A Leap in Time (11 page)

Catina pulled up next to me and we sat as if anticipating something to manifest before our eyes. Tears trickled down my face for the millionth time that day. The thought of my passage being a one-way voyage home made me feel devastated, and the thought of hurting Marcus and losing him in the process shattered me.

“Oh, Lexi, please don’t cry.” Catina was teary-eyed.

We rode toward the tree. I admired the beautiful landscape that always took my breath away. The late dusk’s golden hues danced delicately on everything creating a rich luster from the trees to the city walls that stretched out before us. For as long as I live, I will always remember the beauty of this city and the magical effect dusk bestowed on its surroundings.

We were a few feet from the tree when behind us, the sound of a galloping horse made us turn. My heart leaped in my throat as I feared for our safety, vulnerable and without escort outside the city walls. Once the dust settled, we saw Marcus heading for us. He trotted around us and turned the horse to face me. His eyes were brimmed with the faintest color of red. I couldn’t tell if he had been crying or the dust was bothering his eyes.

How will I ever live with myself for hurting this loving, beautiful man? He dismounted, grabbed my reins and pulled me down with one quick motion.

“Please don’t leave. Running away won’t solve anything. I’m sorry, I know I behaved badly by leaving you and Catina in the forest.” His voice quivered slightly. “I have never been a man to believe in sorcery, but I know I love you. The thought of you leaving petrifies me beyond words. Whatever brought you to me is real. I know that you’re real and my feelings for you are real. Please, let’s figure this out.”

I didn’t deserve this man. My heart felt like it was about to burst. I jumped into his arms and held on for dear life. I didn’t know what the next few minutes, or days or weeks would bring, but for now, I had Marcus and I wasn’t letting him go.

His mouth crushed mine with the same intensity as earlier in the forest. He kissed my face, my tearstained cheeks and mouth.

Had it not been for Catina’s voice jolting us back to reality, I would have been more than willing to make love to Marcus right here in the open field.

We reluctantly parted, but stayed in each other’s arms.

“Will you show me your enchanted tree?” He took my hand and led me along the creek for a while with occasional pauses for stolen kisses.

“Marcus, I would love for you to come home with me. Not to stay, just to see where I live. I know this is a lot to accept and I can’t imagine any of this is easy to believe.”

He cupped my face between his hands and kissed me so thoroughly my knees buckled. I wanted him with every pulsing fiber in my being. I was about to slide my hands under his toga when he grabbed my hands.

“We need to be careful or we will find ourselves publicly flogged for indecent behavior.”

I trailed kisses along his neck, his ears and nibbled on his earlobe with every intention of changing his mind. He released my hands to kiss me softly on the eyelids.

“For all that is holy, Lexi, please. I don’t think I can resist you for much longer. I don’t want our first time to be like this.”

As much as I hated to admit it, he was right. I consented to being pulled along for a walk back toward my tree.

“I will go with you to your homeland, Lexi. But I can’t promise I will want to stay. I need to know all about you. No more betrayal.”

No more lies. No more secrets. The feeling of starting a fresh slate felt more than liberating—like a million pounds had been magically lifted from my shoulders. To say I was overjoyed and relieved would have been the biggest understatement in the world. Kate had been right about everything turning out fine.

I chuckled at the thought of Marcus popping over to Los Angeles in his toga and sandals speaking Latin. Speaking Latin. Damn, how did I forget about that? I needed to teach him English like immediately. When he asked why I was laughing, I explained. Luckily, he found it amusing, too.

We made plans to rest the night in Pompeii and leave tomorrow at dusk. The only person who would know our whereabouts would be Catina. Everyone else would think Marcus escorted me to a relative’s house by the sea at Campania.

The next day, we said our good-byes to Catina with the promise of returning in a few days. If Marcus was freaking out on the inside, he didn’t show it. With the exception of the initial freak-out in the forest, he seemed to bounce right back.

We stood hand-in-hand by my tree. As dusk started, the trunk became almost translucent. Marcus’s eyes went wide as saucers as his mind registered the enormity of what was about to happen.

“You ready?”

He nodded, staring at the trunk. When he shifted his gaze to me, I touched the trunk and we were immediately sucked into the damp darkness of the time portal.

Chapter Thirteen

Marcus and I stood in my living room staring at the painting of Pompeii with relief for me, and complete shock for him. I wouldn’t have been surprised if he leaped right back into the painting. His normally sparkling, mischievous green eyes had turned glassy.

I’d studied Pompeii before time traveling there. A million images had prepared me for the real thing. I spoke Latin, fluently. I dressed the part exquisitely. For Marcus, there was no prep work, no clothes shopping, no studying our culture, and he certainly didn’t speak English. All this left him vulnerable and disconnected.

My heart ached imagining what he must be going through. He turned in a circle, his eyes scanning every detail. Marcus’ attention paused at the large TV perched on top of a small mahogany entertainment center. The relationship between men and televisions seems to run deep—centuries deep. I explained how it worked, but that only confused him more so I turned it on. The Today Show was underway and the weather forecast was being broadcast on an interactive map of the US with small sun, cloud and raindrop icons that danced joyfully across the screen.

I couldn’t say the same for Marcus. At the sound of the broadcaster’s voice and then image, he jumped back almost falling on the couch, taking me down with him. I burst out laughing at his startled reaction.

In seconds, he composed himself and laughed too. “You could have given me a little warning.” He smiled in my direction, but still watched the TV from the corner of his eye.

“I tried to tell you.”

At my fit of laughter, Marcus playfully threw me on the couch and tickled me mercilessly.

“Marcus. Please…stop.”

Which only made him tickle me more. Finally he stopped and laid next to me, wrapping his arms and legs around me before he kissed my cheek tenderly. “Show me something else from your bizarre world.” He propped himself on his elbows trapping me beneath him.

“Bizarre? Wait ‘till you see the computer, laptop, mobile phone, and the kitchen appliances.” I wrapped my arms around his neck and kissed him softly on the mouth. “Thank you for coming home with me. I love you.”

“I love you. Now show me your home.”

I took his hand and led him through the apartment. I had a feeling that by tomorrow, the only time Marcus would jump back was if I attempted to take the remote from him.

In the bedroom, he stood there amazed by the full-size bed. We continued the tour by heading to the bathroom. To be fair, ancient Pompeii was much more advanced in their plumbing infrastructure than other cities during that time period and so a convenient bathroom wasn’t a completely new concept to Marcus, but obviously the technology had improved a great deal. He thought it was brilliant to have the convenience of a bathhouse in each private home.

“Where does all this water come from?”

Seriously, that’s what he wanted to know?

“Uh, massive pipes distribute water to homes, businesses, schools, and restaurants.”

“So…similar to Pompeii, but on a much larger scale.”

Where was he going with this? If I were a betting woman, I would guess he was trying to figure out how to mimic our sophisticated water distribution in Pompeii.

I saved the reveal of the computer ‘till the end of the tour knowing full well he would want to see anything and everything about his city. I much preferred he researched plumbing. Sensing my anxiety, he put down the laptop and followed me back to the living room where he settled on the couch to stare in bewilderment at the TV. I wondered if Catina would be as fascinated with it too.

Heading to the kitchen to make breakfast, I called Charlotte and Kate to tell them we were back.

“What do you mean
we?
” Charlotte sounded weary and a little testy for this hour in the morning. We conference-dialed Kate who was excited to meet Marcus. We agreed on dinner that evening.

I was especially nervous about Charlotte’s disapproval of our relationship, worried she would make him feel inferior or unwelcome. I busied myself with breakfast while I called Mrs. Ashton and left her a voicemail. She was probably still sleeping or gallivanting between worlds.

The sound of the shower running made me pause, but I didn’t think too much of it. I assumed Marcus was getting acquainted with our plumbing. I couldn’t help but suppress a giggle. The next few days will be interesting, to say the least.

When the shower continued for a few minutes, curiosity got the best of me. I walked down the hall almost anticipating him to be laundering his tunic. What I saw both surprised and pleasantly amazed me. Marcus was clearly becoming very comfortable with his new accommodations. He was covered in shampoo bubbles from head to toe…singing. I blushed at the sight of him completely naked with only the semi-clear shower curtain concealing him from full view.

Despite spending a lot of time together in the last several months, Marcus insisted he court me appropriately, which meant minimal physical contact. Our indiscretions in the forest and again by the creek were completely and shamefully inappropriate displays of affection. Both were highly charged emotional moments and infused with panic and fear of losing one another.

I debated a few seconds about joining him. No. It wouldn’t be appropriate. I turned away to head back into the kitchen.

“Please don’t go.”

His voice sounded so deep, almost unfamiliar. He extended his hand to me. I hesitated before nodding and quickly undressing.

“I love you, Alexandra. I want to spend forever with you. I just want to be close to you, here in the place you consider home. Is that all right with you?” He cupped my face, steaming hot water soaking us.

“I love you too, Marcus, and I want to spend forever with you too. I’m a little scared…very scared, actually, at the thought of losing you.” I choked back tears.

“Lexi, my love, don’t cry. The only way you’ll lose me is if you decide this union no longer suits you. And even then, I’ll still love you from worlds away.” He pulled me against his wet chest kissing the top of my head, my cheeks and slightly quivering mouth.

I stayed in the safety of his embrace for a little longer, wanting nothing to change, shyly aware of our very naked physical closeness. The same awareness must have registered for Marcus; his breath came at quicker intervals. My gaze was met with smoldering liquid eyes that burned through me, full of so much unspoken emotional intensity.

I ran my hands across his broad chest, up his muscular neck and through his gorgeous chestnut mane, pulling myself so close to him our lips almost touched. He wrapped me into the magical world of his kisses and caresses. He didn’t push my hands away when I caressed every inch of him, or when I possessed him breathlessly. His moaning sent me into another dimension.

We clumsily managed to get out of the shower and toppled onto my bed. Every inch of me quivered, each tantalizing invasion on my flesh sending me floating, oblivious to everything, but his hands methodically and expertly pleasuring me. Our breathing was ragged and labored, our eyes never leaving one another, I sighed deeply, happily, wanting this moment to last forever. I didn’t dare close my eyes in fear that it was all a fantastic dream.

The sound of my name on his lips solidified my presence sending me soaring as I exploded around him. His breath shattered. He collapsed on top of me. We stayed still in each other’s arms for what seemed like eternity dozing in and out of sleep, content, feeling complete.

The months of anticipation had been worth it. There was something to be said for old-fashioned courtship. Not wanting to disturb his sleep, I slid from under him, dreading that I had to go to work, the last place I wanted to be. I smiled at my sexy Adonis, naked and ravished from our lovemaking.

I knew that returning to Pompeii with him was inevitable. He would never survive in my world long-term and I would never survive without him. I just needed to get through a few more days at work to sort things through. And I needed to deal with whatever fallout might arise from my friends for my decision. I didn’t worry about Mrs. Ashton. I knew she would be a strong supporter of any decision I made. I took a deep breath and quickly dressed in a pencil skirt, blouse and high heel sandals.

I watched him sleep for a few more minutes before waking him to say good-bye. I trailed kisses up his spine, the side of his neck, gently teasing the corners of his mouth with my tongue. He moaned, still half-asleep and smiling through drowsy half-closed eyes, taking me by the hand, pulling me on top of him for another sweet, lingering kiss.

“You look very beautiful and very different in these clothes. Where are you going?” He rolled me to my side so I was lying next to him and propped himself on his forearm. He didn’t object when I said I needed to go to work for a few hours so I could schedule some vacation time. Neither did he complain when I suggested buying him clothes during my lunch break so we could venture out to the city.

His incredibly calm demeanor was a little unnerving. Why? How could the change of worlds not freak him out? The simple commodities in modern day were light years away from the world he lived in—that alone should be making him jump out of his skin. And yet, he seemed to be adjusting to everything as if it was always part of his daily routine.