“How about in a different World?” Sebastian asks, propping himself up on his elbows and watching this spectacle with amusement.
Time slows down in that moment as Sebastian hurls the grenade that I had so been hoping to keep to myself until the end of time. I go still in CK’s arms and he has frozen to the spot. Sebastian blinks and the only sound in the room is the clock ticking away on the nightstand.
Several moments pass and I daren’t breath, hoping that if I don’t move, Sebastian’s comment will go unnoticed.
CK drops me to my feet and says, “I see.”
His eyes are that awful red color and I take a step back. I will be unable to placate him this time, as I am the one that he is so angry with. I hear Devon stop in the doorway and mutter, “Okay, guess I’ll come back.”
CK’s eyes snap to his and he stays rooted to the spot. “Did you know about this?” he barks at him.
“Know what?” Devon asks him, coming fully into the room.
I feel really vulnerable as I am still standing here naked. CK has slung a towel around his hips so it’s just me with my bits on show. All of the ruckus has also brought a cautious Cade to the room and he quickly averts his eyes from me before I Astral on a robe.
“He doesn’t know anything,” I say quietly to CK. “Leave him alone.”
“Know what?” Devon asks again, getting a bit pissed off.
“That your sire, or rather ex-sire, has been up to all sorts in the Other World,” CK snarls at him. “How many of them have you fucked, Aefre?” he asks.
“It’s not what you think,” I say. “It wasn’t like that.”
“Then what was it like?” he asks me. “Tell me, Aefre, how you came to be in bed with alternate versions of myself and Sebastian.”
“It was when I switched bodies with Empress Aefre,” I say in a small voice. I am going to beat the crap out of Sebastian for this.
“What?” Devon thunders at me and I totally understand his reaction.
“Dev,” I start but he beats me to it.
“You fucked Other World versions of them before I started fucking her? You raked me over the coals about that. You broke my heart. How could you?”
“It wasn’t like that,” I say again. “It was her body. Her connections, her sire and her Faerie mate. It was too difficult to deny the bonds. I’m sorry.”
Devon turns from me in disgust.
Sebastian smirks at me and asks, “Having a sense of déjà vu yet?”
My eyes flick to his and bore a gaze into his head so ferocious I see him flinch.
“What do you mean?” CK asks quietly.
“You all already know about this,” Sebastian says. “Or at least part of it. Tiamat needed Cole to stay with Aefre, so She turned back time to make you all forget.”
CK turns his gaze to me and if looks could kill…well, you don’t need me to tell you the rest of that sentence.
Suddenly there is a quiet calm about him, and he stiffens his back. We all watch for his reaction and my hands are at the ready in case I need to fight him off, but his eyes remain the same amber-flecked, molten-chocolate color and he clears his throat.
“Well,” he says. “I am going to take a guess and say that I forgave you before, am I right?”
I nod meekly.
“I will overlook this indiscretion then,” he says formally. “It makes no difference in the scheme of things. I have you now and that is all that matters.”
We all gape at him and his acceptance of this. There has to be more to it. There has to be.
“That’s it?” Devon snaps at him. “You are just going to accept it?”