Remembrance

“I…Well, no, I don’t think I will. But…married?” For the life of me I couldn’t think of anything to say. “Couldn’t you delay your meeting for a while?”

At that he stood, and there was a twinkle in his eyes that I had seen many times on Talis. He knew very well what was in my mind and he was enjoying my exasperation. He put the tips of his strong fingers under my chin. “I will not touch you until you are legally mine. And then I will not allow you out of bed for the first six months.” He kissed my forehead. “And by then you will be too heavy with my child to go far.”

I could feel my knees buckling. There was only one thing I wanted as much as I wanted this man and that was to have our baby.

“Now go and dress and I will come for you in two hours.”

I couldn’t bear the thought of his leaving. What if he didn’t return? What if I’d just made him up? What if—“It takes three days to get married in America. We’ll have to wait. We can’t—”

He kissed both my cheeks in the way of Europe or the East. “I will make a few calls. There will be no waiting.” He kissed my neck but did not pull me close to him. I knew that he felt as I did and that if we got too close we would not be able to pull apart.

“Do you have any more questions?” he asked, his lips by my ear.

When I didn’t answer, he held me at arm’s length, but all I could do was shake my head no. No questions. None at all. He was mine and I was willing to follow him to the ends of the earth.

“Then give me your passport. There will be arrangements to be made.”

With shaking hands, I pulled the blue book from my desk drawer and handed it to him, then watched as he opened it. “We were born in the same year,” he said, “the same day.”

I just nodded as I followed him to the door, then stood there in silence as the elevator arrived.

“Do you doubt me?” he asked, his hand on the door.

“Never. I trust you. I believe in you.”

“And do you love me?” he whispered.

“With all my heart. With all my soul. From the beginning to the end of time.”

“Yes,” he said as the elevator door shut softly. “Yes. It is the same with me. I have loved you always.”

“Yes,” I whispered. “Yes.”