by Carol Ashby
As he watched Valeria fill the bowls by the fireplace, contentment filled him. There was no place he would rather be than sitting at this table with this family, watching the kindest woman in the world make his supper. He even enjoyed their prayer time when his reading made her face so radiant.
Rhoda set his bowl in front of him. He stirred it slowly as the steam rose and the savory smell teased his nostrils. Life at the moment was good. He was in no hurry to return to the legion and leave these people behind.
He especially didn’t want to leave the woman who fired his heart and imagination, and he still hadn’t figured out how it would be possible to take her with him if she wanted to come. He didn’t want to think about that, so he turned to focus his attention on Galen teasing Rhoda while he waited for Valeria to start supper with her prayer.
No sounds came from the loft. Valeria stood at the cottage door, waiting for Decimus to join her for their nightly star gazing. Her welcoming smile as she took his hand to lead him to the edge of the porch filled Decimus with desire to hold her close and kiss her, but she wasn’t ready for that...yet.
He still wasn’t sure whether she saw him more as a brother or a man, but she was responding to him as a man more than she had been. It was getting easier to make her blush. Sometimes all it took was looking at her a certain way to bring the pink to her cheeks.
He wrapped his arms around her and drew her close again. She leaned back into his chest and sighed contentedly. She played with the hair on his arms as she gazed into the distance. Those lightly moving fingers sent barely suppressed shivers of desire coursing through him.
A falling star streaked across the sky, and Valeria pointed at it. “I like that one. It’s always surprising where they start and where they disappear. I like trying to guess about the next one.”
She wiggled a little to adjust her shoulders against his chest.
He rested his chin on the top of her head. “The unexpected things in life are often the best.”
How good she felt in his arms. Ironic that an ambush had led to a night like this. He pushed back the thought about how few might be left. He’d almost fully recovered. He’d have to leave her soon, at least for a while.
“We certainly never expected someone like you. Galen and Rhoda both love having you here.”
“What about you?”
“Of course I do. I’m so thankful God let me find you alive. You’ve become my dearest friend. I’m surprised you even asked.”
Dearest friend. It wasn’t the description he’d hoped she’d use. “You’re very special to me, too.”
She sighed contentedly. After too short a time, she stepped away from him and took his hand. “Time to go in.”
At the foot of the ladder, she pushed the stray hair back from his forehead. “Good night, Decimus. Rest in peace.”
She began to climb. “Good night, Valeria.” The radiant smile she gave him in response was the perfect ending to his day.
Valeria lay in her bed, thanking God for this wonderful man who had become her best friend and asking God to open his heart to receive Jesus.
Decimus lay on his bed, wondering when she’d be ready to tell him her best friend had become the man she loved. He tried not to think about what her being a Christian would mean for the future of their love when it was time for him to leave.
Chapter 35: Competition
The next morning, Valeria tousled Galen’s hair as she walked past him to the fireplace. He was beaming. “Today’s going to be good with Otto here. Maybe we’ll have time for some sparring. How long do you think it’s going to take us to finish the stable?”
Decimus cupped his chin before drawing his fingers down his cheek. “With three of us working, I would expect two more days on the wood construction and maybe two more for the thatching.”
“That fast? Then I’m really glad Otto is coming.”
Valeria refilled Decimus’s bowl for the first time and Galen’s for the second. “I am, too.”
Her gaze caught Decimus’s as she returned to the table and placed one bowl in front of her brother. “I still think lifting all those logs can’t be good for a leg that’s not completely healed.”
As she placed Decimus’s bowl in front of him, he caught her hand.
“When a man has a beautiful physician who knows what to do with liniment and massage, it’s amazing what he can do even with a bad leg. Is there anything you can’t heal, Valeria?”
A crooked smile played on his lips, and his eyes had that intense look that got to her every time. Her cheeks blazed pink, and he grinned at his success. He was worse than Galen when it came to being a hopeless tease.
“We both know very well it’s God who does the healing, not me. You still need to be careful not to do too much.”
She tried to pull her hand away from him, but he held it for a few seconds before he let her go, grinning at her the whole time.
After breakfast, Valeria carried her strips of cloth to Decimus, who sat on the edge of his bed. When she knelt at his feet, he rested his hands on his knees and leaned toward her.
“Wrap your stallion well before he goes to work.”
Valeria made the first loop around his ankle and pulled it snug.
“I will, but I expect you to be more sensible than the old stallion.” She kept wrapping. “If this starts loosening while you’re working, I want you to tell me right away so I can fix it.”
She looked up at his face to see if he was listening to her instructions. A crooked smile played on his lips and his eyes held that warmth that was so unsettling. Her cheeks felt warm. Why did the blood always rush to her cheeks when he looked at her like that? Teasing, teasing man. She looked quickly back down at his leg and finished the wrapping.
“There. That should do it for you.”
He stood up and offered his hand to help her to her feet.
“Thank you, Valeria. There can’t be many men like me with their own physician who is both skilled and beautiful.” He pushed a loose strand of hair behind her ear and stroked her cheek twice with his thumb before lowering his arm.
“Since you don’t even have one, you’re probably right.”
Having him to joke with made the morning seem brighter, even if he did make her blush so much. How she would miss that when he returned to his legion.
He paused as he walked out the door, turning around to smile at her before he went to join Galen at the stable. That smile gave her butterflies, too.
Decimus and Galen had just finished notching a log and were preparing to lift it into place when Baldric rode into the farmyard. He had Otto and another young man in tow.
The troop rode over to the stable, where Otto dismounted and turned his horse into the corral. Baldric and the other man remained mounted.
“I see breakfast ends early here. Tomorrow Otto will come sooner to learn from you, Roman.”
“I don’t know how much he’ll learn that you haven’t already taught him, but we’ll be glad to have his help.”
Decimus scanned the second man. He was tall and muscular with a mane of blond hair brushing his shoulders and a neatly trimmed beard. He looked enough like Baldric that it was a safe bet he was Baldric’s son. He was about Valeria’s age.
Baldric turned his horse, and the two of them headed toward the cottage.
Decimus’s brows dipped. Baldric had come to visit with Valeria. Having his older son along was disturbing. What was the big German up to?
Valeria was finishing the clean-up in the cottage when Rhoda popped her head in the door. “Baldric and Adolf are coming.”
“Really? I knew Otto was coming to help build the stable, but I didn’t expect so much company so early in the day.”
Valeria walked out onto the porch to meet them. “Baldric, Adolf, it’s good to see you both.”
Adolf dismounted, but his father didn’t. “It’s good to see you, too, Valeria. It’s been a long time since we talked, and F
ather thought this would be a very good day for the three of us to come.”
He seemed unsure of what to say next, but Valeria ended the uncomfortable silence. They’d played together often as children, and they’d been good friends when her father was alive.
“It has been a long time. Let’s sit for a while, and you can tell me what you’ve been doing.”
She settled on the bench and motioned for him to take the stool. Adolf looked at his father, who indicated with a movement of his head that he should sit on the bench next to her instead. He sat where his father wanted.
Adolf chose one of her favorites as his first topic. “I’ve been gone a lot taking some of our horses to the border towns to sell, and I’ve seen some amazing things...”
Once he got started, Adolf loved to talk, so Baldric rode back over by the stable to watch the builders work.
He lounged with one hand resting on his horse’s rump as he watched her Roman directing the boys. He hadn’t built anything since Otto grew big enough to help, so all the techniques the Roman was teaching were new to his son. Just like the sword lessons, the Roman explained, then demonstrated, and finally corrected as needed as Otto tried to do something himself. Even though Baldric’s goal was to make sure the Roman left sooner rather than later, it was good for Otto to join the work crew. He would know how to build something himself when the Roman was through.
Baldric shifted his gaze from the construction to the pair on the porch. The corner of his mouth curved up. Valeria was leaning toward Adolf as they talked together. A peal of laughter reached Baldric as she rocked back from his son. A promising sign that their childhood friendship might rekindle into courtship.
Twenty was the usual age of marriage in Germania, and they were both of an age to be choosing their marriage partner. Adolf was a good son, and Valeria would be the perfect wife for him. He should have had Adolf start courting her sooner instead of having him gone so much selling the family horses.
He shifted his gaze to the Roman and caught him watching the pair as well. Her Roman did not look happy. Good. He should not be thinking Valeria might be his alone. With any luck, spending time with Adolf would divert her attention from the Roman before she gave her heart to him.
A satisfied smile tugged at the corner of Baldric’s mouth. His plan might be working.
Decimus found his attention divided between the work on the stable and Adolf sitting on the porch with Valeria. He couldn’t hear what they were saying, but he could see the conversation was animated at times. Occasionally he heard her laugh at something Adolf had just said.
He felt Baldric’s eyes upon him, and he turned his own back on the rising wall. He was not going to give the big German the satisfaction of seeing how much Adolf’s flirtation bothered him. Adolf was handsome, and Valeria obviously enjoyed his company. Baldric would encourage her to consider him as her future husband.
He didn’t want any young man in her life except him.
The walls of the stable were almost chest high on Decimus, so it was getting hard for the boys to lift the logs high enough. He suppressed the urge to grin.
“The wall is getting high enough that we need extra help. Otto, go ask your brother to come help us lift the logs into place. He looks strong and almost as tall as me.”
Otto trotted off toward the cottage.
Valeria had just finished laughing at one of Adolf’s funny stories when Otto reached them.
“Adolf, Decimus needs you to come help us. We need someone taller than me and Galen to get the logs up in place.”
Adolf grinned. “So the Roman needs my help?” He glanced at Valeria. “Well, if he isn’t strong enough to do the work alone, I guess I’ll just have to help him. I’ll be right there.”
He took Valeria’s hand as he stood up. “Looks like I’m needed. We can talk more later.” He squared his shoulders and strode toward the stable.
Valeria watched him go. She’d enjoyed their conversation. He was as much fun to talk with as he’d been when they were children. He was growing into a very nice man.
Adolf reached the stable, and she watched Decimus explain what they were going to do. The contrast between the two men was striking. Adolf was still so young. Decimus was a grown man in every way that mattered.
Valeria fingered her chin. Funny that she hadn’t noticed that before.
She’d been thinking of Decimus like he was another brother, but she’d been viewing him all wrong. He had a playful sense of humor that made him seem like an older Galen, but he was an intelligent man who appreciated poetry and history and silence while contemplating the stars. He never tried to show off like boys who are almost men do, even though he was handsome, smart, and strong.
He’d become her dearest friend, and he enjoyed their friendship, too. He was constantly joking about her beauty. All those playful exchanges were such fun, even when he made her blush more than she wanted to. But he didn’t mean any of it.
If he really meant the compliments, it would be a problem because he wasn’t a Christian...at least not yet. He was showing real interest in Jesus’s teaching, but he still wasn’t a believer, although she prayed he would be before he left. She would never give her heart to a man who didn’t follow the Way, but she could certainly enjoy his company as her dear friend until he finally had to leave.
Her smile dimmed as she watched Decimus and Adolf hoist a log into place. He was almost healed. He would soon be returning to his legion. It would be hard to say goodbye when that time came. He’d become a member of her family, and Galen and Rhoda were going to miss him terribly, too.
With Decimus’s crew of four, the walls went up quickly. He had the boys cutting notches in the logs still on the ground while he and Adolf notched the logs already built into the wall where the boys were too short. All four of them lifted each log into place.
Adolf was a good worker. Even though Decimus’s original goal had only been to thwart his pursuit of Valeria, the German’s help made a big difference. At the rate they were working, the walls would be completed by early afternoon, and they would be starting on the roof before the end of the day.
Decimus turned to see what Valeria was doing. Her eyes met his, even across the farmyard, and she lifted her hand in a quick wave.
She wasn’t watching Adolf at all. His mouth curved up in a satisfied smile.
Baldric didn’t try to suppress his smile, either. The Roman had outmaneuvered him. He had watched Decimus watching Valeria and Adolf. The Roman had tried to hide it, but Baldric could see it truly bothered him that she was enjoying Adolf’s company. Enlisting Adolf’s help was a clever way to break up their conversation without seeming jealous.
Since Adolf had been drafted into the work crew, Baldric rode over to the cottage and joined Valeria where she sat alone on the porch.
“Your Roman has given me many reasons to visit you lately. I am glad.”
A warm smile lit her eyes. “It really has been nice having you and your sons visit so often. I’m glad Adolf came with you this morning. It’s been a long time since we talked. He’s such a nice young man. He still makes me laugh like when we were children.”
That was not the response Baldric wanted. She should have found Adolf’s first attempt at courtship exciting, not just entertaining.
“He is a good son. He will make a good husband.”
Valeria took a deep breath. A husband for her? She didn’t want to encourage that expectation.
“I’m sure he will someday. If he was a follower of the Way, I would consider him a good husband myself when he finishes growing up.”
She stood. “I have many people to make lunch for today. I’d better start. The work crew is going to be hungry.”
Chapter 36: Something in Common
There were too many people to fit in the cottage for lunch, so Valeria and Rhoda turned it into a picnic under the trees. Galen and Otto ate like only teenage boys can, devouring their first servings of bread an
d cheese quickly and coming back for seconds and thirds. They decided to practice their sword fighting after they finished, so they moved over by the cattle shed where they wouldn’t disturb the adults.
There was very little conversation among the men. Baldric never said much, so his silence was to be expected. The only common interest that Decimus and Adolf had was Valeria, and they certainly weren’t going to discuss her with each other.
When it appeared that everyone had finished eating, Decimus rose.
“Adolf, ready to get back to work? We’ve almost finished the walls. Then we can start framing the roof. I’d appreciate your help with that. The boys are willing workers, but it’s a job that needs the skill and strength of grown men.”
Baldric’s lips twitched. The request had been phrased in a way that Adolf couldn’t refuse. The Roman had once more made sure that Adolf would be helping him and not visiting with Valeria. He had seen through the attempt to introduce a rival and had turned him into an assistant instead.
Since Valeria had already told Baldric she wasn’t interested in Adolf’s courtship yet, he had no objection to his son helping to build her stable. She would remember his effort later when her interest in him might change.
It was late afternoon as Adolf and her Roman put the last part of the roof framing in place. All that remained was to thatch it, and that wouldn’t require the help of his sons.
Baldric rose from the porch bench where he had been keeping Valeria company as she sewed. “Time for us to go.”
“Thank you for bringing Otto and Adolf to help with the stable. I thought it was too much for Decimus and Galen to do, but it almost seemed easy with so many hands working on it.”
Baldric rested his hand on her shoulder. “After your Roman leaves, Adolf will be glad to help with anything that needs a man’s strength and skill.”
