Coming Together
for Gabrielle
Alessia Brio
editor
Coming Together: For Gabrielle
Alessia Brio, editor
Copyright © 2010 Alessia Brio
All digital rights reserved under the International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions.
Cover art © 2010 Alessia Brio
This is a work of fiction. Names, places, characters and incidents are either the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to any actual persons, living or dead, organizations, events or locales is entirely coincidental.
A Coming Together Production
Smashwords edition
https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/comingtogether
License Notes
Piracy robs authors of the income they need to be able to continue to write books for readers to enjoy. This ebook is licensed for the personal enjoyment of ONE reader only. This ebook may not be re-sold or copied. To do so is not only unethical, it's illegal. This ebook may not be forwarded via email, posted on personal websites, uploaded to file sharing sites, or printed and distributed. To share this book, please purchase an additional copy for each intended recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for you, please notify the author immediately. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this—and every—author.
1this special edition of Coming Together
is dedicated to the memory
of
Gabrielle Paula Kaplan
November 2006
R.I.P.
Table of Contents
Introduction
For three days in the fall of 2006, an Internet writers' community came together in a heart rending vigil for a tiny baby girl, born before her time and taken from this world far too soon. In her precious hours with us, however, Gabrielle reached more hearts than most people do in decades. Her life was not measured by the number of breaths she took but by the depths of compassion she inspired.
Anyone who bore witness to this event can never again claim that online relationships are not real—or that they are in any way, shape, or form lesser than those taking place offline. The virtual candles glowed just as brightly, the e-hugs were just as warm, and the abundance of love just as palpable. I know that I, for one, will never be the same.
Many of the stories and poetry contained in this volume of Coming Together were written in the wake of Gabrielle's passing. Unlike other volumes in the erotic cocktail series, this one is often sensual, but it is not explicit. It carries a theme of hope. Proceeds from its sale will be donated to BLISS, the U.K.'s premature baby charity.
Your purchase will help the next baby who leaves the womb too soon take more breaths and touch more lives. Thank you.
~ Alessia Brio
editor
www.eroticanthology.com
I Believe
© Luna Fae
The Tiny Angel
© Scarlett Doutant
In memory of Gabrielle.
In tribute to her loving parents.
______________________________
"The Creator wishes to see you, Small One. Please be swift."
The Tiny Angel sped through the gold and silver avenues as fast as her small wings would carry her. She had appeared in the Starry Realm only a short time ago, and already the Creator had requested her presence. It was so exciting. There had been much to see and comprehend since her arrival, but everyone she met was kind and helpful.
Some of the senior angels were intimidating at first. Michael, who had given her the message and sent her on her way, had a voice that rumbled like thunder in a mountain pass. The Tiny Angel was not afraid; his smile was as comforting as his flaming sword and shield were menacing.
Finally, the Creator's sanctum sanctorum was in sight; two immense seraphim standing guard at the golden doors, their flaming swords at the ready. The Angel hovered before them and said in her tiny voice, "The Creator has summoned me. May I enter?"
"Welcome, Small One, you may enter," spoke the seraphim on the left, in a voice that crashed like ocean waves on a rocky cliff.
"The Creator will see you now," spoke the seraphim on the right, in a voice like autumn winds through a forest.
The ponderous doors swung wide, and the Tiny Angel passed through into an enormous gilded hall. She saw the Creator surrounded by a halo of light that outshone the brightest of stars. The Tiny Angel's wings fluttered excitedly as she neared the Creator's presence, and she felt the power and majesty coursing through her.
She tried to concentrate on the Creator's face, but it rippled and shifted, resembling in turn each one of the races and sexes in the universe. Finally, she averted her eyes, relaxed, and listened attentively to the Creator's voice. It was like no other voice she had heard since she arrived in the Starry Realm. It was the music of the spheres, the spiraling of galaxies, and the expanding waves of the universe. It was all these things, yet the Tiny Angel understood the Creator perfectly. Such were the gifts bestowed upon her since her arrival.
"How are you faring, Tiny One?" the Creator asked. He already knew, of course, but he apparently wished to put the Tiny Angel at her ease.
"Oh, I am well, Creator," she answered. "Everyone that I have met has been very kind and helpful. The Starry Realm is so large, and I am so tiny, yet I already feel very much at home here. How may I be of assistance to you?" she asked.