Gabriel's Promise (Gabriel's Inferno #4)(83)

He kissed the top of her head and caressed her hair. Then he crossed to his own side of the bed and turned, admiring the repaired painting by Henry Holiday as it hung proudly on the wall opposite the bed.

He placed his glasses and his phone on his nightstand. He opened the drawer, simply to check that the memento mori was still there, after he’d unpacked it that afternoon. He closed the drawer, slipped into bed next to his wife, and succumbed to sleep.





Chapter Sixty-One


April 8, 2013

Magdalen College, Oxford

The wintry days of February and March soon gave way to spring.

Graham Todd emailed the fall schedule of graduate courses being offered at Edinburgh and volunteered once again to speak to Cecilia and the chair at Harvard. Julia assured him she would handle it.

On April 6, the Emersons and Rebecca arrived in London and traveled to Oxford so that Julia could attend the Dante workshop organized by Professor Wodehouse.

Gabriel had to return to London the day Julia was to deliver her paper, on the first day of the workshop. He was to record a series of interviews and commentaries on Dante for the BBC. The producer had indicated he only need be in London for three days, which meant he would return before the end of the workshop.

Even so, Julia missed him and the support his physical presence gave.

As she entered the conference room at Magdalen College, she saw it was empty, save for one person. The man in question was six foot three and had dark eyes and dark hair. He was casually dressed in a button-down shirt and jeans and carrying a jacket that had Saint Michael’s College emblazoned on the back.

“Paul.” Julia greeted him shyly. Although he’d sent a card and a gift when Clare was born, this was the first time they’d seen one another since the last time they’d both been in Oxford.

After that, Paul had written to her saying he didn’t want contact. Julia could still feel the sting of her friend’s rejection, almost two years later.

“Jules!” Paul raced toward her and picked her up in a bear hug. “How are you? It’s good to see you.”

“It’s good to see you, too.” She laughed and begged him to put her down.

“Uh-oh. Is the Professor around?” He looked over her shoulder.

“No, he’s in London until Thursday.”

“Good. He won’t punch me for hugging you.” Paul embraced her once again before taking a large step back. “How was your trip?”

“It was good. Clare stayed awake almost the entire flight, but we kept her entertained. I’m still jet-lagged.” Julia smoothed her hair behind her ears. “How about you?”

“Oh, fine. I arrived yesterday. Professor Picton met me at the train station. We had dinner last night.”

“That’s great. How are your parents?”

Paul jammed his hands into the pockets of his jeans. “They’re fine. Dad is doing less and less on the farm, because of his heart. I help out when I can. You look good. How’s the baby?”

Julia retrieved her cell phone from her messenger bag. “Can I bore you with a picture?”

“It won’t bore me. I’d like to see her.” Paul peered down at the screen. “She’s getting so big. And look at all the hair.”

“She was born with hair. I’ve been styling it.” Julia showed him a few more pictures, including a photo of Gabriel holding Clare and smiling.

“That’s the happiest I’ve ever seen the Professor.” Paul marveled at the sight. “Clare has her father’s eyes.”

“She does. I thought they would change color and match mine, but they’re as blue as his.” Julia touched the screen absently and put the phone away.

“Listen, before everyone else gets here, I’m sorry about that email I sent. I was a jerk.”

Julia lifted her head. “I’m sorry things were so weird.”

Paul flexed his arms self-consciously. “I take it back, okay? I want us to be friends, if we can.”

“Of course we can.” A feeling of lightness settled over Julia’s body. “I’ve missed you, Paul. I don’t have many friends.”

“I’m sure that isn’t true.” Paul changed the subject. “Gabriel must be pretty excited about the Sage Lectures, huh? Are you going with him?”

Now Julia looked over her shoulder. “I want to, but Professor Marinelli hasn’t signed off on it. I’m going to ask her again sometime this week.”

“What’s her beef?”

Julia slung her messenger bag to the floor. “I’m still in coursework at Harvard and she doesn’t want to accept transfer credits from Edinburgh.”

“That’s stupid.”

“Tell me about it.”

“Why are grad students always at the mercy of their professors?”

“Because we like pain.” Julia sighed the sigh of the underdog.

“Do you remember her? Professor Pain?”

“Yes. I’d like to forget her.” Julia looked around the seminar room. “Can you believe it was almost four years ago that we were in Gabriel’s seminar in Toronto?”

“No, I can’t.” Paul appeared as if he were going to say more but lifted his chin toward the entrance. “Here come the others. Do you have plans for lunch?”