For a man who thought he had lived through enough twists and turns to fill a lifetime, Jovan had to admit that hearing his former best-friend's name roll out of Jagoda's lips surprised him more than realizing he had been thrust back to the 21st century.
Goran Dimitris...
Goran Dimitris was someone who used to be like a brother to him. Jovan would have risked his life for the man if the battlefield or mission demanded it. Jovan would have even trusted his own life to that man without so much as an ounce of hesitation. And that man... had played him as if Jovan never mattered to him at all.
It took Jovan a considerable amount of thinking, and a trip down the history lane, to get Goran out of his system. So, for Jovan to hear that name at this very moment, and coming out from his beloved's mouth not only troubled him, but confused him all the more. And for a man who preferred to know all the facts, confusion was not something he took lightly.
"Would You mind repeating what You just said? Just so I can be sure?" Jovan asked Jagoda in the Old Albanian dialect as he sat up on the bed and turned toward her, disregarding any and all signs of ache rippling through his body.
"Goran Dimitris, Your has-been best friend. He's here," Jagoda whispered back, this time in English. This in turn resulted in Jovan narrowing his eyes on the woman he kissed just a moment ago.
"You speak English?" He intended for his question to sound casual, yet it came out almost accusatory.
"You speak my language." Jagoda looked back at him, taken aback by his question. "Do You see a problem with that? I certainly don't see one."
"Neither do I, Sultana." He sighed, realizing the oddity of his concern and the logic of her explanation. "I just... did not expect it."
"I did not expect to fall in love with a 21st century wild boar prone to throwing himself in the path of poisoned arrows, but here we are," she replied bluntly and sent him a kiss by touching her lips and blowing the imaginary peck his way.
"Ouch," he winced in response.
"I am so sorry, I did not mean for You to get hurt back there at Bojana's hut," Jagoda rushed to his side and cupped his face, feeling guilty.
"You only bruised my ego. My chest never felt better," he chuckled with sarcasm only to wince from a jolt of pain.
"Serves You right," Jagoda scolded him.
"Serves me right?" Jovan raised his eyebrow, amused.
"Yes," she nodded and smiled with love in her eyes. "You should never test a woman who loves You."
"Duly noted," he agreed but grew serious. "Jagoda, how do You know about Goran?"
"Would You want to hear the short version or the long one?" She asked, but looked toward the window, moved by her gut feeling.
"Any version is better than none at all," he grunted and moved toward the edge of the bed, allowing his feet to hit the floor beside the bed.
"Alright," Jagoda agreed and decided where to begin the rather complex explanation. "None of this would have happened if it weren't for Bojana."
"I figured she would know how to send me back," Jovan smiled.
"I'm afraid there is more to it than that." Jagoda paused, seeing the confusion in his eyes. "She knew how to do it since she did it once herself..."
YOU ARE READING
THE TIDES OF TIME
Romance⚔️ "Being born and raised to respect life and its rules, Jovan Galanis made something of himself. He was ambitious, outgoing, disciplined, and righteous to his very core. His parents died when he was a young boy, and having been raised by his Macedo...
