLEQUIN<br >portrayal of a Harlequin，<br >~rises Limited; the portrayal<br >Jnitsd States Patent and<br >a Trade Marks Office.<br > From a wicker rocking chair on the porch of an old yel-<br > low frame house， Lavinia Talmadge watched the goings-<br > on on South Cowls Avenue. Watching was all she could<br > do anymore， with arthritis impeding her movements and<br > an uncertain heart condition forcing her to remain sed-<br > entary.<br > But it was late summer， with the fragrance of autumn<br >entwined in the smell of freshly cut grass. Though Lavi-<br >nia was seventy-seven， her yearly case of fall fever was as<br >virulent as it had ever been in her youth. Other people s<br >fancies turned to thoughts of love in the spring when<br >flowers were in bloom and the countryside was greening.<br >Her thoughts turned to love in late August when the sun<br >became more golden and less warm， when woodsmoke<br >began to puff against the blue sky and ducks and geese<br >gathered noisily for their journeys south.<br > It had been on such a day that she had met Thomas<br >Talmadge， and though fifty-six years had passed， she re-<br >membered the moment as though it had happened yes-<br >terday. Every woman should know a love like that， she<br >thought， looking up at the maple tree on the front lawn，<br >heavy with its giant deep summer leaves. They d had pas-<br >sion and peace， successes and failures， laughter and tears.<br ><br >