He tucked a tendril of hair behind my ear. “I have never known anyone I trust more or believe in so completely. I have nothing but respect and admiration for you, and I know your heart is pure and good. It might take me a little while to wrap my mind around something so fantastical, but I know you would not lie to me. I believe you.”
Tears threatened as I pressed my lips together. To know that he believed me and trusted me meant more than almost anything else. “I’ve kept the secret my whole life,” I said in a hushed voice. “You can’t imagine how hard it is.”
“I can imagine it would be very difficult. Does your father know?”
“Yes.” I smiled. “He guessed the truth when he and Mama were just falling in love. She saved a man’s life in 1861 with medical knowledge she had from 2001, and he became suspicious. Then he noticed other strange things about her that couldn’t be explained any other way.”
“Your mother lives in 2001?”
“Lived—she had to make her choice, too, and she chose my father.”
“She chose this life for him?”
“Yes.”
“Have you decided which one you’re going to choose?”
I wanted to tell him yes—but I couldn’t bear to say it. I had grown to love Luc, but I wasn’t sure if it was the kind of love needed to sustain a marriage—or to take me from Hope. And I didn’t know how deep his feelings ran, either.
“I’m not sure.” I looked down at the fabric of my robe and picked at a piece of lint.
Luc took my hand in his, drawing my gaze back to him. “About the other thing I heard...”
Warmth filled my cheeks, but I wouldn’t deny it. I wanted to be completely honest with him. “That I’m in love with you?” I whispered.
His eyes were full of longing as he said, “Is that true, as well?”
The morning sun was so calm, so new, that it felt warm and promising. Shadows from the nearby grandstand stretched lazily across the open field where the Vin Fiz Flyer sat, waiting. But all I could think about right now—all I wanted to think about—was telling Luc what I knew to be true.
“I am in love with you,” I told him, though I knew it would cost me. But even if I couldn’t choose him, I couldn’t live with myself if he didn’t know.
He lifted his hand to the side of my face, his fingers slipping into my hair. I leaned into it.
When he set his forehead against mine, he whispered, “Et je t’aime.”
I didn’t even need to ask what it meant, because my heart knew. A deep well of affection overflowed within me. The longing that had been building for weeks pushed against my better judgment, wanting to be released.
I went into his arms, and he embraced me.
Perhaps I was being selfish, but I didn’t care about anything else in that moment. All I wanted was Luc. His arms, his lips, his heart.
So when he lifted my chin with his fingers and questioned me with his eyes, I nodded. I loved him, and I wanted to feel his love surround me.
He lowered his lips to mine, and the longing I had felt for him flooded me with warmth. I felt like I could drown in the sensations.
It was the most spectacular kiss that had ever been.
Yet as I reveled in Luc’s embrace and marveled that he loved me, all I could think about was waking up next to Hope and trying to explain my betrayal.
25
HOPE
SEPTEMBER 11, 1692
SALEM VILLAGE
The creaking of a door brought me to awareness as I opened my eyes on a new day. Rain slashed against the small window. Our bedroom was unusually cold for September, causing me to shiver under the thin blanket.
