wcEND.rtf (46 page)

He brought his hands forward from behind his back and presented her with the chalice.

There was surprise and shock on her face, as if she didn't believe her eyes. And then, she sat up transfixed, looking into it.

What was she seeing?

At that moment the image wavered as the mist swirled around Isabel and Hunter in a crescendo of speed. The blue light of the stones brightened unbearably, then the room fell into total darkness, and Isabel and Hunter fell unconscious to the floor.

* * *

HUNTER REGAINED CONSCIOUSNESS FIRST. HEART stammering in his chest, he gathered his wife in his arms. He tried to make sense of the vision he had seen, but a
l
l it had revealed to him was the image of the unknown woma
n
—
I
sabel he assume
d
—
i
n the future. Who was that woman kissing another man? Détra or Isabel?

Hunter stared at his wife, praying for her to be Isabel. And the moment she opened her eyes, and her gaze settled on him, Hunter knew without a shadow of a doubt.

"Isabel," he cried.

Smiling, she nodded.

Choking back tears, Hunter kissed Isabel, his
l
ady wife.

UNDER the gray light of a winter afternoon, Isabel put the last finishing touches to the portrait of Hunter she had been working on for days now. She had chosen to depict him in a full-body portrait.

She stepped back to admire her handiwork and her heart filled anew with her love for Hunter. When she had awakened in his arms, those many months ago, and he had known before she even spoke that it was she and not Détra with him, Isabel had known that there would never be anything that could tear them apart.

That day they had talked about the significance of the new vision the chalice had revealed to them, and had come to the conclusion that Détra was indeed happy where she was. That she had found her place, seemed adjusted and obviously in love.

And the fact that Isabel had remained in the past cemented their belief all was as it was supposed to be.

Hunter and Isabel had also discussed what to do with the chalice. Hunter had wanted to keep it, but Isabel tried to explain to him that if they didn't throw the chalice in the lake, she might never find it in the future and never come to be with him. That was a difficult concept to understand. She wasn't even sure she was right, but they both agreed they couldn't take the chance.

And so the chalice rested safely in the depths of Lake Windermere.

Hunter popped his head in the door, distracting her from her thoughts. "Is it finished yet?" he asked.

She nodded.

"May I see it now?
"
he asked, not moving from the door.

Despite his previous insistence Isabel hadn't let him peek at her work in progress, but now that it was finished she waved him in.

He approached her, kissed her first, and then looked at the painting. He stared at his image, obviously taken by surprise. "Do I really look like this?" he asked.

Isabel inspected her work critically. Surely there couldn't be anything wrong with the way she'd chosen to portray him. Hunter's dark hair was a little tousled,
l
ike when they just finished making love, his dark eyes i
m
penetrable but glowing, a shadow of a beard giving him that ferocious look his gentle soul hid behind, and a half smile giving a glimpse of that soul.

She had dressed him in his hauberk and a royal-blue vest covered his chest, giving a touch of color to Hunter's darkness. His hands gripped the hilt of his sword pointed to the floor in front of him.

If tha
t
image didn't represent Hunter, she didn't know what would. Maybe a nude portrait of him would have been a better choice, but that would be the subject of another painting.

"Did you not like it?" she asked.

"I am just a simple knight, my lady wife. That you see me as such is more than pleasing."

She smiled, relieved. "And how else, but in all his handsome glory, would I see my lord and husband and the father of my child?"

He kissed her, obviously pleased with her words, then lifted her oversized body in his arms.

"You stay on your feet for too long, my
l
ady wife. You must rest." He took her to her chair by the fireplace and lowered her on it, then added logs to the fire.

While caressing her swollen stomach, Isabel enjoyed the warmth, the smell, and sounds of burning wood. Hunter stepped away and she followed him with her gaze.

He looked at her with such love, such devotion, Isabel trembled under his stare. She returned his gaze fu
l
l of the same love and devotion, and suddenly she realized that was the exact image the chalice had revealed to them.

Hunter must have come to the same conclusion, for he walked to her and knelt before her.

"My dearest Isabel, you are my heart wish come true."

She smiled. "And you are mine."