N. Walters - Strands of Love

He stepped away from her and held out her hand. Feeling as though her entire world had been knocked off-kilter, she reached for it to anchor herself. Not once had she truly considered the possibility that Darian or Jace would stay with her.

“Jace cannot stay,” Darian continued. “No matter how much he might wish to. He is responsible for all those who live in Hunter Keep. And,” he added, “it would break our mother’s heart to lose both sons.”

Sam opened her mouth but closed it again. What could she say? She loved the thought of having Darian stay with her. But she would miss Jace terribly. And what about his mother and friends? What would they do without Darian if he stayed with her? She knew how much the loss of her brother had affected her parents. It wasn’t right to put someone else through such pain.

Her temples throbbed and she absently rubbed one of them. What were they going to do?

“Don’t think about it now, Sam.”

She snorted in disbelief as they walked toward the barn. Jace was in there by himself and that just felt wrong. He belonged with them.

Sam stumbled over her feet before she regained her balance. Not that she would have fallen, not with Darian holding on to her. It felt right when the three of them were together. There was no denying it.

How had that happened so quickly?

Only a couple days ago she hadn’t even known who they were. Now they were a part of her, like the air she breathed and the land she walked.

Jace stepped out of the barn as they neared. He looked totally unapproachable, but after talking with Darian she knew better. She’d known better before that, she reminded herself. Jace was a lot like she was. Both doing what needed to be done, shouldering the bulk of the responsibilities because someone had to.

Sam held out her free hand to Jace, not wanting him to be alone anymore. “Come with us. I want to show you my home.”

Hours later, Jace sat on a deeply padded seat in what Sam referred to as the living room. The three of them had walked the land for hours today as Sam showed them the various crops she had planted. They were stunted and desperate for water and he knew if rain didn’t show up soon all would be lost. This was indeed a harsh land and took a courageous, strong woman to work it.

She knew her land as well as he knew his—every field, every slope, the weaknesses and strengths. She loved it too.

He glanced over at his brother, but Darian was watching Sam remove something from a shelf. Jace swallowed hard, still tasting the dust on his tongue even though he’d had many glasses of water since they returned from their tour of the farm. He was losing his brother.

Darian was going to stay with Sam. Jace didn’t blame him. If not for his mother and responsibilities he might stay too. This land was strange to him with its dry heat and unforgiving soil, very unlike the lush hills beneath the protective embrace of the mountains at Hunter Keep. The weapons, the machinery, the customs were all strange too.

The tapestry and the people of Javara asked a lot of the women who were brought to their world. How strange it must all seem. And how much must they miss their homes? Such bravery was to be respected and commended.

And what did the women get in return? Love, undying and complete. Respect. A new home that was strange. Was it easy for them to find a place in their new home? Jace could easily picture Sam on the back of a horse riding through the fields. He could just as easily see her working those fields side-by-side with his people. They would adore Sam as much as he and Darian did.

Sam returned and sat between them on the padded bench. No, sofa. She’d called it a sofa. She opened a large bound book to reveal lifelike images. “This is my father and mother when they were young.”

Jace touched the page. “What magic is this?” There was powerful magic in the world Sam lived in. The ability to speak to people over long distances, artificial fire and light, machines that moved without the power of horses and now this. It was a strange and fascinating world.

“Not magic, photography. Although, I suppose it is a form of magic.” She turned a page. “This is me when I was a kid.”

Jace studied the image of a younger Sam. He could recognize her features, see the woman she would become in the child she’d been. He wanted a child like this, a dark-haired little girl who would fill his arms with love and his home with laughter. She’d have brothers who would look out for her and protect her. But her mother would make sure she could take care of herself.

His blood ran cold as the image faded. Neither the child nor the woman would ever belong to him. But his brother had a chance. Agony ate at his soul at the thought of never seeing either Darian or Sam again. But he could survive if he knew they were here in her world, happy and healthy. Darian had a chance at a family of his own and should take it.

He would talk to his brother tomorrow morning, but it would have to be early. No telling exactly what time the tapestry would arrive to whisk them home. Jace wondered how his mother was. Was she grieving? Did she hold out hope that the tapestry would return them?

Sam turned another page and pointed. “This is John in his military uniform.”

Jace could hear the love and sorrow in her voice. He understood what it was to care deeply for a brother. She understood what it meant to lose one and he was sorely afraid he was about to learn the same thing. Difference was, his brother would still be alive and happy. Hers would never have that chance.

For the first time in his entire life, Jace resented Hunter Keep and everyone who lived there. Almost as soon as he had the negative feeling, it disappeared. He wouldn’t change his life for anything. He loved the land, his family and people. He only wished Sam could share it with him, with all of them.

Jace sat back against the cushions and listened to Sam’s voice, soaking in the excitement, the emotion as she shared her world, her family with them. Darian was leaning against her, asking questions and pointing at things in the book. A lock of his brother’s hair draped over Sam’s darker tresses. She turned to his brother and smiled and Jace wanted to roar as pain sliced through him.

Even though he was still with them, Jace felt alone. He hardened his heart even as it threatened to shatter under the pressure. Morning would come soon enough. By this time tomorrow evening, he would be back at Hunter Keep and he was very afraid he would be alone.

Conversation had flowed easily today but now they were all silent. It was as though they were all afraid to speak, afraid to destroy the tentative peace that surrounded them. What went unspoken was the fact the tapestry would appear tomorrow.

At least she hoped it would. That was another worry. What if it didn’t come? What if Jace and Darian were stuck here?

Sam studied Jace’s face, but his emotions were blocked off, closed to her. He’d grown quieter as the night had progressed, but he’d grown stone-cold silent when she’d shared her family photos and memories.

Was he thinking about his world? His mother? Was he missing them? Wishing he could stay? Wishing she would go back with them?

Resentment flashed through her and for a brief moment she wished she’d never met either of them, that the tapestry had never appeared to them or to her. Almost immediately she regretted her thought and nervously glanced around, half expecting the tapestry to magically show itself. She had to be careful of her thoughts or she might accidentally summon the tapestry as Jace had.

She couldn’t regret meeting them or seeing their world. It had given her a new perspective on her life, made her appreciate all she had. It had shown her that loyal, honorable men did exist. And it had certainly spiced up her sex life.