He grinned. “They are fully aware of why we tarry. Can’t you hear their singing? And besides, a bride cannot retie a knot of Heracles once it has been undone.”
“And I was definitely undone!”
He laughed, feeling the effects of the beer, glad she was his wife. He put on his tunic, then motioned toward her hair. “We have to go out and face them, but first I suggest you fix those knots, if you can. They’re a mess. Forgive me.”
Gigi felt around on her head, finding the greasy, twisted tresses sticking out at every angle, with bits of ribbon hung up in the wreckage. “Oh, no!”
“Actually, you look beautiful, like a woman recently sated yet still lustful, still very, very lustful! We have a lot of work yet to do tonight.”
Gigi laughed, and Magnus grabbed her hand, then threw open the tent flap to a roar of laughter and acclaim.
“Come, my sweet,” he said. “I would like to present my wife to the world.”
• • •
Deep in the night, Gigi lay in Magnus’s sheltering arms, wishing she could capture this moment and hold it fast, knowing she could not. The path they would follow was set, indisputable, and she was well aware of the dangers looming before them.
Rome. They would stay with the Visigoths and march on Rome. She listened to Magnus breathe softly, felt the slow beat of his heart. She loved him. She was bound to him now, whatever the future, their fates forever entwined.
Magnus shifted, then woke. Smiling, he kissed her thoroughly, and the heat that rose between them burned hot, but seemed different, fiercer, more real this time, more … eternal.
Rome. As eternal as Rome.
Authors’ Note
Galla Placidia’s early life might very well have happened as described in this novel: her relationship with her brother, Emperor Honorius, ever challenging; her flight from Ravenna wholly understandable, given her looming future as the intended bride of the much older Constantius. Some sources state Placidia was engaged to be married to Stilicho and Serena’s son, Eucherius, and we have deliberately ignored this for the sake of clarity in our work.
Additionally, the Visigoth names of Verica and Randegund were selected by us out of necessity, because the real names of Alaric’s queen and his foster mother are lost to history. As to the actual number of Athaulf’s children by his first wife, accounts vary from four to six, and we’ve chosen the larger number, to give him a real brood of youngsters in need of a mother.
The reason for Stilicho’s sudden murderous hatred of Honorius has long been the subject of debate by historians. We hope our fictional solution involving Stilicho’s daughter Thermantia will give the reader a sense of what might have been.
Although we strive to maintain historical accuracy in our work, Love, Eternally is, of course, a work of fiction. For the purposes of our novel, we ask the reader to forgive our literary license and to enjoy our historical time travel fantasy — and those sequels yet to come.
About the Authors
Two authors writing as one, Cary Morgan Frates and Deborah O’Neill Cordes specialize in recreating pivotal moments in history, epic adventure and romance — with a time travel twist. This is the first novel in their Roman time travel series. They live with their families in the Pacific Northwest.
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