Her heart brimmed, overflowed. “That is wonderful. We have been praying.”
Andrew nodded, sobering. He held her gaze firmly. “Much has changed, has it not? We have been living different lives these months. I must confess I was worried when I heard you were coming here with Titus, and I disapproved of Drusus asking you to remain in his house until we arrived. But the man who greeted me moments ago was not the man I remembered. How did this happen, Abigail?”
She smiled. “We were both at the crucifixion of our Lord, Andrew. The mob pulled me along with it, and he was in charge. We were both so moved by what we saw, by the sheer righteousness the Christ portrayed–and then, as the earthquake began, so did my labor. Titus took me home, stayed with me after getting a midwife. She taught us the words of Jesus, and we believed together. When Benjamin was born, I went to stay with Tabitha, the midwife. When Titus received the word from Arminius, he volunteered to bring me here.” She shrugged. “We have grown together, learned together. We received the Holy Spirit together.”
“Then he has truly changed,” Andrew said with relief.
“He is even quoting Hebrew scripture.”
He arched a brow. “A quicker study than I at Latin, then. What has he been reciting?”
She held his gaze steadily, somberly, and spoke the same passage Titus had spoken to her only minutes before. Seeing the question that grew in Andrew’s eyes, she sighed at her halt. “Andrew, I am going to marry him.”
He regarded her a moment without any reaction. He searched her eyes. “You love him?”
She nodded, the emotion filling her heart at the thought of him. Andrew smiled. “Then I wish you my congratulations, my friend. You deserve that.”
Her relief coupled with disbelief. “You are not upset?”
He laughed softly. “If I had learned of this a couple months ago, I would have been fit to kill him. But as I cleansed my heart before Jehovah, I saw what I had been denying for too long. I have always and will always love you, Abigail, but I am not the husband the Lord intended for you. I chose servitude, but you have the heart of a queen.”
“You are my friend.”
He smiled into her assurance. “Yes. And I will always be your friend. I will also always be your servant. Speaking of which,” he said, nodding toward Phillip, who was standing unobtrusively inside the door, “are you not going to introduce me, Abigail?”
Abigail smiled and turned to beckon Phillip forward. “Of course. Phillip, this is Andrew, about whom I have told you. Andrew, this is Phillip. I was forced to buy someone to protect me when I thought I would be returning to Israel on my own, and Phillip has been beside me ever since. He is a true friend.”
Andrew and Phillip both smiled and clasped wrists, assessing one another and nodding.
“And it sounds as though the others are coming, too.” She heard Samuel’s buoyant voice, followed a moment later by Titus in the doorway, boy perched on his shoulders. Miriam, holding Benjamin, followed, Panther bringing up the rear.
“You remember Titus and Samuel, of course,” Abigail said as Titus put down the boy so he could run to go give the man a proper greeting. With his usual energy, Samuel threw himself into Andrew’s waiting arms. “And this,” Abigail continued, drawing Andrew’s gaze back up, “is Miriam, my handmaiden. She is from Hebron. And the angel in her arms is Benjamin.”
Andrew nodded and smiled, but his gaze had not yet made it to the baby. It was lingering with appreciation over Miriam, who was blushing, smiling, and turning her attention deliberately on the babe. Abigail almost started laughing. Restraining herself, she settled for sharing a knowing glance with Titus instead, who grinned and draped his arm over her shoulder.
“Let us hope Ester agrees to staying with us,” he whispered into her ear, “so that a suitable arrangement can be made for those two.”
Abigail bit back her grin and spoke loudly enough to draw Andrew’s attention. “And the giant behind her is Panther, another dear friend. He is Titus’s mother’s bodyguard, but she has been so kind as to lend me his services frequently.”
Panther nodded, as did Andrew, but his eyes wandered away again rather quickly. This time, he looked at Abigail and Titus. “Mistress will be eager to see you. Our inn is on the outskirts of the city, though, and the hour grows late. What do you wish to do?”
Abigail looked to Titus for advice, and he was quick to provide it. “I suggest you plan on going tomorrow. As a matter of fact, I would recommend you take tonight and however long necessary in the morning to get everything here together, and make this your last night in this house. If time permits, you could all simply move to the villa tomorrow, or stay one night in the inn and go the next morn.”