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Already rehearsing what he would say to his parents when he saw them, he wondered about Claire, what she was doing, what she would think of his departure. He felt so close to her, it was as if he could hear her voice.
“Philip, wait!”
He froze. That hadn’t been a waking dream or a fantasy. That had been the voice of the woman he loved.
He spun around, not sure he could believe his ears. When he saw Claire leaping out of a yellow taxi, with a smiling Shelby and Teeny right behind her, he nearly dropped to his knees in relief.
She ran to him. Philip shook off his shocked immobility and strode to meet her. Swinging her up in his arms, he pressed kiss after kiss on her face, too happy to see her to even ask how this had come to be. He held her as if he would never let her go. He never would let her go from his heart, and definitely didn’t intend to let her out of his arms or sight for a very long time.
“Claire, what are you doing here?”
“I had to wish you a Merry Christmas, didn’t I?”
“And a Merry Christmas to you, my love,” he whispered, kissing her temple, breathing her in, wanting to imprint her scent and her memory on every part of him.
“You asked me to come with you,” she said, looking up at him in reproach. “Then, you big jerk, you left without saying goodbye?”
“But...but—”
“A woman’s entitled to change her mind, isn’t she?”
“Oh, my love, of course she is.” He kissed her again, softly, gently, wondering if there would ever be a moment in his life as perfect as this one.
Yes, it was cold and they were in the middle of nowhere. Yes, he was in a strange land, far from all he knew. But it was still magical. Almost as magical as his home, which would be ever so much more so now that she would share it with him.
They stood wrapped in each other’s embrace for several long moments, their hearts pounding in unison. A soft snow began to fall. It hadn’t snowed much during his time in New York, and never when he was with Claire, and he found he liked standing in it with her. The delicate flakes kissed his cheeks and came to rest on her beautiful hair.
He owed her a better proposal. “I love you, Claire. Will you be my wife? My princess?” he murmured, his face pressed against hers.
“Oh, yes,” she replied, hugging him tighter. Then, as if she suddenly thought about what he’d said, she stiffened and looked up at him. “Princess?”
He cleared his throat, eyeing Teeny and Shelby, who strode up to them, carrying their bags and an extra one that must belong to her.
“You didn’t tell her?”
“Thought we’d leave that one to you,” said his cousin with a smirk.
“Tell me what?”
Philip thought about it, considered what to say.
Then he realized there was a much better way. They were steps away from the border, and seeing something was better than hearing about it any day.
He gazed into her eyes. “Do you trust me?”
“With my life.”
Her faith in him was humbling, though he knew that she could trust him with her life. He would never let anything or anyone hurt her, and would gladly die to keep her safe.
“And would you want to be with me no matter where we go or what we do?”
Her expression was tender, so sweet, loving and sincere. “I do, Philip. For richer or poorer, in sickness and in health...bring it on. Bring it all on.”
He loved the certainty in her voice, and the glimmer of excitement in her eyes.
“How about, uh, no electricity?”
Her mouth rounded, but he kissed away any words she might have spoken. By the time they broke apart, she was smiling broadly.
“Whatever,” she whispered. “Let’s do this.”
So, taking her arm in his, he turned to face the small stand of trees and the shimmering veil he could just make out through the drifting snow. They walked toward it, and though he wasn’t escorting her down the aisle after saying their official vows, this moment felt a little like he suspected that one would.
“What is this place?” she asked, squinting, obviously seeing something in the air, or even feeling the aura that existed in this thin veil between worlds.
“Close your eyes,” he told her, keeping her hand tightly entwined with his. “It might seem like a dream, but you’ll be safe, and I’ll explain everything momentarily.”
“Philip?” she said, a little uncertain.
“I love you, Claire. I promise you we’ll be together, and I’ll make you happy every day for as long as you live.”
She nodded up at him, any reservations gone, her decision made. And together, arm in arm, they stepped through the veil, across the border and into an entirely different world.
Epilogue
AND SO THE handsome prince returned home to his palace, bringing with him a beautiful maiden, whom he’d chosen to be his bride. There was much sadness among the ladies of the kingdoms, who had vied for his hand, but in his own palace, and among his own people and family members, happiness abounded.
The new princess was the delight of the court, the apple of her father-in-law’s eye, a close friend and confidante to the queen, and above all, a loving and adoring wife to her husband. Everyone who visited the couple, and their growing family, commented on the obvious devotion between the two, admitting that the royals were indeed wise to marry for love rather than duty.
The princess won over even her most jealous detractors with her beauty, strength and kindness...not to mention her delicious candies, which became renowned throughout the land. Every so often, she and the prince would disappear, going to visit her family back home—some said she had a handsome brother who was a prince of industry in his land. Whenever she was asked about her background and where she came from, all she would say was that she’d come from a cold place faraway, and had never truly known warmth and bliss until her beloved prince had come into her life and swept her off her feet.
And together, Claire and her prince lived happily ever after.
* * * * *
Jennifer LaBrecque
My True Love Gave to Me…
Contents
Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Prologue
GERTRUDE “Trudie” Brown’s heart felt as if it was breaking right in two. It was almost a physical pain. Her best friend Knox Whitaker was disappearing right before her eyes, becoming someone she didn’t know...and someone she wasn’t sure she particularly liked.
She brushed away the bugs that came with July in Alaska and shifted on the rock beside Knox. Jessup, Knox’s dog, half white German shepherd and half bull terrier and 100 percent sweetheart, tucked his paws more firmly beneath his chest and put his head down. He obviously sensed the strain between Trudie and Knox. She knew how the dog felt. Not even the splendor of the impending midnight sunset over Anchorage—the golden horizon rich with red-and-pink-hued clouds—soothed her spirit.
Knox ran his hands over his hair, the gesture weary. “Take whatever you want out of the house,” Knox said. “The agents are coming in and opening the place for an estate sale on Friday. The rest will be hauled to the dump.”
Trudie felt sick. “Estate sale? The dump?” No! He couldn’t mean it. “How can you even consider letting strangers traipse in and out, picking through the minutiae of Mormor’s life, the things she held dear, and then discard the rest?”
She had been seven, Knox eight, when he came to live with his grandmother next door to Trudie and her parents. Nineteen years ago Trudie’s heart had wept for the orphaned boy, his blue eyes somber with grief and wariness from his parents’ deaths in a car crash. It was as if her heart had linked with his to help him heal. They’d grown up together. They’d grown together.
She’d had girlfriends and dated an array of guys, but she couldn’t recall a time since that fateful day he’d arrived here that they hadn’t been best friends. Even when he’d left to do his undergrad work at University of Alaska in Fairbanks and then gone on to vet school at Washington State University while Trudie had remained in Anchorage, they’d stayed close. When he returned home and joined a small practice, he and Trudie had met once a week for dinner to catch up.
And then Mormor had died.
The last three months had been terrible. Mormor had gone quickly, which was exactly how she would’ve wanted it.
Even after he’d left for college, Knox had called his grandmother every week to check on her and when he’d returned to Anchorage, he’d been diligent in keeping tabs on her. In the last year, as her mobility decreased, the weekly calls had become daily ones. So, when Mormor hadn’t answered one morning, Knox had left his practice and gone to her house to check on her. He’d called Trudie on his way. It would turn out to be the last “real” conversation he and Trudie had.
