Choices (The Forever series, Book Four) (22 page)

“Oh please. Let’s not do this. I have enough on my plate as
it is,” I sigh.

“Mm, yes I am aware. I sense three but I suspect there are
more on your plate than that,” he says, moving closer.

“That’s for me to know. Now back up and tell me about this
ritual,” I snap at him.

He holds his hands up and steps back, saying, “Can’t blame a
guy for trying. Especially with a Vampire. And especially with you.”

“My sire would beg to differ. And what do you mean
‘especially me?’”

“Ah. I see. Interesting how you mention your sire and not
your husband. And your reputation precedes you, my dear.”

Oh dear. That doesn’t sound very good.

“My husband isn’t prone to ripping people’s heads off,” I say,
having the pleasure of seeing him blanch slightly. “What have you heard?”

“Yes, well I am sure I can hold my own,” he says
confidently. “Only good things, I assure you,” he adds with a wink.

I shake my head. “Humph,” I say rudely. “You would do well
to remember who you are winking at, Mr. Draconis. Now can we get this show on
the road?”

“Of course,” he says with a slight smile. He moves to a
cabinet and withdraws several white pillar candles, the same as my own. I watch
him as he arranges them--to my surprise--in threes around the room.

“Threes?” I croak.

“Yes. Standard Demon protection magick. Something wrong?”

I hesitate. “No. I like them in threes,” I say a bit
stupidly but he grins at me.

“Of course you do. It’s also the Dragon way.”

Is it? Is that why I like it that way? Even hundreds of
years before I knew of my real nature, was it ingrained in me to give me
comfort? That in itself is comforting.

He finishes lighting the candles and comes to stand in front
of me. He pulls a blade out of thin air and holds it up, a smallish dagger with
a long, thin blade. “Your hand.”

I shake my head. “It won’t cut me,” I say.

“This one will,” he says confidently.

Oh?

I hold my hand out and he slices it slowly across his own
palm and then over mine. To my surprise it cuts through my flesh with a sharp
sting causing my blood to well up, and not heal straight away. He quickly puts
his hand against mine, mingling our blood together and I feel a fire course
through me. A good burn though, as opposed to Cade’s blood which is most
definitely a bad burn.

“Close your eyes,” he whispers and I do. “Feel the Power,”
he says.

It flashes through me like lightning and I open my eyes. We
are standing in the center of a fiery vortex that is swirling around us. Xane
tightens his grip on my fingers and steps closer to me, muttering words in
Latin. I actually feel different this time. After all the other different power
transfers, this one is the most noticeable.

“How do you feel?” he whispers close to my ear.

“Better,” I say. “Complete.”

He lets go of my hand and the vortex swirls away to nothing.
“Good,” he says smugly. “We are bonded now.”

What? Oh no! Not again. I really am going to have to watch
the company I keep. I sigh.

“How so?” I ask.

“My blood runs through yours and yours through mine. We are
linked together.”

I close my eyes and wonder how the fuck I am going to
explain this.

“Now. Do you know of the Grimoire?”

My eyes open with a start, “No.”

“Then we need to teach you.” He reaches into the cabinet and
pulls out a book as old as me. Well, probably older, actually.

“What do you know of Demon magick?”

“Nothing.”

“What do you know of Dragon magick?”

“I can displace things. I can also use my mind to change
things that are in front of me. Make them how I want them.”

He nods, “Something from something. That’s how it works for
you. But now you get to get to make Something from Nothing.”

“Something from Nothing? Like Conjuring?”

“Yes. Observe.” He holds out his hand and says, “For you.”

“What is it?” I step closer. In his palm is a necklace with
a small glass ball pendant, and in it flickers a tiny fire.

“The fires of Hell,” he says and clasps it around my neck.
“Your new Domain, my lady.”

I reach down and it feels warm. Warm as in I can feel it
warm, like I haven’t felt since I was human.

“You just made this?”

He nods, “You try.”

“With what?”

“Anything you like,” he says and smiles.

I close my eyes. Something from Nothing. I clench my hand
into a fist and then open it. “For you,” I say shyly.

He peers down at my outstretched palm and grins in delight.
“I love it. Very thoughtful.” He pulls the ring out of my hand and puts it
on--to my chagrin--his left ring finger.

“It wasn’t meant for…”

“It fits,” he interrupts determinedly and admires it. I
start to get a tiny bit worried. “Very nice work.”

I have to admit I am quite impressed with myself. I wanted
to give him something meaningful as he did to me and as I thought of the
painting downstairs of Dracul, I conjured a ring of a tiny Dragon with ruby red
eyes. His ancestor, my brother.

“Well, you are a quick study, my Queen.”

“So, I’ve been told,” I say wryly. “Although, to be fair,
everything that is in your Grimoire, is now in my head.”

I shrug at his amazed look and add, “It’s a thing with me. I
have more info stored in my brain than I care to think about.”

“Most impressive.” He looks at me admiringly. “Well now that
the ritual is complete, I suppose I should get you back to your…entourage,” he
says wickedly.

I snicker at the word, “Don’t ever say that in front of
them. There is enough grousing as it is.”

“Mm, I can imagine. How you have pulled them into this is
still a mystery.”

“There was no pulling involved,” I growl. I’m not taking the
blame for this. Devon and I have been together for 507 years. Cole and I are
married. CK suddenly decided he wanted more from me again and Lincoln chose
me…and my mother accepted him. Screw this. As soon as I get back I am going to
talk to Devon. It’s ridiculous that he thinks I’m just going to accept his
behavior.

“Take me back. I have issues to deal with.”

“Of that I have no doubt. What will you tell them about us?”
he asks slyly.

“There is no ‘us.’ Not in a personal sense. It's just
business.”

“For now,” he murmurs as he takes my hand and Astraports me
back into his casino office.

“Thank you. It has been a very informative afternoon. Please
tell your parents I was honored to meet them.”

“I will, Your Majesty,” he says sarcastically, bowing to me.
“I will also tell them that you will be seeing them soon.”

“Oh? Why is that then?”

“Because you will come to me, and I will take you there,” he
says casually and I glare at his tone.

“Good day, Xane. I will make a note to come and see you
later, where I expect a report on our Domain.”

“Good day,
ValamAtrux
. I look forward to it. I hope
you enjoy your stay.”

“I am sure we will,” I say stiffly and with a final bob of
my head, I beat a hasty retreat out of his presence before I do something I
will regret.

I make my way across the casino to the hotel lobby.
Sebastian catches up with me and pulls me into an empty conference room.

“Well?” he asks.

“Well what?”

“What happened?” he asks suspiciously, inhaling deeply and
narrowing his eyes at me.

“Nothing you need concern yourself with,” I snap.

“Did you fuck him?” he asks bluntly.

I glare at him. “No, not that it is anything to do with
you,” I growl.

He growls back, a low feral sound and pushes me slowly back
against the wall with his hand at my throat. His eyes catch sight of the
necklace and he gets an angry look on his face.

“Everything to do with my sire is my business. That means
anything you do to hurt him is to do with me,” he says menacingly.

Whoa. This is the scary side of Sebastian. I wondered if one
lurked underneath his fun-loving exterior. No one can be as old as he is and
not have a dark side.

“Sebastian. I won’t hurt him.”

He tightens his grip. “But you are whether you mean to or
not,” he whispers closely.

“Get your hands off her,” Devon says from the doorway.

Sebastian turns slowly, with a predatory air about him and I
see his dangerous side. I see the warrior he once was. He is no longer the
easygoing Sebastian. He is Vincentius. Roman warrior. First Charge.

“Protecting your sire,” he sneers. “It’s only what I am
doing.”

“Difference is, your sire is also her sire. Don’t think he
would take too kindly to your current treatment of her,” Devon says in his
perfect offhand way.

With a final squeeze he releases me. “Well, you have me
there,” he says with a laugh and I see the fun-loving Sebastian again. But I
can’t forget the other side to him. He is every bit as scary as CK, and I would
do well to remember that in future.

“I like you, Liv. A lot. But I won’t stand by and watch you
hurt him,” he says ever so quietly as his hand tightens over the pendant. He
hisses and draws back quickly.

“I won’t,” I say just as quietly and he nods briefly.

“Go and find him now,” he orders. “It’s his time.” I mock
salute him and he grins, that easy-to-please persona back in a flash.

Devon watches him go and then he moves closer to me,
studying me intently. “Everything seems different,” he mutters to himself. I
remain quiet as he continues to just look at me.

Eventually I speak quietly, “This is the longest we have
been apart in 267 years.”

He looks sad, “I know.” He steps closer, “Christ Liv, it’s
only been a week and I miss you.” He swoops down on me, cupping my face with
his hands as he kisses me. He picks me up and I wrap my legs around him as he
pins me to the wall. His hands work first to push the hem of my dress up over
my hips and then to pull the top of the strapless dress down so my breasts pop
free. He runs his hands over my nipples and I moan in delight. I quiver under
his touch and I can feel him pushing hard against me. “I need to taste you,” he
murmurs and drops his fangs as I tilt my head to the side. He sinks his fangs
into my neck with a desperate sound, filled also with anguish and then
pleasure.

“I need you Dev,” I gasp. “Please baby, I need you.” I push
his head closer to me causing his fangs to push deeper inside me and he growls,
sending a vibration all the way through me.

“Devon?” a woman’s voice interrupts our bliss and causes him
to release his bite. He turns to the doorway fangs still down, my blood in his
mouth.

“Jess,” he hisses and retracts his fangs, pushing my legs
away from him.

“Jess,” he says again as she runs from the room and he
follows quickly, choosing her over me this time, leaving me unfulfilled and
alone. A wave of sadness washes over me and I sink to the floor, adjusting my
dress in the process.

I sit with my head on my knees for a few seconds but then I
resolve myself to my fate. I stand up, making a decision. Well, two actually.
Both to protect myself. I quietly leave the conference room and make my way to
the elevators. I see Devon and Jess in the corner a bit away from me. He is desperately
trying to explain things to her and I am filled with sorrow because she will
forgive him and he will end up turning her and I have to let him go.

Decision number one: accept that Devon will sire and no
longer be just mine. Once I accept that, it will be better.

Off to face decision number two, I push the button and step
into the elevator as it arrives and push the button for the top floor.

I step into the suite that CK and I are sharing and he looks
up at me from his newspaper. Such an ordinary activity and it makes me smile as
he is anything but ordinary.

“You are back,” he says, returning my smile and standing.

I move over to kiss him deeply, catching him off guard.

He pulls back, looking suspiciously at me, “How did it go?”

“Good. Their history is incredible. I will fill you in
later. Right now I have something else to say to you. Something to ask of you.”

He doesn’t look too happy at all about this and to be honest
I have no idea how he is going to react.

He waits. I take a deep breath.

“I need something from you. Something I don’t know if you
will give me.” I pause and his face remains impassive.

“You gave me this ring and in your way, asked me to make a
promise to you and I did. I promised that one day we would be together again.
Properly.”

He narrows his eyes at me and I know he has no clue where I
am going with this.

“I promised you and I meant it with all of my heart. What I
have suddenly come to realize is that I didn’t get the same back from you,” I
say this warily as he is staring at me and I am not sure what he is thinking.

“Aefre. The ring is my promise to you,” he says quietly.

I shake my head, “No. It’s a symbol of my intention to you.
I want more. I want your intention to me.” I open my clenched fist and hold it
up to him. He peers at it closely. His eyes flick briefly to mine and back down
to my palm. He makes no motion to pick it up.

“I want--no, I need--you to take this as your promise to me.
I need you to promise me that you will wait for me. As long as it takes. And
that one day, even if it is a thousand years from now, you will make me your
wife.”

He is still staring at my hand. I know I am asking him to
move mountains here, with his unshakable lack of enthusiasm for such
commitments and such gestures. I am convinced he is going to refuse.

“A thousand years from now? It had fucking well be sooner
than that,” he says wryly, picking up the ring I have conjured and peering at
it.

It is made from titanium, to stand the test of time, a “C”
and an ”A” entwined together in script. He looks at the inscription on the
inside, “
Semper et in saecula
.”

“Aefre. I told you that if you loved me and accepted the
ring I gave you, I would wait for you and that I would, this time, marry you. I
am a bit at a loss as to why you need this from me again?”

He can be so dumb sometimes.

“You want me to wear this as a binding contract. I want the
same. I want to know that you aren't going to back out. You have, and quite
nicely I might add, placed all the responsibility on me. I want you to take
some back. Equal partners,” I say.

He thinks about it for a long time. Wow, I think, this is
actually getting to the point of insulting. Does he really have to think about
it for so long? If he’s having trouble with this, how the hell is he going to
be when we finally do make it to the altar? A horrible thought enters my head.
He won’t ever marry me. The whole giving-me-a-ring deal was just him getting
what he wants from me.

“No, Aefre. Don’t think that. I do want to marry you. I
would right now if I could. That, however, is on you that I cannot,” he says
sternly.

I cringe at his words, “Then why are you taking so long to
accept it?”

“Oh, I do accept it. Have no fear about that. I am merely
curious as to where you want me to put it.”

Well, I could quite happily ram it down his throat now,
making me wait and question it.

He chuckles as he sees my fury, “Well?”

“You choose,” I grouse. “You have to wear it. Oh and never
take it off,” I add as he did to me.

He slides it onto his right ring finger. “I promise,” he
says quietly. “I will save the left for the real one.”

I smile then and he kisses me. “I love you,” he murmurs.

“I love you,” I murmur back. “By the way, whatever happened
to the Faerie ring?”

“It’s safe,” he says, knowing I mean the one he showed me,
meant for 1112. “You will see it again, one day. Hopefully in less than a
thousand years,” he adds.

We kiss again to seal our new agreement and I take his hand
in mine, running my fingers over the ring. I shiver at the feel of it. I never
in a thousand years thought I would get one from him, never mind get one on
him. It is very arousing and I hold his hand up to just look at it.

“Incredibly sexy,” I murmur more to myself than him.

He looks surprised that something so small has such a
profound effect on me. Dumb, I tell you!

Unfortunately Sebastian chooses this moment to make his
appearance. Seriously, this whole willy-nilly Astraporting has to stop.

“Hello, lovebirds,” he chirps. “Am I interrupting?” He asks
and yet he sits anyway.

“Actually, yes,” CK says. “Aefre and I were in the middle of
revising our arrangement.”

“I thought we were finished?” I say to him.

“Oh no, not yet. There is still one small matter that needs
addressing.”

I can’t think for the life of me what that matter is.

“This arrangement is ridiculous,” Sebastian snaps at us.
“Just be together already.”

“Shut it,” I snarl at him. “It’s nothing to do with you.”

“Aefre, calm yourself,” CK says mildly. “I don’t want you in
a tizz while we are negotiating.”

A tizz? A fucking tizz? I’ll give you a tizz in a minute! I
open my mouth to blast him but he puts his hands to my lips to shush me. I see
Sebastian’s eyes flick to his ring and his eyes go wide as saucers. He is about
to ask when CK says, “’Bastian, leave us please.”

He stands up with a final glance at CK's hand and leaves in
silence. Probably too astounded to speak.

“What do you want?” I say wearily. “I don’t have much left
to give you.” I know it sounds awful but I don’t. I am beyond worn out, being
pulled in all different directions and I am dreading having to speak to Devon
but it can’t wait.

“I know, my love. Your divided loyalties are a sore subject
with me. But this is not something for you to give me now, at least not
physically.” He hesitates, staring at my necklace curiously and I think I know
what he wants from me.

“The child,” I sat flatly.

“Yes. It was a part of my plans before and while I gave up
on ever having that with you, now we need to revisit.”

I shift awkwardly, twiddling my charms, not knowing what to
say. Not only about being responsible for a baby and rearing him or her but the
risk of co-siring and more importantly the risk of me siring in general. He
must see these concerns cross my face.

“We will look into it. Somehow we will experiment and see if
it is possible.”

“I will think about it,” I say eventually.

“Not good enough.” He shakes his head.

“Constantine,” I complain, “why all the pressure?”

“I told you earlier that I have sired so many times without
love. I will never sire again, Aefre. Not without love and I will never love
anyone else. Except in the case of a child. Our child.”

“You don’t know that,” I say desperately. “The child, won’t
be ours. We cannot make a child together, Constantine. How do you know you can
love someone else’s?”

“Yes. I do. Since the second I laid eyes on you in that
marketplace I have loved only you. I have wanted and fucked other women, told
them what they wanted to hear, sired them, but never ever have I loved another
before you or since you. The child
will
be ours, Aefre. In every way
that matters, even more so when we co-sire it.”

While his words are everything I want to hear--well, except
for the wanting, fucking, and siring part--I still remain unsure it’s what I
want. A mother, I am not. I am vain, selfish, and willful. Incapable of being
what he wants me to be. I am damaged.

“What makes you think I would make a good mother?” I ask
him, genuinely interested. He knows me. Knows that I am not maternal by any
stretch of the imagination.

“I know you will. You don’t see what I see in you. What I
have always seen. You might not think this about yourself but you are very
nurturing and loving.”

Come again?

“I have seen how you look after your boys. That desire to
protect them, do anything for them. It isn’t just about the sire bond. Just
tell me you will give me what I want and I will do anything for you. Be
anything.”

He looks at me beseechingly and I cave. I would do anything
for him. Always and forever.

“Okay,” I say and he beams at me, pulling me to him for a
lingering kiss.

My phone buzzing on the table causes me to pull away. It’s a
message from Devon: “We need to talk. Meet me downstairs in ten minutes. Door’s
open. Xxx.”

I frown at the phone. Something’s off.

“What’s wrong?” CK asks.

“It’s a message from Devon. Or at least from Devon’s phone.”

“What do you mean?”

“There are three kisses at the end. He never sends kisses –
ever. And why would he tell me the door’s open? What does he want me to walk in
on?” I ask suspiciously.

CK and I look at each other.

“Perhaps it’s not from Devon, but the girl,” he says and I have
to agree. “Question is, what does she want you down there for without his
knowledge?”

I raise my brows at him. “I have a pretty good idea,” I say
dryly and he chuckles.