“Killing for sport?” he asks warily.
I shrug and say, “As I said, bad things.”
“When was the last time you…” he trails off.
He’s seriously asking me that?
I think back. “1945. During the war,” I say at the same time as Devon.
Cole looks taken aback but has the humor to raise an eyebrow. “Whose side were you on?” he asks with a hint of a smile.
“The Allies, of course!” I say with a smi
le. He looks a bit relieved that I wasn’t some swastika wearing Gestapo agent.
“Ah yes, the good old days of K & D, spies extraordinaire,” Devon grins.
“Spies?” Cole asks.
I nod and say, “Devon and I were drafted by the British Army to do reconnaissance behind enemy lines.”
He looks impressed. “Wow. K & D?”
“Katherine & Devon,” I say, clarifying. “Katherine was my identity at the time. I have had many over the years.”
“So, Liv isn’t your real name?” he asks.
“It is for this life,” I say, and he looks both relieved and confused.
“Um, so how long ago…did you decide to…um…” He looks at a bit of a loss as he waves his hand between the two of us.
“What? Turn me?” Devon helps out.
Cole nods.
“Well, Devon, that’s your story to tell, if you choose to,” I say.
He shrugs and says, “Sure. It’s a great story.” He grins at me and I indulge him by grinning back.
Devon gets up to refresh our drinks and then settles back. “It was the year 1506.”
Cole splutters his beer everywhere as he chokes out, “1506? That’s a long time ago.”
I can tell what he is thinking: a long history to compete with. I touch his arm to reassure him, but he still looks crestfallen.
“Yes, 1506, in Helsby, England. A small market town, still standing today, just outside of Chester. I met Liv, or Elizabeth, as she was known back then.”
“Elizabeth? Fuck me, this is getting just too weird.” He looks at me with those beautiful, now, deep blue eyes. He sighs again. “But I want to know, I want to know it all. I want to know the real you,” he says to me. “It’s fascinating. You really have seen everything, haven’t you, my love?” he says quietly, stroking my bottom lip.
“If I could carry on now?” Devon rudely interrupts our moment and I frown at him.
Cole continues to me, “I want to understand this batshit crazy, possessive relationship of yours,” he says with a smile. I grin and he adds, “It seems to be really important to you. I want to know why.” He says it so softly.
“Oh, Cole,” I say. “It’s…”
“You have so much history, clearly, so much past, so many experiences,” he interrupts me. “It’s got to be hard to live up to all that.”
Devon clears his throat and Cole starts as if remembering that he is still there. “Am I telling this story, or not? And what’s with the batshit crazy, possessive relationship?”