Florentine Enchantment
Page 4
"No. No, I don't believe it will. But won't you be ashamed someday to be seen with an old woman? You are young, beautiful. While I will grow gray and wrinkled."
In reply, he wrapped his arms around me and held me close, so close that I could scarcely breathe. "I have been lonely for a long time, cara mia. It has taught me to take joy where I may find it. And with you I have joy." His lips closed over mine in a kiss so heartbreakingly tender, so filled with love and devotion, that I wept. My tears mingled with his as he rolled me over and slid into me.
He moved slowly, as if the journey was less important than the company. His lips stroked over my face, his tongue laved away the tears, and his breath mixed with mine as our hearts beat in perfect rhythm. As the relentless force built within me, as passion's inexorable power began to radiate outward from where we were joined, we looked into each other's eyes. Into each other's souls.
And when we cast ourselves into that endless chasm, I smiled and whispered, "Vido. I love you, David."
* * * *
I am old now, and Vido is eternally young. Our neighbors here in the apartments overlooking the Piazza della Signoria believe he is my nephew. At least some of them do. The others cast significant glances at us when we stroll the piazza together on Sunday afternoons. A young, handsome lad and an old, wealthy man are, after all, cause for comment.
Our lives have been rich. I realized considerable success in my work, eventually becoming the owner of Signore Mussacchio's Art and Antiquities Studio. In fact, Studio Raimondi is now considered one of Firenze's premier galleries and I have profited from its reputation. After I confessed to Vido about my masquerade, he convinced me to eschew women's clothing altogether, and so I have lived the last forty years as a man.
Only in our comfortable rooms do I become a woman. David's woman.
Vido's love.
About the Author
On her way to a career as a writer, Judith B. Glad made a lot of detours—into motherhood, short-order cooking, accounting, management, graduate school, botanical consulting. Eventually she decided she had to write those books that had been growing in her head for years—romances all. She believes every story should have a happy ending, even if it requires two or three hankies to get there.
After growing up in Idaho—the locale of several of her books—Judith now lives in Portland, Oregon, where flowers bloom in her yard every month of the year and snow usually stays on the mountains where it belongs. It's a great place to write, because the rainy season lasts for eight months—a perfect excuse to stay indoors and tell stories. Judith has four children, all grown, three granddaughters and a grandson.
Visit Judith's webpage at www.judithbglad.com to learn more about her other books. While you're there, take some side trips to view early 20th century picture postcards, read about 5,000 ways to earn a living, and see what a Mentzelia really is.
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Uncial Press brings you extraordinary fiction, non-fiction and poetry. Put a world of reading in your pocket.
www.uncialpress.com
Table of Contents
Florentine Enchantment
About the Author