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Authors: Tinnean

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Where the Heart Chooses (45 page)

BOOK: Where the Heart Chooses
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And then I heard, “Portia.”


Nigel?” I would have run toward him and
embraced him, but unlike other dreams, I was unable to take a step.
“Why can’t I…?”


I always liked Gregor. He was a sweet
boy who grew into a lovable man.”


Were you aware he was in love with
me?”


Darling, how could anyone not love you?
But yes, it occurred to me, when one day I happened to see him
gazing at you. You were playing peek-a-boo with Quinton, and
Gregor’s expression was filled with such longing.”


I never realized…For the longest time I
thought he barely tolerated me.”


And that was how he wanted it.”


He’s twelve years younger.”


That makes no difference.


Does it bother you that I’m with
him?”


I never expected you to go all these
years without love. More than anything, I wanted your
happiness.”


I was happy with you.”


I know, darling. And the years I spent
with you were the happiest in my life.”


Will we be together again,
Nigel?”


Never doubt it.” I could feel his lips
against mine. “And Gregor will be with us, and when his time comes,
our son and his partner and eventually their children…”

Now I was certain I was dreaming, but it was
such a lovely notion.


I’ll always love you, darling,” I
murmured.


Share some of that love with Gregor. I
won’t resent it, and he deserves it.”

There was a tap on my bedroom door, drawing
me out of the dream, and Gregor entered, carrying a tray with a bud
vase containing a lovely red rose. “Good morning, adorable. Happy
President’s Day!”

I stretched and smiled. “Good morning,
Gregor, and a happy President’s Day to you too.” It was wonderful
to see him so happy, to be so happy myself. I pushed myself up on
the bed, and he balanced on his knee, leaned forward, and kissed
me.

Not Nigel, nothing like Nigel, but he was a
good man in his own right, and his kisses were sweet. I kissed him
back.

“Breakfast for milady.” He raised the covers
of the dishes on the tray to reveal bacon and eggs, fresh fruit,
and toast, along with steaming cups of coffee.

My cell phone rang, and since Gregor was
closest to it, he picked it up and glanced at the screen. “Who’s
Vanessa Wood?”

“An old friend.” I took the phone from him.
“Yes?”

“Your son and his friend have been very
busy.”

“Oh? Are they all right?”

“They’re fine. However, that’s more than I
can say for someone else. There should be something about it in
today’s newspaper. The political section.”

“Can you hold on?” The
Post
was
folded up in the side pocket of the tray.

“No, I must go. I’m meeting a…friend.”

“Enjoy. But tell your friend if he hurts
you—”


She
.”

“She,” I corrected, “will meet me, and she
won’t be happy about it.”

“No, but I will. Thank you, my dearest
Portia.” Could I ever do anything less than see she was treated
with the care and consideration she deserved? “Perhaps in another
lifetime we’ll have a life together.”

That was an interesting thought. I
disconnected the call and handed my phone to Gregor, who set it
back on the night table.

“What was that about?” Gregor asked as he
broke a piece of bacon in two and offered half to me.

“I don’t know. Thank you.” I accepted the
bacon and chewed thoughtfully before I took out the newspaper and
opened it to the article Folana had mentioned. I scanned it
quickly, and then read it aloud. “
Long-time Senator Richard
Wexler is in guarded condition after apparently suffering a stroke
while driving and losing control of his car. This has been an
unfortunate few months for Mr. Wexler, who lost his seat in the
Senate…
” I looked up at Gregor and smiled. “I guess what they
say is true. What goes around comes around.”

“And no one deserves it more. Is this going
to come back and bite Quinn in the ass?”

“Why would it? He and Mark are in Costa
Rica.” Quinton had called the day before to let us know they’d be
back in time for Mark’s birthday on the twenty-fifth. Gregor had
grudgingly gone shopping with me to pick up a gift for Mark. In the
end he’d chosen a golf towel and had Mark’s name embroidered on it
in fuchsia.

He was a wicked, wicked man, and I made sure
he saw my pleasure in him.

“I don’t suppose we can just send Vincent
the presents and let it go at that?” he asked now, hopefully.

“And disappoint Quinton?”

He looked torn, but then he surrendered. And
he did that so well. “No, you’re right. Although I worry more about
disappointing you.”

I rested my palm against his cheek and
brought his mouth to mine. “Never, Gregor.” He tasted of coffee,
and I felt almost dizzy when he finally drew back.

“I know it’s Monday, and we always go to the
range on Monday, but…” He took the breakfast tray and set it aside.
“Would you mind if today we didn’t?”

“Not in the least, my dear one. Oh, not at
all in the least!”

 

THE END

* * * *

ABOUT TINNEAN

Tinnean has
been
writing since the 3
rd
grade, where she was inspired to
try her hand at epic poetry. Fortunately, that epic poem didn’t
survive the passage of time; however, her love of writing not only
survived but thrived, and in high school she became a member of the
magazine staff, where she contributed a number of stories.

Starting a family resulted in the writing
being set aside, although throughout those years Tinnean did
continue to keep a journal. Once the kids were old enough to do
their own thing, she was able to dabble in writing again. It was
with the advent of the family’s second computer—the first
intimidated everyone—that her writing took off, enhanced in part by
fan fiction, but mostly by the wonder that is copy and paste.

While involved in fandom, she was nominated
for both Rerun and Light My Fire Awards. Now she concentrates on
her original characters and has been published by Nazca Plains,
Dreamspinner, and JMS Books.

Tinnean is
what you might
call a hopeful romantic, and if you see her name on a story, it
will have a happy ending.

Her signature line, a quote by Ernest
Hemingway, says it all: “Once writing has become your major vice
and greatest pleasure, only death can stop it.”

A New Yorker at heart, she resides in
southwest Florida with her husband and two computers.

ABOUT JMS BOOKS LLC

JMS Books LLC
is a small electronic press specializing in gay,
lesbian, bisexual, and transgender fiction (including erotica,
romance, and young adult), as well as popular and literary fiction,
nonfiction, and poetry. While our preference is for GLBT stories,
we accept stories containing any and all sexualities, as well as
general fiction without a romantic subplot. Visit our site
at
jms-books.com
for our latest
releases and submission guidelines!

 

BOOK: Where the Heart Chooses
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ads

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