Page 56 of City of Love

Earlier as he’d stood watching her soak in the tub, her eyes closed and the edges of her lips turned up in bliss, he’d felt the threat of tears behind his eyes. His parents had installed the side-by-side tubs over one hundred and fifty years before—a rare luxury they felt their joyous marriage was worth. But since Gideon had inherited the home, the baths had been missing a second occupant, and he’d long ago come to assume they always would.

Now his love had finally arrived. Stronger and more beautiful than he ever dared to hope.

But Lexi had been back in his universe for close to her four-hour limit by now, and he had to send her home to another dimension.

“I’ll be okay,” she said through a yawn. “Just send me back. My poor cat must be starving.”

“No.” He slid into a clean pair of jeans. “I’m going back with you. I’ll see you home safely and then return.”

“But the last thing you need right now is more of my world.”

Indeed, he could barely think straight as it was at this point. He’d be of little use in the event of trouble, but sending her back alone after what had happened set his teeth grinding.

“Then do me a favor, love, and ask once more for visions. At least images of the next twenty-four hours.”

Lexi closed her eyes and asked, inviting him into her mind to observe, and all she saw was her cat rubbing against her leg as she placed food in his bowl, followed by an image of a steaming cup of coffee on her table, morning sunlight coming through her kitchen window. She opened her eyes and yawned again. “You see? I’ll be fine.”

Noting the ease with which she’d just used her skills, he studied her intently. “I didn’t have time to properly acknowledge you earlier.”

“What do you mean?”

“What you did today. Using your gift. You took control of your sight and saved us. You saved my people.”

Color rushed to her face, and she chewed her lip. “I don’t know. I mean, it worked a few times, but who knows if—”

“It will always work now. It’s a skill, nothing more mysterious than that. You didn’t know how to use it before, that’s all.”

“Maybe you’re right.”

“I am right.” He pulled her onto his lap.

“You know, you could be anything you want in our world now, if you came here to stay. Oracles are highly valued by healers, scientists, farmers. You could do whatever you want. Contribute to our world in whatever way will give you pleasure and satisfaction.”

As soon as he spoke those words, a flash of heat arced across his skin. A sensation like an electric shock. And he was, indeed, shocked at his own words.

When had he gone from discouraging their relationship, from chastising himself for his interest in her, to officially inviting her into his life in such a permanent, almost official, way? Sure, they’d been growing closer, and he’d been about to discuss the transition process with her earlier in the day. But even then, he’d still been partly of a mind that telling her about the dangers of the process would be helpful in dissuading her. Or at least that’s what he told himself.

At what point had he thrown his caution to the wind entirely and admitted to himself his true desire?

He knew the answer. He’d crossed that line, he’d accepted their destiny, the moment she faded from his arms in the meadow. When he’d thought he’d lost her, perhaps forever, and felt the threat of a pain like no other.

He’d fallen further still when his beautiful brave woman shoved aside her fear and did the better part of rescuing them all earlier that day.

And he’d fallen the final distance when she’d come in his arms, over and over, crying out in ecstasy, just minutes ago.

“A life like that, in this world, sounds wonderful,” she said, snapping him out of his thoughts.

But her brows drew together, and she hopped off his lap as she continued. “Do we even know, though, whether we really changed anything today? I mean, did we actually save your people?” she asked over her shoulder as she headed to the bathroom, returning moments later with her clothing. “Clearly Benjamin is… out of the picture… but what does that actually mean?”

He watched as she slipped on her clothes, wishing like mad he could keep her with him for the evening. “You’re not seeing the horrible images you saw before. That means we changed something.”

“But what?”

“We don’t know exactly, do we? Perhaps the future is now uncertain. But at least it’s not what it was going to be. We changed fate. Alana was right. You’re a powerful oracle. And you used your gift in a different way today than in the past. You took control and didn’t run from it. Maybe that makes all the difference when it comes to altering the future.”

He reached to rub the back of his neck, doubt at his own words seeping into his spine. “It’s true, our work isn’t done. We’ll need to be vigilant and figure out the scope of this Prometheus Group.” He stood as she finished slipping on her boots. “But for now, you need to go home and get some sleep.”

She moved to the circle of his arms, leaning into his chest with a sigh. Then her head popped up, her eyes going wide. “Wait a minute. Hold up there. I completely glossed over the part a few minutes ago where you said I could be anything I want in your world… if I stayed here.” A smile spread on her lips—lips still plumped from his recent abuse of them. “Let’s revisit that tantalizing part of the conversation.”

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