AN ETERNAL LOVE

Damien was not going to Adira so he could spy on her, as Alex Davies wanted him to do. He was going to warn her. Damien was certain she could have no clue what Alex suspected of her, or she would have fled this place by now.

For just a moment, as he followed the coastal road that led along the edge of the peninsula, overlooking the sea, he paused to wonder at the irony of what he was doing. Adira Thompson was convicted of witchery and sentenced to death. He had seen her die with his own eyes, only to find her alive and well, and again suspected of witchcraft. And yet, he, a man of God was about to warn her.

The worst part was that it wasn't that he disbelieved the accusations against her. Not that at all. It was that he simply did not care. He did not care. He remembered all too well the way he had seen her standing in the moonlight, and had felt the power surging from her hands into his body that night aboard the ship. It could have been a dream, but he did not think so. And still, he did not care.

He wanted to see her again. To get to know everything about her. To understand her mind and the mysteries of her soul. To know what she was thinking. And to see to it she remained safe from harm.

Nothing else mattered. And as little sense, as it made, he did not question it. It simply was.

matter what he found at Adira's cabin tonight. In the morning he intended to assure Alex all was as it should be, thus ending the village

a white shirt, then. For some reason, he disliked the

the same way as him. And he did not like that he also was just as

cabin came into view, and he saw the soft glow of candles in one of the windows. It was a simple home, grey log cabin, set high on the cliffs and overlooking the Thunder Bay. Pretty white curtains, perhaps made by Adira's own hands, hung in the few windows of imported glass. And the door was made of a single thick board sawed from what must have been a mighty oak tree once. The area around the house was lush with gardens. Herbs

honey. He had heard that voice in his dreams often the last three years. Heard it denouncing the crowd of bloodthirsty fanatics. But

utter bliss, my love. Come to me my love, for I have been waiting so long. Come to me my love, let us embark on

clenched as if in response to her words. He tried to steady himself, but he was shaken to the core. And even as he tried controlling himself not to, he leaned closer to

long and graceful. Water trickled over her neck and shoulders. Bare skin glistened in the candlelight as she tipped her head back, eyes closed as