The Symbolon Read Online Free PDF Page B

best man!”
    The ever twelve-year-old Caleb, who was concentrating on his computer game, looked up and lifted his hand in a victory fist. “Yes! Best man!” He was such a sweet boy, and he meant even more to her since he saved their lives.
    “I think Caleb is a wonderful choice.” She winked at Caleb, who still had a major crush on her.
    “All right, well, we’re heading out. We’ll see you there!” Camille said as the car began to roll down the drive. Wherever “there” was, Valeria thought. As the Mercedes disappeared from view, Alex tossed the suitcases into the trunk of his car.
    “Why isn’t Mani coming to our wedding?”
    “He’s…” Alex carefully positioned the garment bag in the trunk, but she suspected that he was stalling. “Don’t worry—we’ll celebrate with him later.” With that, he closed the trunk, tossed the camera bag in the backseat through the open door, and said, “Got your passport?”
    She nodded, looking at her “real” Louis Vuitton bag that had been a Christmas gift from Camille—the only stipulation was that Valeria had to get rid of the “knock-off .” She gave the bag to Ava, much to Camille’s chagrin and Ava’s delight! Not that Ava cared about style whatsoever. Still, she liked a sturdy leather bag that wasn’t “frilly and feminine.”
    “So , are you going to tell me now? Alex, where are we going?” she asked for the hundredth time.
    Giddy with excitement, he said, “Let me have my surprises!” He closed his arms around her waist and kissed her sweetly, and then suddenly overwhelmed with joy, he swung her around.
     
    ∞
     
    The Porsche easily plowed through the snow as they wound along the drive leading to the highway and away from Morgana. Valeria glanced through the forest and appreciated the way that everything seemed to be aglow with hues of pale pink and blue. After they entered the highway, the snow quickly became a wet mess; but as they continued out of the mountains and into the valley toward Venice, the roads dried. All the while, Alex’s smile continued to broaden.
    “I hope you don’t mind that we didn’t go with the rest of them, but I wanted to have the day alone with you. I know we’ll have the honeymoon, but I really haven’t had an opportunity to court you.”
    The honeymoon! Her face flushed just thinking about it, as that marvelous warmth shot through her body. He noticed her reaction and his mouth turned up in the delightful smile that she loved. He hadn’t told her where they were going. But frankly, she would have been absolutely content to spend their honeymoon at the cottage or in her Manhattan brownstone which she had decided to keep.
    In fact, h er only requirement for a honeymoon was that the two of them were there alone for as much time as possible. And Valeria was quite certain that there was not enough time in a mortal life for her to express what she felt for him!
    She turned away, regaining her composure . “I never mind being alone with you. It’s being without you that I can’t take!” With that, she was surprised to find a tear come to her eye. He gave her an inquisitive look.
    “Well , fortunately, you won’t have to worry about that! Beautiful, I am yours forever!” He took her hand and pulled it to his mouth. While they were still miles from Venice, he pulled off the road and into a field. Now it was Valeria’s turn to give him an inquisitive look.
    “I always wanted to show you Venice. So I thought we would take the morning—unless you’re anxious to get ‘there,’” he teased.
    “Isn’t Venice still several miles away?” She pointed to the southern horizon. Alex’s eyes sparkled.
    “You know, after the accident, you’ve been so weak that I wanted to wait until it warmed up a bit to do this.” He drove around a hill and there was a feast set out in the middle of the field, along with a hot air balloon that was still laying flat on the ground.
    Valeria’s jaw dropped . She tried to find