By the Bay (29 page)

She moved through the
front
door, closing it quietly behind her, th
a
n pausing to breathe deeply of the scented flowers blooming in the yard.

He was waiting for her at the end of the walk.

With surprising confidence, she walked toward him. Somewhere inside her, she knew who he was even though she couldn’t remember his name.

He stood, watching her every move as she approached him, the look on his face so full of tenderness that she felt her heart melt. They didn’t immediately go into each other’s arms, but instead just stood there looking at each other, confirming that all the dreams had been true.

Then he spoke, “I was so fearful for you
when I remembered the danger that surrounded you here.”

She took in a deep breath, almost remembering the dead man on the floor. “I think it’s gone and we’re all safe.”

He nodded. “It feels differently.” He took her hand with great gentleness and then pulled her into his arms. His hold was fierce and possessive as was his kiss. She returned both with equal passion.”

“I have come for you,” he said, “we must be together. It is what is meant to be.”

She couldn’t argue with that, but a vague memory told her this was forbidden, that the risks of their being together were too great. But she couldn’t remember why and didn’t want to believe it was true.

“Come,” he said, gesturing toward the bay. “We must go.”

The pull was so
strong
that she almost went without questioning. “My family,” she protested. “I can’t just disappear. They would worry.”

He smiled at her, th
a
n nodded. He led the way
up the walk and pushed open the still unlocked door. She followed him into the house and to the kitchen.

A particularly exciting moment in play was underway and nobody looked up. “Mom and Dad,” she said softly. “I’m going away for a
w
hile. We’re eloping.”

“Sure, baby,” Dad said without looking up.

“Oh, Jillian, don’t tease us,” her mother glanced up, the laughter fading from her face as she saw that a man actually stood at her side.

Owen
was the only one to really pay attention. “Congratulations, Philippe,” he said. “You’re a lucky man.”

The interlude had barely penetrated their concentration, but she knew they would remember later. She took his hand and this time she was the one who led the way out.

Holding
on to each other
, they strolled together toward the bay where
two
men waited for them in a row boat. She paused for a moment,” He called you Philippe.”

He kissed her, paying no attention to the watching men. “That is my name. And you are Jillian.”

They rowed across the bay, walked the short distance to the Gulf side of the island where they were picked up and transported to an amazingly beautiful little ship with billowing sails.

She felt still caught in a dream as the ship began to slide across the waves and the warm, soft air blew in her face. His arms wrapped around her as they moved toward unbelievable adventures.

It was all beginning again

The End

About the Author: Barbara Bartholomew first became interested in time as a dimension (and as a scenario for story telling) back when she was ten
years
old and her grandfather discussed Einstein’s theories as they watched the wide Oklahoma skies for the possibilities of unidentified flying objects. Her first published short story was “Wheel of Fire,” for Analog Science Fiction magazine, which took a time traveler into the Elizabethan age with troubling results. Since then she has written
The Time Keeper
trilogy for teens, and the time travel romance,
A House Near the River
, as well as quite a few other things.  Port Isabel, Texas, where her grandmother lived, has always felt like a second home and a place full of imaginative possibilities and so became the setting for her latest time travel adventure.