Timeless Vision Read Online Free PDF Page A

squinting up at the overhead fixture. “He’s never needed a name.”
    “How is he so well behaved if you never taught him his name?”
    “My hound is best described as a familiar. Through magic we share a bond that serves us both.”
    There was that word again. Magic . She gave him points for staying in character. She was Irish, genetically wired to believe in the unexplainable, the unseen. Unfortunately for her, this man and his familiar face were perfectly visible. Whoever Wayne really was, she couldn’t let her misplaced infatuation become a distraction. “Okay. That works for the two of you.” She tugged off her coat and hung it on the hall tree. “What should I call him?”
    “You should have no need to call him anything.” Wayne’s eyebrows furrowed into a quizzical frown. “He is mine.”
    “It’s tradition to name a pet.”
    “He is not a pet,” Wayne said, exchanging a long look with the dog.
    Tara nipped at her budding impatience. She should let it go. Maybe the dog was more partner than pet, but that only made a missing name more troublesome. Where was Nick anyway? The dagger had been stolen on her watch and she intended to be included in its safe recovery. “People will see him as such. How about we call him Blue?”
    Wayne shook his head. “It is bad enough that my name must be different in this era. The dog does not need a name.”
    “Hmm. Sterling, maybe.” Tara crouched down, showing the dog the back of her fingers. “Would you like to be a Sterling? Fluffy sure doesn’t suit you.” Time to call Nick’s bluff and poke a few holes in Wayne’s medieval knight routine. “How are you feeling after sleeping so long, sweetie? I bet you’re hungry.”
    Wayne’s stomach growled as if she’d been speaking to it rather than the dog. “We both are,” he stated.
    “Well, if Nick hired you and rented a house for this charade, I’m sure it’s stocked too.” She looked from the dog to Wayne. “Can I pet him?”
    Whatever answer he’d been ready to give, his mouth snapped closed as the dog pushed his head under her palm. “So it would seem.”
    “Aw, thanks, Blue. It’s nice to meet you too.”
    Wayne cleared his throat. “Sterling is better description for a creature of his import.”
    She counted that as a small, important victory. “Then Sterling it is.” She stood, stroking the soft ears the greyhound kept pushing under her hand for more affection. “Let’s see what we have for both of you.”
    She took note of the clean, basic furnishings of couch, chairs, and television in bland, neutral colors as she moved through the front room to the kitchen. It was a functional space although it lacked any real style. How had Nick pulled this off?
    “Are we alone?” Wayne asked, trailing her through the kitchen door.
    “Looks that way.”
    “Good.”
    At his relieved sigh, she turned from her inspection of the pantry. The bag of dog food fell from her hand and words failed her. A moment ago he’d been in dark jeans and a sweatshirt. Now he wore a loose tunic and breeches with soft boots that laced to his knee. He shrugged out of the scabbard and set a massive broadsword on the countertop. Impossibly, he appeared taller and broader than he’d been in the modern clothes. His hair, pushed back from his face, fell loose to his shoulders and his beard had grown longer.
    With an effort, she closed her gaping mouth and swallowed. He looked like a portrait come to life. More than that, he bore an uncanny resemblance to the golden knight she’d dreamed of as a child after hearing the stories of Peter O’Malley and the dagger entrusted to him by Gawain the Gallant.
    “You... you are Gawain.” Words failed her as she recalled the entirety of the family history her father had revealed when handing her full responsibility for the pub and the dagger.
    “Yes, Tara.”
    When he said her name a shiver danced up her spine, setting her scalp tingling. “Wh- what did you do?” She stubbornly