“I don’t want you to be worried about my relationship with Remiel,” I say quickly, wanting to get that out there.
“You have a relationship with him?” he asks mildly. No sense of anger from him yet.
“Uh, yes,” I say, avoiding his penetrating gaze. “I can’t explain it, but…”
“You don’t have to,” he says shortly. “He is your sire now. I, above all others, know what that means. And I am not worried.”
“Oh, okay,” I say, stumped beyond belief. “And you know that Devon…”
“Isn’t a threat to me,” he finishes for me.
Jesus!
“Okay, enough!” I shout at him. “Who the fuck are you?” I snarl into his face as I slam him up against the window in the small alcove opposite the stairs. “You sure as fuck are not my CK.”
I glare into his innocent eyes and he removes my hands from bunching up his shirt.
“I am yours, Aefre,” he says, taking me quite seriously, as the gods know I have issues with this kind of bullshit Other World messing about. “Ask me anything.”
I think about that for a moment. What would the Others not know? It’s a bit confusing as our lives can be quite similar. Then it dawns on me. “Okay, my blue diamond. Where and why did you give it to me?”
“I gave it to you in our bedroom here at Ponte, and I gave it to you as a promise to marry you when you were done with Cole,” he replies.
I let him go. The Others haven’t had that situation, so I know he is telling me the truth that he is mine.
“I don’t understand this, Constantine. It doesn’t make any sense to me,” I say.
“I know,” he says, “but there is nothing more to it than I have already told you.”
“Everything has gone to Hell in a hand basket,” I wail at him, beating my fists on his chest. “I need some stability and you are fucking with my head.”
“That is not my intention, Aefre,” he says, taking my hands again. “I don’t know what else I can say to you. I love you and I accept who you are right now.”
I give him such a scathing look that he sighs. “Aefre, I am too old to be playing games. All I have done for the last two thousand seven hundred years is manipulate every situation I could, because I could. I have realized that isn’t how I want to live my life anymore. I want to be a role model for our child, not the monster that I can be. Do you get that?” he asks me with a slight tang of bitterness.
“Yeah, I get that,” I say, slumping my shoulders, exhausted with this. “It’s just unfamiliar.”
“Would it help to say that you look so beauti
ful right now that it is taking every ounce of willpower I have not to ravage you right here?” he asks with a playful twinkle in his eyes.
“Yes,” I say and pull him to me for a very deep kiss that makes me want to crawl up him and impale myself on his cock.
“Later,” he says, struggling to get out of my grasp. “We have a snap date.”
“Boo,” I say to him but release him anyway. That is something I am going to have to get used to. We can’t just fuck in the middle of the hallways when it takes our fancy anymore.
“Speaking of Hell in a hand basket,” CK says casually, leading me towards the stairs. “Do you plan on divorcing Xane now that you are no longer bound?”
“Err,” I say. “I hadn’t even thought about it yet. It’s a Demon marriage. I have no idea how a divorce would even work.”
“This is one of the things that you need to figure out, Aefre,” he says to me. “I love you no matter what, but your life is too messy.”
“I know,” I grumble. “I know you like order so I can only imagine how much you hate my life. I hate my life most of the time. But things should get easier now that I am free,” I add hopefully.
“And I will be right here waiting when they do,” he says and that really is the end of this conversation as we have hit the Entrance Hall and a familiar and very welcome visitor is waiting for me.
“I know he is your favorite, my sweet,” CK whispers in my ear as I eye up my old Feeder, Ramon, with an appreciative eye. “Drink now.”