Switch (The Forever Series, Book 7) (31 page)

“I love you. I don’t ever want to let you go. Be with me,
Aefre. I know that you want to. We can work something out. You can still be
with him, just come to me. Please. I can’t bear to be apart from you.”

“I do want to be with you, but I can’t leave him,” I say
sorrowfully.

“Then don’t leave him, bring him here,” he says, sitting up.
“I don’t care anymore. If you will be here with me, sleep with me in our
bedroom, I will share you with him. We will find a way to make it work, just
say you will do it.” He takes my hands and I don’t know what to say. “You
wanted a solution,” he adds as I remain silent. “I’m offering one.”

“One that doesn’t benefit him,” I say quietly.

“How do you know?” he asks almost childishly. “Ask him. No,
tell him. Tell him this is what you want and if he doesn’t like it, he knows
what to do.”

“Constantine, don’t, my love. Don’t pressure me. You said
you wouldn’t.”

“But you want to be with me. I know you do. Just ask him.”
He turns his back to me to stare into the fire. “I said I would listen to
anything he had to say. He should do me the same courtesy.”

“But what will it achieve?”

“Us spending more time together, for a start.”

“And what about everyone else?” I have to ask because he
evidently hasn’t thought of that.

He turns his head to glare at me. “They aren’t my concern.
My only concern is getting you here, with me.” He turns back to the fire while
I chew my lip in consternation. He is being unreasonable. “I am losing
patience, Aefre. We are perfect together. Why can’t you see that?”

“I do.”

“Then do something about it. Or I will.”

“What does that mean?” I ask with dread.

“Nothing.” He turns back to me after several long seconds. “It
means nothing. You have me painted neatly into a little corner. You hold all
the power and I can’t do a damn thing about it.” He sighs and continues, “You
want to talk about being a master manipulator? I think you win hands down.”

“You think I am manipulating you? All of you?” I ask,
shocked that he would say that to my face. Although in all fairness, I can’t
argue with it, as yes I do sometimes manipulate others to get what I want. Who
doesn’t around here? But I do try to be subtle about it.

“Maybe you don’t mean to on some level but, yes. You use us
against each other to get what you want.”

“You are wrong,” I insist, not prepared to admit it to him.

“I wish I was,” he says sadly. “Look, I don’t want to argue
with you. I’m sorry I said anything. I just love you so much. I want every
night to be like tonight. Us together here. Is that too much to ask?”

“No,” I admit. “It isn’t. I wish you had said all of this a
year ago.”

“Me too.”

We hold each other for a few moments and I resolve to fix
this, however I can. “I will speak to him. We will find a way, okay?”

He nods and doesn’t speak again until he has taken me
several times over, the fire crackling in the fireplace, the wind howling
outside as the rain lashes down. I fall into a doze on the hearth with his arms
wrapped tightly around me, and he whispers, “I love you,” before I fall fast
asleep.

I wake up the next morning in our bed, alone, except for the
single perfect red rose on his pillow with the note underneath it that reads,
“So sweet”. I pick it up and inhale deeply and sigh. It is already light out
and the weather is still atrocious. I have never known it to be this bad here.
The clouds are rumbling overhead and a steady stream of rain is falling. I am
cold, even though CK has found a blanket from somewhere and thrown it over me.
If I am going to live here, this damn place needs some heating. I put the rose
back down and climb out of bed to run a nice hot bath, wrapping the blanket
around me. My feet are like two blocks of ice and I wish for a nice pair of
thick socks, which appear on my feet. That’s better, I think, as I make my way
to the bathroom. It reminds me of when I woke up in her world. The servants had
put slippers on her, on me. She must have also felt the cold, although I don’t
remember feeling cold there. Maybe they had sorted out heating for her? I sink
gratefully into the hot bubbly water right under the surface and relax. After a
few minutes I come back up feeling hungry. I decide to go in search of Edward
and hastily dry myself off and get dressed. Nice warm clothes. I put the thick
socks back on, pulling on a long pair of sweatpants, a t-shirt, my old Harvard
sweatshirt that is a couple of sizes too big, and a hoodie. I feel highly
ridiculous but at least I am warm. I tie my hair up into a high ponytail and
forego make-up today, I really can’t be bothered. Catching a glimpse of myself
in the bureau mirror, I blanch. I couldn’t look more like my sixteen years if I
tried. Christ, CK will throw a shit fit when he sees me. I pull open the door
and Edward is standing there about to knock. “Hi,” he says with his fist in the
air.

“Hey,” I say and bump my own against his, much to his
amusement.

“Check you out. You went to Harvard?”

“Yep. You?”

“Yale,” he says and I wonder how on Earth he ended up here,
doing this. It must be written all over my face as he says, “Long story. Maybe
one day I will tell you.”

I nod and let him in. He sits at the dresser again but I
shake my head at him. “Turn around.”

“Why?” he asks.

“I always bite to the left. I bit you that side yesterday
evening. Turn around so I get your other side. You are new to this, aren’t
you?”

“Does it make a difference?” he asks, perplexed. “I’m
healed.”

“It does long term. Just do it.”

He spins around.

“Long term? You plan on keeping me around then?”

“Have you not already been brought on long term?” I say as I
settle myself on his lap to his surprise.

“Six-month contract. I’m just in it for the travel,” he
jokes.

I snicker. “Well if that’s what you are after, you came to
the right place. Would you consider a longer term?”

“Maybe,” he says slyly and I smile as I drop my fangs and
tilt his head to the side. He hisses as I bite him and can feel his pleasure as
I drink from him. I leap off him as soon as I am finished and he clears his
throat.

“Thank you,” I say and he blushes slightly.

“No, thank you,” he says, standing. “I guess I will catch
you later.”

“You sure will,” I say as I wave him off, distracted by the
darker clouds that are forming overhead. Shrugging it off, I go to find CK. I
amble down the main corridor towards the stairs, when a very disagreeable young
man practically runs me over as he comes flying up the stairs. He glares at me
as if it is my fault and gives me a sweeping once-over with a look of distaste.
Okay, I know I don’t look my best but hey, no need to be so rude.

He pushes his wire-rimmed glasses up his narrow nose and
steps back. “Excuse me,” he says in a haughty French accent, and not in an
apologetic way, but in a get-out-of-my-way way.

“I think not,” I say, giving him my best haughty glare back
and he narrows his eyes at me.

“I am in a hurry. I have a job that needs completing for Mr.
D’Arcangelo. I am sure your boss would not want you holding me up. Go back to
cleaning or whatever it is you are supposed to be doing.” He dismisses me with
a wave of his hand.

Boss? Cleaning? I think in fury. Why, you little wormy
bastard. I open my mouth to blast him from all sides, when CK appears at his
side. “Problem?” he asks, also taking in my über casual outfit with a raised
eyebrow.

“Your staff is getting in my way,” the worm says loftily and
CK bites his lip in a humungous effort not to laugh.

“My staff? Err, no Georges, this is the lady of the house.”

I grin smugly at him, crossing my arms as his face drops
almost to his feet and he stutters his profuse apologies. I wave him away as
dismissively as he did to me, his face puce as he hurries on his way.

“Lady of the house?” I murmur to CK as I pull him to me for
a kiss.

He leans down with a soft smile. “I do like the way that
sounds,” he kisses me quickly and adds, “Although the lady looks like a surly
teenager. Perhaps a bit more effort wouldn’t go amiss?”

“I’m cold,” I say in a huff. “Warn me next time we have
visitors.” I stalk away from him with as much dignity as I can, as he chuckles
at me and I make my way to the library to wait for him to finish his business
with the weasel.

I find hot coffee and Cade and I smile at both. “You have
been far too secretive over the last few days,” I say, pointing a finger at him
and then at the coffee pot. “Spill it.”

He humors me and pours me a cup and hands it to me. “Nothing
you need to worry about.”

“You say things like that, it makes me worry,” I say, taking
a sip and lighting the fire with my mind at the same time.

Cade stares at the fire and then back at me. “Impressive.
But really, nothing for you to worry about.”

“Are you slacking off?” I ask. “I don’t pay you to slack
off.”

“I’m not slacking off. There are just some aspects to my job
that you don’t need to know about until they become problems.”

“Like what?”

“Like nothing,” he says as blandly, as if he hadn’t already
repeated it twice.

“Cade,” I warn as I slam the mug down. “Don’t test my
patience. I have already been wound up by Georges the weasley worm.”

“Who?” he asks and then circles his eyes with his finger.
“French glasses guy? Why, what did he do to get on your bad side?”

“Told me to go clean something,” I say still annoyed and get
even more so when Cade bursts out laughing. Loudly and for a long time.

“Can’t say you shouldn’t have been expecting it. Look at
you. You look like you belong in a gang or something. What is with the outfit?”

“I’m cold!” I yell at him.

“Cold? I thought Vampires were immune to temperature?”

“Indifferent is the word you are looking for and we are. At
least I was.” I frown. “But never mind that. Back to you.”

He sighs. “Fine. We are in the process of taking out minor
threats. Nothing big and nothing that you should be worrying about.”

“Minor threats? What do you mean?” That has my ears open as
I lean forward.

“Exactly what I said. Minor threats. I told you when I came
to work for you that there are groups that oppose you. They are gaining more of
a foothold but are still small enough to take out without the big guns. Nico
and I are taking care of it.”

“You are sure they are threats and not just you fulfilling
your desire to maim and kill Vampires?”

“I don’t maim,” he says, glaring at me. “I just get the job
done. And I resent your accusations.”

“Oh, I apologize,” I say, now in a really snarky mood which
gets his back up. “I didn’t realize that torture wasn’t in your bag of tricks.”

“You need to back up, lady,” he growls at me. “Just ‘cos the
weasley worm bit you on the ass doesn’t mean you get to take it out on me.”

We eyeball each other for a few seconds before I give in.
“You’re right. I’m sorry. I am in a foul mood and it isn’t anything to do with
you. Or Georges,” I add as an afterthought.

“Well go and feed or something,” he grumbles as he pours
himself some more coffee.

“I wish that would fix it,” I say as that god-awful
prickling comes back across the top of my shoulder and down my arm. What is
that? I scratch at it and turn to the windows. The thunder and lightning has
picked up, the rain still falling in a torrent. I stare at it, getting lost in
the sheer power of it.

Cade comes to stand next to me, “Pretty violent isn’t it? I
didn’t think it got like this here.”

“It doesn’t. Usually,” I mutter absently and open the French
doors.

“Hey,” Cade snaps as the rain flies through the opening
drenching us both within seconds. I ignore him and step outside. There is
something out here, pulling me towards it. “Liv!” Cade is calling to me as I
walk further into the rain, across the wide terrace in just my socks that are
now two sodden bits of wool attached to my feet. My hair is wet through and my
clothes are glued to me, cold and soaking. “Liv!” he calls to me again but I
keep walking. I throw up a barrier to stop him from following me and hear him
cursing as he hits it. I hear him on his phone, presumably to CK, but I forget
about him as I concentrate on where I am going. I am following the trail of
Power. It is immense. I can feel it clawing at me, almost dragging me forward.
I push my hair out of my eyes as I make it to the grass that is now muddy and
full of puddles due to the amount of rain that is falling down around me. The
thunder cracks overhead, loud enough to deafen my Vampire ears, but I just keep
walking. The lightning strikes again before a clap of thunder and then I see
him. Underneath one of the old garden light posts. Tall. Really tall. As tall
as Fraser, easily, with jet-black hair and eyes the color of amethysts, that I
can see from here. His black cloak is flapping in the wind about him, revealing
his outfit from another time, another world: a black tunic top with loose black
leggings and black boots up to his knees and a sword at his hip. I would say he
looks just like Xane did the first time I ever saw him but he isn’t a Demon. I
don’t know what he is. The prickling on my arm is getting worse the closer I
step towards him and then I stop dead. No. It can’t be. It can’t be, not here.
Not now. The lightning strikes again and he catches it in his hand out of the
air, the electricity sparkling in his hand as he holds it. An evil smile splits
his face and he yells at me, “Are you worthy?” before he throws the bolt of
lightning at me. Completely caught off guard, it hits me square in the chest
and I fly back several feet before I land in a heap on the ground, with my hair
standing on end. Slightly dazed, I shake it off as he hurls another bolt at me,
which I roll away from through a massive puddle. I can hear CK swearing at me
to drop the shield so he can get to me, but I don’t have time to listen to him.
It has been a long time since I needed my fighting skills and they kick in
finally as I dodge a couple more hits, before a wave of pure Power, that
ripples visibly off him, sends me sprawling on my arse and now I have had
enough of him playing with me. I am Queen of The Underworld and no one should
have the Power to toss me around the gardens like a rag doll. Except my mother.
Oh, and it seems that Remiel can also do that. I get mad and I can feel my own
Power boiling up and I react on raw instinct before my brain catches up, as he
throws another lightning bolt at me and I hold my own hand out to grab it.
Expecting it hurt like a bitch and probably fry my hand to cinders, I am
stunned when it hovers in my palm like it did with him, but then dissipates
quickly. His grin widens in malice as he fires another and another at me, each
one I deflect until the fourth one, which is a doozy, I catch and twirl it
around my hand like I have watched him do, and bunching it into my fist as a
ball of pure electricity, I hurl it at him. It bounces back off his magickal
barrier and he laughs. A cruel sound that makes me shiver.