One Thousand Years to Forever (11 page)

“
Um... ”

Colum patted Katherine’s hand. “Hey
girls, how about a ride in the Rover. We will stop at your house
first Sally, get your gear and then we will take you
over.”

Katherine was met by, “Thanks, oh,
that’s sweet... ” from Olivia.

“
Mom? Is it OK?”

Katherine could see Colum’s eyes
and something was drawing her in. That feeling of she hardly knew
him, but felt like she had known him forever, crept in. “Yes...
”

“
Oh, thanks Mom!”

They pulled into her driveway an
hour and fifteen minutes later. “Sally, you get a change of clothes
and ski wear because I think you girls will be going to the Snow
Bowl to ski tomorrow.”

“
I know Mom... ” Sally ran on
ahead as they all went into the house. There was a note on the
fridge from John and Pat saying they were spending the night with a
mutual friend.

Colum looked at the note over
Katherine’s shoulder. “Hmmm looks like you are going to need
company tonight... ”

Katherine turned to him and smiled.
“I can make you dinner... ”

Colum smiled back and let his hand
rub the lower part of her back. “How about you come to my home and
we will cook together. I will let my cook off for tonight but I
know he has lamb broth so we can make a traditional Italian wedding
soup. Soup is perfect for a night like this.”

Katherine could almost smell the
broth, knowing the smell of a lamb broth, being from an Irish
family. “Sounds wonderful.”

* * * * * * *

They rode in silence to Colum’s
home. The snow was still coming down and was supposed to continue
all through the night.

Colum glanced over at Katherine as
he came to his gate. One hand was out the window pushing the button
and then scanning his finger as he spoke to her. “You
OK?”

Katherine exhaled. “Yea, no… I
don’t know.”

“
Hold that thought... ” Colum
looked into the screen and then the gate opened. He closed his
window and they drove down the winding drive.

“
Relax, we’ll have supper, we can
sit by the fire, or watch a movie. I can even bring you up to my
parents’ home on the hill, if you would rather not be alone with me
tonight.”

Katherine watched as the garage
door opened in front of them. Travis stood in the shadows but was
lit by their headlights. When she saw him he seemed familiar, too.
Yes, she knew who he was, but something in the recesses of her
memory bank told her she knew him somehow. She couldn’t place it
but she felt like she had known him forever also...

Travis went to Katherine’s door and
opened it for her. “Miss Katherine, if you will follow me I will
show you to your room. There is a robe you can put on, along with
pajamas.”

She looked over to
Colum.

“
It’s OK, if you don’t want to
stay you can wear them at my parents’ but I don’t want you alone
tonight, one way or another. Also don’t worry about the children,
as we talk, they are being watched over, quite well.”

Katherine smiled at Colum. “Thank
you.”

* * * * * * **

She followed the butler through a
hallway that was dimly lit until they arrived at the main part of
the house.

“
This way, Miss Katherine...
”

She followed him up the stairs and
down a hall that was carpeted by some fine Persian rugs. She could
tell by the feel of it that it would be heavenly to walk barefoot
on. Travis stopped at a door and opened it wide to let her go
in.

She peeked in and was awed by the
beautiful room that met her eyes. It was all feminine and just the
color she loved, a soft rose.

“
Oh!” escaped her lips before she
knew what she had said.

“
Yes, Miss Katherine, it’s a very
comfortable room.”

“
Comfortable... that’s not the
word I was thinking. Cozy, inviting, romantic... ” She blushed at
the last word.

“
It’s OK Miss... ” Travis
smiled.

“
And a
Gone with the Wind
lamp... ” she walked up to the lamp, studying and touching
it. “It’s absolutely beautiful.”

Travis nodded. “I’ve built a fire
in the fire place for you. I will make sure it is going nicely, if
you choose to stay the night, Colum will let me know.”

Katherine forgot her unease and
felt so relaxed... like she had come home. She walked around the
room, touching things. She could almost smell the roses. She felt
lost in another time. She forgot for a second that Travis was there
until she heard him clear his throat.

Turning, “Do you ever feel like you
have seen things before Travis, like you can’t explain it but you
know this may have been part of your life, in another life of
course? I don’t know, it’s confusing but as soon as I saw all of
these pieces of furniture, I felt like I was home, or part way
anyway... ”

Travis tried not to smile but
couldn’t help it. “Yes, I think I understand.”

Katherine didn’t want him to leave.
“Do you think there would be a pair of sweats I could put on and
another pair of socks? I don’t want to cook in PJs.”

Travis brought her to the closet.
“Here, Miss Katherine, is an assortment for you to choose
from.”

Katherine looked and found a pair
of sweats. Quickly looking, she saw there was indeed an assortment
of clothes.

“
Travis?”

“
Yes?”

“
Why does he have a room that is
obviously a woman’s, and all these clothes?”

“
His sister’s spare clothes. This
is a guest bedroom.”

Katherine stood for a moment.
Looked down at the sweats. “Oh... ”

“
Will that be all, Miss
Katherine?”

“
Yes, Travis. I will be fine. I’ll
find my way down to the kitchen just fine. You go
ahead.”

“
Thank you, Miss
Katherine.”

Travis walked out of her room and
closed the door quietly. As he reached the staircase he saw Colum
coming up.

“
You are going to hell for that
fib Travis... ”

“
Sir, we both will sooner or
later... ”

“
Yes, that’s a perk of this life
and job.”

Colum walked past his butler. “In
the meantime we, you, all of us, have got to make sure nothing
happens to Katherine.”

Travis nodded his head. “Yes Sir,
we will do our duty and keep her and the children safe. Will there
be anything else for this evening?”

Colum shook his head. “No, you can
have the rest of the evening off.”

“
Goodnight, Sir. See you in the
morning.”

“
Yes, goodnight.”

Colum walked past the door that was
Katherine’s and walked into his own room. He went to his closet and
pulled out some clothes.

Changing into a white tee and
another pair of jeans, he left his feet bare. He was tempted to
knock on the connecting door. But knew just from his acute hearing
that Katherine was almost finished dressing.

He walked out and timed his steps
just as Katherine was exiting her room.

“
Oh, Colum, I didn’t hear anyone
upstairs... ”

Colum could smell her fear but
there was that hint of arousal, which she was trying to hold at
bay. She was fighting it.

Taking her hand, he said, “Come on,
let’s go make dinner.”

They walked down the stairs and
Katherine saw the kitchen of her dreams. Hers was nice but this was
something out of a magazine. It was white, lots of counters and the
windows just in the kitchen. She knew during the day the view would
be fabulous. Tonight, all she could see was snow flying past.
Lights were on to show quite a bit of the lawn that led down to the
ocean.

“
Colum?”

He turned from the counter where he
had the ground lamb sitting. “Yes?”

“
Are we, I mean, are the children
safe?”

Colum came up to Katherine and
wrapped his arms around her. “As we speak, men are posted outside
Olivia’s home and also outside where the boys are. These men are
trained in this type of work and wait for just this chance. Don’t
worry, nothing gets by them.”

Katherine had to know more. “Why
though, why all the interest in plain old me? I mean, I thought
maybe it wasn’t a big deal and they would get tired of this and
just go home.”

Colum was seriously having a hard
time controlling himself. Katherine was sending off waves of fear,
which only further aroused the beast in him, and then her own
arousal was drawing him in like a bee to a flower. The fact that
she was his, and had been for over a thousand years, made it just
that much harder. He would be so happy when they came together,
then she would really be his, and at some point, when the time was
right, he would change her. But for now she was here, close and he
needed to remember she was human, not a vampire, not a fallen one.
She had the blood of the Fae, which was the reason why they had
been together in the first place.

It had been a union of the two
people and two very strong families to strengthen bloodlines. Then
she had been killed by an evil son of Mil’s; the first time. It had
always been that way in the early, dark years of Ireland. He had
waited for her again and she had been born the next year Eriu, one
of the three Queens; then, as daughter to High King Brian
Boru.

Down through the ages she had been
his, but never forever...

Colum touched her face.

Katherine responded to his touch.
She arched and stretched up, feeling a flow of heat course through
her body that was begging to be released. “Sometimes, I feel like
you leave earth for a few minutes and then you come back. Saw it
just then... ”

Colum tilted her chin. “Did you see
what I saw?”

“
No, but I almost felt it. Felt
your sadness and struggle.” She gazed into his eyes that were now a
deep violet. There were tinges of red, like flecks of colored
flame.

“
Colum... ” She felt the need to
take charge for this moment. She hadn’t felt like this in a very
long time. She stood on tiptoe, her lips sought his, felt his skim
hers, heard a purr come from his throat. She let her fingers reach
up and grab at his tee, holding him, anchoring herself.

She felt him taste her with his
tongue.

“
What do you taste?” She
asked.

“
Honesty here?”

Katherine kissed his chin.
“Yes…”

Colum let his tongue dip in, felt
her respond, tasted the blend of her fear and arousal. He felt her
small hands seeking a place to secure herself.

“
I taste a woman, who has fears,
but also who needs to be loved.” Kissing her deeply, he felt her
press in closer. Felt all of her respond.

“
I’m afraid, Colum. I don’t know
if it’s right... yet”

Colum held her, letting his hand
span her back, gently rubbing, to calm her.

“
I’ll not force myself on you but
you said yourself earlier today that it felt right.”

Katherine let her forehead rest on
his chest. She flattened herself to lay her face on his hard chest.
She listened for a heartbeat, and moving her head, she looked up at
his face and saw need. She put her head back on his chest and
heard, nothing.

“
Colum?”

“
Yes?”

“
I don’t hear a heart beat...
”

“
It’s there, beating
strong.”

Katherine laid her head on his
chest again, standing on tiptoe trying in vane to hear his heart.
She felt him breathe, felt his warmth, felt his hands gently
massaging her back. Heard his throaty purr and felt his kisses on
her head, her ear, then trailing down her neck. She forgot the lack
of his beating heart and reached up again. “I don’t care...
”

He felt her surrender for the
moment and he caught up her lips to kiss them again. He could kiss
her all night and this would be enough... if only he knew that she
would be his forever.

“
Katherine, let’s make dinner then
we can relax and talk. I’ll build a fire in your room and we can
sit there.”

“
Travis has already built
one.”

“
Yes, but I dismissed him for the
evening. It’s just you and I. Sometimes I don’t want people under
foot.”

Katherine felt herself being held
for a moment longer. She pressed into his body. She felt safe and
sheltered. Almost like wings were wrapped around her. She sniffed
his tee, kissed his chest. She felt his lips on her head
again.

“
When the time is right...
”

Her hand dropped into his. “Yes...
”

* * * * * * *

Katherine and Colum worked in quiet
efficiency. She poured in the acini de pepe and then went and set
two place settings at the kitchen table.