Then she noticed that he was looking at her with…that look. With a hint of embarrassment, she posed. He let out his beautiful laugh that always lifted her heart and she started for the closet.
“Hang on!” He grabbed her hand and pulled her back to him.
Carefully moving the coffee cup behind his back, she leaned into him. He wrapped his arms around her amorously, running his hands over her shoulders and down her back. Stunned and excited, Valeria wished she could get rid of the full cup of coffee in her hand and lunge at him.
She reasoned that perhaps he was feeling more relaxed because the threats seemed to be gone and they were actually going to be married in only a few more days! She was breathless…and still holding her cup of very full coffee—perhaps that was his plan! Then Alex released her.
“Wow!” She raised both eyebrows, attempting to hear her voice over her pounding heart. “Where did that come from?” she asked breathlessly as she gently pulled her cup from behind his neck, being careful not to spill a drop. Her responses to him were always such a wonder to her!
He smiled and took a deep breath. “I just want to be married to you!”
“Well, now.” She leaned back into him, and said softly, “That is an amazing coincidence!”
∞
She sipped her second cup of coffee as Alex laid out his jeans, T-shirts, and shorts onto the bed. Camille had informed her that she only needed to bring comfortable clothes and the rest would be supplied. When Valeria tried to argue that Camille shouldn’t be spending money on clothes for her, Camille replied, “Oh, don’t worry! I’m sending the bill to your fiancé—he can afford it!” Alex had smiled a perfectly contented smile and kissed her neck.
There were only a few things she knew for certain. First, it would be in Greece—unless something had changed in the past couple of months; second, they were going to request approval for an immortal marriage from the Ancient Council of Delos, a secret society of immortals; and, lastly, that Weege, her closest mortal friend from Manhattan, wouldn’t be able to join them. That was disappointing, but she understood. That’s what happened when you worked in corporate America.
Camille had very quickly become Valeria’s best friend and was taking the Maid of Honor role. She was quite a planner! Although there truly were far more details than Valeria cared about—and she knew the wedding would be nice—but it was her marriage to Alex that she desperately wanted and was most interested in.
Pulling her suitcase out from the closet, she remembered the last time she had seen it. It was the night that she had gotten up the nerve to declare her love to Alex. That had been a monumental moment for her! She was here with Alex because she had found the courage to tell him that she loved him!
She smiled, remembering her confusion about his love for Cassandra. It seemed so obvious now that he had been trying to remind Valeria that she was his symbolon—the reincarnation of Cassandra. At the time, her insecurity had kept her from being able to see that! Not that her confidence had taken giant leaps forward. But being with Alex, and feeling wrapped in the warm cocoon of his love, had changed things for her. The world had become a brighter place full of hope and wonder! She realized that she hadn’t fit in with her previous world because it wasn’t her world. This was her world! Here, in their beautiful cottage north of Trento.
From the time Valeria had left the hospital, she had tried to talk Alex into just sending for a Justice of the Peace so that they could be married and enjoy all of the pleasures of marriage…and so that he didn’t feel that their life together was quite so fragile. But obviously, it was important to Alex to treat this marriage in a manner that honored the vision that had carried him through 3,000 years. She also suspected that the sweetness of the vision of their wedding night was a dream that he desperately desired, and was willing to wait for.
As she packed her toiletries in the bathroom, she glanced at Alex who had just pulled his sports bag from the closet. “So, do I need to be nervous about this council thing?”
“Not at all!” He sat down. “I hope you don’t mind, beautiful.” This wasn’t the first time they’d had this conversation. He pulled her onto his lap. “Besides, I would like you to have the experience.”
She recalled the story that Alex had told her. Apparently, Apollo had selected a secret and sacred location for the council meetings and presented that location only to Cassandra, the last oracle, Myrdd, the first oracle, and Aegemon, a priest. Apollo and Cassandra had even recorded the laws of immortals, though Valeria didn’t remember any of it.
“I understand…I guess. You want our marriage to mean that we are truly together forever.” Valeria leaned her head on his shoulder. “To me, you are forever, no matter what anyone else says.” She smiled. “I do understand that you’ve waited much longer than I have for this. But I still don’t understand why this council would even care!” She kissed his cheek and then rose to continue packing.
“Look at it this way,” Alex said as he began rolling his T-shirts and placing them into the sports bag, “when an immortal marries a mortal, that union is short term—basically, it is similar to dating in terms of commitment. The immortal is with the person for such a short period of time that there is no requirement to get council approval.” He zipped the bag shut.
This discussion always caused her to wonder if having her declared an immortal was for the purpose of providing Alex with some validation that she would now be with him forever. Or perhaps he expected that she would suddenly remember all of her past by going to the sacred location.
He continued, “Council approval wasn’t always necessary for immortal marriages. But because an immortal marriage is for an eternity, it can cause a lot of issues if there is a bad pairing. In fact, it’s been the cause of several major wars.”
She giggled as if he was pulling her leg. “Really?”
Raising an eyebrow, he said, “The Trojan War, of course, and World War I to name just a few. Two ticked off immortals can create a world of havoc!”
There was a concern that perhaps she was not really immortal. Was she going to marry this beautiful, sexy man and be older than him in ten years? What about in thirty years—if she was fortunate to live that long this time around? He didn’t seem to care about her aging. But her ego did!
Her other concern was that even if she was immortal, what if her “clock” had been reset and she continued to age until her “new” Prima Mortis? She didn’t want to be like Jeremiah, who was 147 and still ticking. Still, there could be worse things than to spend her life with the most beautiful man in the world who would never age and loved her unconditionally.
“Darn!” she said, standing in the closet. Alex looked up from placing his toiletries in the suitcase to see her walk out with a handful of crumbled burgundy knit, another one of the many Christmas gifts from Alex.
“Oh, well!” He cocked his head to the side. “Your favorite sweater will be here when we return! You won’t have much need for it for,” his eyes sparked, “at least for a while!”
She smiled, placing the sweater back in the basket in the closet. She wondered, did he mean that they would be someplace where it would be too warm for sweaters? Or better yet, that they would have little need for clothes? She loved that thought, and felt her face flush in response. Their housekeeper, Ingrid, had been instructed never to wash Valeria’s clothes because it made Valeria feel ridiculously pampered; besides, Ingrid did enough without having to worry about the clothes that Valeria could easily care for herself.
As she closed the suitcase, she watched as he zipped the garment bag that carried several tuxedos and a few suits. She bit her lip imagining him in a tux…and had to sit down when she thought of him out of the tux! Then a sudden feeling of dread overtook her.
“Alex? What happens if the council denies your request?” She could have sworn she saw his pupils flash.
“Not a problem.” His smile broadened, but she was certain it was for her benefit. “The first step is for the council t
o declare you an immortal. With the documentation we have from Mani, that shouldn’t be an issue. But really, beautiful, I don’t want you to concern yourself with this! There is no reason for them to deny it!”
“Still, what if they do?” She persisted, as she wrapped herself into his arms in an attempt to halt her increasing vulnerability.
“If they decide—for some insane reason—to deny our union, then we’ll be married by a Justice of the Peace!”
“Promise?” She narrowed her eyes at him.
Giving her a confident nod, he leaned down and kissed her. He knew she had a tremendous amount of insecurity regarding this council who held their future in their grips.
From where she stood, she could see the family portrait over the fireplace. Knowing that she had spent most of her existence truly isolated from the rest of the world, with no pictures even desired to mark time or relationships, the family had surprised her at Christmas with framed pictures of her with the family and then a photographer had arrived and they posed for professional portraits. It was the one thing that she would never have thought of, and the thing that she cherished the most!
Now, there were pictures of her and the family throughout their cottage. Over the mantel was the largest of the portraits. It was a picture of her with the family surrounding her. As much as the official family portrait meant to her, the candid shots meant even more. They seemed to capture the spirit of her family.
The picture of her and Alex laughing together the night before her birthday was her favorite. Then there was the sweet picture of her arm around Caleb’s neck, while her other hand messed up his hair—the boy who had never before experienced human touch. The look on his face was priceless!
Valeria loved the pictures of her, Ava, and Camille—the Three Musketeers! She glanced to Alex’s side of the bed and saw another one of her personal favorites; it was a picture of her sleeping in his arms. It had been taken the day that she had returned from the hospital. The day he thought would never happen! She had survived the curse and had committed to their life together. The glow in his eyes was so beautiful, that she couldn’t look at that picture without feeling the extraordinary depths of his love.
Still curled in Alex’s arms, they heard Lars tap his horn from up the hill by the main house—they were leaving! She smiled excitedly and went to the door. As she was about to step out, he stopped her.
“Your jacket?” he reminded her gently, holding it out for her to slide into. As she did, he wrapped his arms around her, happily holding her for a few moments.
The horn honked again. The family had taken to this system of announcing their impending arrival due to Valeria’s inability to receive their non-verbal communications. She grabbed her purse and bounded out the door.
There was two inches of fresh snow on the ground that had already been cleared from the steps and the area in front of the cottage. Valeria took in the look of her beloved home with the fresh snow piled heavily on the evergreens, causing the deciduous trees to almost disappear, except for their thick trunks. The sky was a brilliant winter blue and the temperature a crisp thirty degrees.
Homer, the ancient caretaker of the property, stood nearby shoveling snow off the main driveway. Alex stepped outside, with a book in his hand.
“Val, I think I’ll bring The Odyssey, what do you want?”
She wondered why she hadn’t considered something of this magnitude earlier. They could be gone for weeks, or more…she hoped. “Uh, Pride and Prejudice—oh, and maybe Shakespeare’s Sonnets!” That would keep her occupied.
Alex nodded and glanced at the old man shoveling the walk. “Grazie, Homer.”
Although she had heard his name numerous times, hearing it now in conjunction with the poet, Homer, and The Odyssey, and then noticing the old man’s ancient movement, suddenly leant itself to a new idea. Noticing her unspoken question, Alex mouthed, What?
She mouthed back to him, Homer? As Homer slowly lifted another scoop of snow, Valeria wondered how he had possibly cleared the walk so quickly.
Finding her question quite hysterical, Alex let out a beautiful, rollicking laugh, a sure sign that the old man wasn’t “the” Homer! Immediately, the caretaker turned back around and Alex bit his lip to stop his snickering.
Homer didn’t seem to notice and uttered a low, guttural, “Prego.”
Lars’ classic black Mercedes pulled up in front of them and the windows rolled down to reveal Lars, Ava, Camille, and Caleb.
“I’ll be right back,” Alex said as he returned to the house.
Valeria walked toward Lars’ car. She smiled at Camille, who had her straight black hair pulled into a shiny ponytail. She was wearing a black sweater dress that set off the dark mahogany of her skin and her brilliant blue, Kewpie doll eyes.
“Hey! We’ll see you there tomorrow!” Camille yelled excitedly. Then she teased, “And don’t worry about a thing! It causes wrinkles!”
Seeing only four members of the family in the car, Valeria asked, “Where are the rest?”
Lars responded, “Tav and Daphne are flying down tomorrow.”
Ava cut in, leaning an athletic arm out the car door. “Couldn’t stand the idea of listening to them arguing all the way there!” Valeria laughed.
The front door reopened as Alex came back out wearing his down vest and sunglasses, while carrying two suitcases in one hand, a camera bag hooked around his neck, and two bottles of water in his other hand. Valeria knew she should have offered to help him—although she knew he would never have accepted it!
“Where’s Mani? Is he flying with Daphne and Tav?” Valeria asked.
She noticed Alex’s slight flinch. “Uh, sorry love, Mani won’t be there.”
Stunned and disappointed that Alex’s closest friend wouldn’t be there for the wedding, she asked incredulously, “Mani isn’t coming?”
“Caleb’s filling the bill as best man!”
The ever twelve-year-old Caleb, who was concentrating on his computer game, looked up and lifted his hand in a victory fist. “Yes! Best man!” He was such a sweet boy, and he meant even more to her since he saved their lives.
“I think Caleb is a wonderful choice.” She winked at Caleb, who still had a major crush on her.
“All right, well, we’re heading out. We’ll see you there!” Camille said as the car began to roll down the drive. Wherever “there” was, Valeria thought. As the Mercedes disappeared from view, Alex tossed the suitcases into the trunk of his car.
“Why isn’t Mani coming to our wedding?”
“He’s…” Alex carefully positioned the garment bag in the trunk, but she suspected that he was stalling. “Don’t worry—we’ll celebrate with him later.” With that, he closed the trunk, tossed the camera bag in the backseat through the open door, and said, “Got your passport?”
She nodded, looking at her “real” Louis Vuitton bag that had been a Christmas gift from Camille—the only stipulation was that Valeria had to get rid of the “knock-off.” She gave the bag to Ava, much to Camille’s chagrin and Ava’s delight! Not that Ava cared about style whatsoever. Still, she liked a sturdy leather bag that wasn’t “frilly and feminine.”
“So, are you going to tell me now? Alex, where are we going?” she asked for the hundredth time.
Giddy with excitement, he said, “Let me have my surprises!” He closed his arms around her waist and kissed her sweetly, and then suddenly overwhelmed with joy, he swung her around.
∞
The Porsche easily plowed through the snow as they wound along the drive leading to the highway and away from Morgana. Valeria glanced through the forest and appreciated the way that everything seemed to be aglow with hues of pale pink and blue. After they entered the highway, the snow quickly became a wet mess; but as they continued out of the mountains and into the valley toward Venice, the roads dried. All the while, Alex’s smile continued to broaden.
“I hope you don’t mind that we didn’t go with the rest of them, but I wanted to have
the day alone with you. I know we’ll have the honeymoon, but I really haven’t had an opportunity to court you.”
The honeymoon! Her face flushed just thinking about it, as that marvelous warmth shot through her body. He noticed her reaction and his mouth turned up in the delightful smile that she loved. He hadn’t told her where they were going. But frankly, she would have been absolutely content to spend their honeymoon at the cottage or in her Manhattan brownstone which she had decided to keep.
In fact, her only requirement for a honeymoon was that the two of them were there alone for as much time as possible. And Valeria was quite certain that there was not enough time in a mortal life for her to express what she felt for him!
She turned away, regaining her composure. “I never mind being alone with you. It’s being without you that I can’t take!” With that, she was surprised to find a tear come to her eye. He gave her an inquisitive look.
“Well, fortunately, you won’t have to worry about that! Beautiful, I am yours forever!” He took her hand and pulled it to his mouth. While they were still miles from Venice, he pulled off the road and into a field. Now it was Valeria’s turn to give him an inquisitive look.
“I always wanted to show you Venice. So I thought we would take the morning—unless you’re anxious to get ‘there,’” he teased.
“Isn’t Venice still several miles away?” She pointed to the southern horizon. Alex’s eyes sparkled.
“You know, after the accident, you’ve been so weak that I wanted to wait until it warmed up a bit to do this.” He drove around a hill and there was a feast set out in the middle of the field, along with a hot air balloon that was still laying flat on the ground.
Valeria’s jaw dropped. She tried to find something to say, but again, he had taken her breath away with his remarkably romantic gesture. He parked and jumped out, opening the door for her. They ate a wonderful breakfast while a crew filled the balloon with hot air.
The Symbolon Page 3
