Time Magazine's All-time 100 Novels Novels & Stories

I chalked it up to stress and sucked it up, missing her like an idiot. Now I know the truth—she was with him. And that watch Alec had on in the video? Pretty sure it was mine. The one I thought I lost. Funny thing—every time Donna traveled, something of mine vanished. A suit. A tie. A bottle of cologne. I figured I was just love-sick and scatterbrained after she left. I even wrote her letters every day, made her favorite chocolates, taught myself to cook—just to survive those empty months.

The leftovers were for the servants. Waste not right? Adrexa suddenly bursts into the kitchen, where I am patiently waiting for the outcome of my meal. "The Prince and Princess want to see you immediately!" Adrexa commands breathlessly. Shit. Adrexa quickly turns and scurries back down the corridor. I quickly follow her, but I feel incredibly fatigued from my day. The shock of my wondrous journey through time, landing me in ancient Troy, discovering I'm not dreaming, and spending the rest of the day cooking a meal using age-old techniques.

It was all he'd ever wanted. The seal of redemption at last arrived from a source very much out of the blue: TIME Magazine. They included Clarkson in their "100 Most Influential People." The piece was written, much to everyone's surprise, by an old political rival, a brusque senator who had hitherto exchanged blows with Clarkson over shipping bills.