Rendezvous With Yesterday (The Gifted Ones #2)(126)

“Thank you,” she said wryly, then frowned. “Wait. So you knew—when you told me to bring the backpack—what was going to happen that day?”

“Yes. But Seth would not let me warn you.”

Trippy. “Well, if you had warned me, things would’ve turned out differently and I never would’ve met Robert. So I’m glad you didn’t.”

Robert returned, carrying a glass full of ice and bubbling Perrier.

“Thank you.” Beth took a sip. “How much ice did you spill on the floor?”

Robert gave her a sheepish grin. “A lot. But I picked it up and put it in the sink.”

All laughed.





The evening before they were to return to the past, Robert went to bed early, leaving brother and sister alone. The two siblings stayed awake all night, talking, reminiscing, and trying to cram decades of teasing into the few hours they had left together.

When the sun painted the sky with the first flush of dawn, they rose without speaking, donned their jogging shoes and went for their final run together.

It was hard. Harder even than the Houston Marathon. Her throat kept tightening up. Her breathing was choppier than usual. Tears posed a constant threat.

The impending departure weighed heavily upon them both. Their spirits lifted only slightly upon returning home when they found Robert, decked out in his medieval garb, baking yet another pizza.

Then it was time to leave.

Somber silence accompanied the drive. Beth and Robert, clad once more in his chain mail, rode with Josh in his SUV. Marc and Grant followed in Marc’s Prius, which had windows tinted as dark as those on Seth’s van.

Seth awaited them in the clearing, clad in jeans and a black T-shirt, eyes hidden behind dark glasses, leaning casually against a tree. He raised one eyebrow at the backpack Robert carried—a backpack full of secrets Robert wouldn’t disclose—but offered no protest. Nor did he examine the contents, so he must approve of whatever was in there.

A sense of unreality invaded Beth, accompanied by near panic.

This couldn’t be it. It couldn’t be time for them to say good-bye. She wasn’t ready.

Then Grant wrapped his strong arms around her in a hug. “Be happy,” he whispered hoarsely.

She clutched him tightly. “You, too,” she forced past the lump in her throat.

He nodded, eyes glimmering.



Marc approached her next, hugging her so hard she could barely breathe. “I’ll miss you.”

Tears spilled over her lashes. For a moment, she couldn’t speak. “I’ll miss you, too. I’ll have to tease you mercilessly in Robert’s time to make up for it.”

He loosed a hoarse chuckle before he drew back, eyes damp.

Grant shook Robert’s hand. “Take care of her.”

Robert smiled. “I will.”

Marc took Robert’s hand, then surprised Beth by pulling him into a rough hug. “It has been an honor, my lord.”

“Robert,” her husband corrected with a smile.

Marc nodded. “It has been an honor, Robert.”

“For me as well.”

Beth embraced both friends again and told them she loved them. “Watch over Josh for me.”

“We will,” they promised.

She turned to her brother. Rising onto her toes, she wrapped her arms around his neck and held on tight.

Josh buried his face in her hair and clung just as desperately.

“I love you,” she murmured brokenly.

“I love you, too.”

Many long moments passed before he reluctantly pulled away. “Cause lots of chaos when you get back to the Middle Ages,” he ordered, tucking a few curls behind her ear.

She forced a wobbly smile. “You can bet on it. Maybe I’ll do like they did in the Back to the Future trilogy and arrange for Western Union to deliver a bunch of letters right after we leave.”

He returned her smile with a sad one of his own. “Western Union didn’t exist then.”

“I know. But I’ll think of something,” she vowed with false confidence.

Josh gave Robert a big hug. “I couldn’t have chosen a better husband for her.”

“Nor I a better brother-in-law,” Robert replied. “I want you to know that I have never loved anyone more than I do Bethany. And I shall strive every day of my life to make her happy.”

“I don’t doubt that you’ll succeed.” Josh started to back away from them, then stopped and pulled Beth into another fierce hug.

Tears flowed freely down Beth’s cheeks.

Not yet. Please, not yet.

She bit back a sob as he loosened his hold. She could barely see him through the moisture filling her eyes as he dipped his head and kissed her forehead.

“Tell my nieces and nephews about me,” he said, his voice thick. “Tell them I love them even though I’m not there to give them piggyback rides.”

She nodded helplessly. “Tell mine about me.”

Nodding, he backed away to the outer fringes of the clearing.

Robert wrapped an arm around Beth’s shoulders.

Marc and Grant moved to stand behind Josh in the shade.

Dimly, Beth was aware of Seth’s approach. But her eyes clung to her brother’s.

Then Josh’s face and the clearing blurred. That peculiar feeling of weightlessness swept over her, lingering several seconds.