The Ties that Bind (The Forever series, Book Five) (21 page)

“Fine. Thank you,” I say.

“Pool, then?” Sebastian says and saunters off in the
direction of the den and outside. “Fuck, this place is awesome,” he says in
wonder. Which makes me wonder, does he not have his own mansion to call home? I
don’t really know anything about his personal life except that he can
apparently drop everything to follow CK across the country.

“I will be out in a minute. I want to see the new window,” I
say, making my way to the office.

“It’s awesome, Livvie,” Devon says. “I love it.”

I push open the door to my office and see it. “It is
beautiful,” Cole says.

“Wow,” Xane adds. “Your office
is
like mine! That
though, is something else. It’s you?”

I nod at him, “As best I know. I only have eyewitness
accounts to go on.”

After CK smashed the previous stained glass window with a
chair, that incidentally got recovered near the front wall a good quarter mile
from the house, I knew what I wanted but wanted to wait until I was sure it
would be accurate. They did a fantastic job of capturing me in my Dragon form
against the backdrop of the skyline from the Dragon Realms. Turns out I am a
smaller version of Tiamat. A black crystal Dragon. The highest ranking Dragon
of the Realms. Which makes sense, seeing as I am her daughter. Between my
description of the skyline and Cole, Devon, and Lincoln’s description of me in
the few moments they saw me before I flew off, the window is perfect.

I look shyly at CK who is staring at it with a faraway look
in his eye. “You like?” I murmur.

He brings his eyes back to mine. “I do. A definite
improvement over the last one,” he says, to which Cole and Devon wholeheartedly
agree.

“What was here before?” Xane asks.

“Something that should have been smashed to pieces long
before it was,” CK says and leaves it at that.

“Pool time, then,” I say and change into a teeny black
bikini before pulling Cole from the room and outside leaving everyone else to
follow.

Everyone goes and gets themselves sorted and we all meet at
the pool, free for a time of worry and problems and issues to deal with. I
still have this dark shadow lurking over me but I push it aside and join in the
fun. I find it most amusing that Lincoln in his gorgeous, wet state has caught
the attention of Jess who is staring open-mouthed at him as he climbs out of
the pool, the water dripping down his eight-pack abs. I know I am practically
drooling at the sight of him so I don’t blame the girl for looking. What I do
find interesting though is that it hasn’t gone unnoticed by Devon and in a fit
of jealousy stalks over to her and pulls her into a kiss. Albeit a light,
chaste one, but it has the desired effect and she only has eyes for him for the
rest of the night. She relaxes a tiny bit which eases her nerves and her
bloodlust. I sigh; as much as I dislike this I am at least relieved that Devon
is showing her some affection. Things would be so much worse if he didn’t. CK
catches my eye and I smile at him.

“I was of half a mind not to bother changing,” he says to
me, quietly sidling over to me.

“Why is that then?” I ask.

“Well I was kind of hoping you would throw me fully clothed
into the pool and have your wicked way with me. So much bigger than the bath
tub.”

I chuckle with delight at him as Cole is in the pool and
can’t hear this conversation. “That can be arranged,” I say seductively and his
eyes light up.

“Just tell me when,” he murmurs and turns away.

“Wait.” I hold him back. He looks at me inquisitively. “I
really want to thank you for what you did. It means the world to me. I will
show you the proper appreciation when the time is right,” I say quietly.

“I know,” he says just as quietly. “I look forward to going
back there with you when the paperwork is finalized.”

“I would like that. Very much,” I say seriously. “But why?
What made you decide to drop that much money on it?”

“You wanted it. I told you I am done waiting for you, Aefre.
I am now going to fight for you, and I will give you everything your heart
desires. I don’t care if it costs nothing or cleans me out of my fortune
completely. If you want it, it is yours. You will see that I will do anything
for you, that I will do anything to be with you.” He touches my cheek but then
turns from me as Cole strides over with a low growl.

“You know,” he says conversationally, “now that Constantine
has broken the terms of our agreement it means you don’t have to go to him for
two days anymore.” A cruel sneer, if I ever saw one, crosses his handsome face
and I gape at him. Is he trying to get himself killed?

CK, who had been walking away, stops dead and turns slowly.
I can see his whole body is coiled, ready to pounce, and I carefully place
myself in front of Cole hoping I won’t end up on the business end of his claws
again.

Everyone else, while having a working knowledge of the
agreement but doesn’t know the exact terms (except Sebastian), nor the reason
for this threat level that just shot into the red zone, all stop talking and
turn towards the three of us.

“What did you just say?” CK says to Cole, ignoring me and
gazing at him straight over the top of my head. Bloody short shit that I am.

“You heard me,” Cole says boldly and I inwardly cringe.

“You are pushing it, boy. I won’t tolerate any more of your
disrespect. And don’t look to your sire for protection this time. I will get to
you around her.” And in a flash he has Teleported behind Cole and with a hand
around his throat slams him into the ground.

“Constantine, No!” I bark at him and he ignores me as I grab
his wrist to pull him off. He is strong but I discover I am stronger, probably
only in defense of my charge, my husband. He snarls at Cole as I remove his
hand. “You should ask her the real reasons she comes to me. It has nothing to
do with the agreement,” CK snarls.

Oh, crap. Clearly what I said to CK in the Veyron and at the
hotel when we got to Vegas is not about to stay in Vegas. If he spills the
beans on the baby thing, I will kill him myself.

I glower at him and he just looks mildly at me. He will keep
the bit about the baby making to himself but the rest is about to come out.
“She admitted that she comes to me because she loves me and will be my wife one
day, not because I force her to with our arrangement. That is strictly for your
benefit, to keep
you
in line.”

He lets that sink in and several sets of eyes land on me,
although I am unsure as to why everyone finds this such a shock. I mean it must
be clear that I am in love with him but I suppose now that everyone is putting
two and two together and coming up with my ring the facts are becoming a bit
clearer.

I am chewing my lip, cursing my sire for blurting that out
to everybody. It’s one thing having Cole know, or least suspect it as I have
never outright said it to him, but it’s another thing entirely to have it announced
so casually in front of everyone.

“Constantine,” I berate him quietly, “you are telling
secrets, my love. This is our business, not for everyone to know about.”

He shrugs unconcerned and continues to Cole who is looking
like he wants to die, or possibly kill, “You set this in motion by taking it
off. By disrespecting the arrangement.”

“
It
wasn’t part of the arrangement,” Cole snarls at
him. It being my ring, obviously. “At least not the part I agreed to. You two
came up with that all on your own. You think you tell me anything I don’t
already know? You think that Liv and I don’t talk?” Emphasis on the Liv there.
“Do you think that we have no relationship? That this is just some fling that
means nothing to her?” He is firing these questions out but apparently not
expecting any answers so Constantine doesn’t give him any. “We are married. She
is my wife and whatever delusions you might have to the contrary we are staying
that way. I told you before I am not going anywhere.” He sends a scathing look
at Constantine which he follows up with the same to me, most definitely unhappy
with me and my role in all this.

There is a very awkward silence where no one even moves.
Everyone, except the three of us, are trying to act like they aren’t even
there, hardly daring to breathe as this is very, very personal and very, very
something they would love not to know. I realize that Sebastian knows about
this and even Lincoln has some clue but Devon is shocked and Jess is appalled
and Scott has that look where he wants the ground to swallow him up and
Xane…well, Xane is looking so furious I am almost certain he is going to add to
this drama with secrets of our own.

I step forward to try and diffuse this situation before it
gets any worse.

“Cole, baby. Please go and wait for me in our bedroom. I
need a word with my sire. I will be up shortly.”

He nods at me briefly, still stony-faced but a glimmer of
smug underneath at the use of my words “our bedroom.” “I will go and wait for
you in
our
bedroom,” he says and steps closer to me and whispers low
enough for everyone else not to hear, with the exception of Constantine who is
standing close enough, “And I will make love to you all night, in that way that
you love, that leaves you breathless and wanting more.” He kisses me as I inhale
sharply and part my lips. He pulls away and with a last baleful glare at CK
strides back into the house.

I round on CK who just looks at me in that mildly
infuriating way of his. “I told you I wasn’t putting up with any more shit from
him,” he says. “Get him in line or it will get worse than this.”

“How dare you?” I hiss at him quietly as I drag him a little
way away. “You had no right to blurt that out in front of everybody.”

“Well at least everyone is in the know now and knows what to
expect in the future. That you will be mine and there isn’t anything anyone can
do to stop it,” he says blandly and I just stare at him for a moment.

“Is this just a game to you?” I ask him suddenly.

He looks taken aback but I carry on. “You seemed quite happy
to leave me be until I had someone. Someone I loved enough to turn and marry
and then all of a sudden you wanted me again. It’s all just very coincidental,”
I sneer at him.

“Is that what you really think? That I am doing this to
amuse myself? I can assure you, Aefre, that I am less than amused by this
situation. I thought we had discussed this and you understood?” he says sadly.

“I thought I did,” I say just as sadly. “You said you would
wait for me. That you would respect my marriage.”

“I changed my mind.”

“Well I haven’t. We go back to the original terms, or I take
back what I said about trying.” It’s a low blow. A very low blow and he takes
the hit of it badly.

“Is that blackmail, my sweet?” he says menacingly to cover
up the pain I have just inflicted on him.

“An ultimatum,” I say, not backing down.

“You would take that away from me after it was you who
brought it up? Your vicious side lives on, my love. Be careful, you wouldn’t
want it to get you into trouble again.” And with that said he Teleports out,
presumably back to his house. Or probably more likely to
Ponte
.

I breathe in deeply, trying to steady my shaking nerves. I
didn’t want to hurt him, I didn’t want to have to do that, but he left me no
choice.

“What did you say to him?” Sebastian says to me.

“Something he didn’t want to hear.” I sigh, “But I had to
say it. I need him to back off and stick to the plan.”

“I think you will find that isn’t going to happen. I am glad
all this is out in the open, maybe now you will see reason,” he states and he
too Teleports out, presumably to wherever our sire has gone to plot his next
move.

“Fuck!” I yell at no one in particular and the remaining
members of our group flinch. I turn to face them and everybody avoids my gaze.
“Look at me,” I snarl at them. And they do. “What you have witnessed here is
personal and sensitive and I don’t want to hear a word of it discussed either
between yourselves or to me. Got it?”

They all nod in unison, even Xane, to my surprise, agrees to
my request. Well, my demand.

“I will talk to all of you tomorrow. I have to go and deal
with the fall out,” I sigh, suddenly weary.

“Erm, Liv,” Devon starts and I glare at him. “I don’t mean
to add to your shit but I have my own shit and, well, I must point out that it
is Friday.”

What? “Are you serious?” I hiss at him.

“Very,” he says with the utmost seriousness. “We had a
deal.”

“Yes, before you created a newbie and my husband turned up.
I was under the assumption we would start next week.”

“You would be wrong,” he stands his ground.

“Devon,” I warn him in my best sire tone.

“Elizabeth,” he says back to me.

“Come here,” I order him and he strolls forward. I drag him
a bit further away. “You need to be with Jess,” I say to him. “You don’t have
to fuck her but you at least need to stay with her until she falls asleep.”

“No, what I need is the time you promised me.”

“Dev. I need to sort this crap out with Cole. Go and do your
sire duty by Jess and I will come and find you later. That’s the best I can do
for now.”

“No, I told you I won’t be a quick fuck before you move on.”

“I never said it would be,” I say, affronted.

“It was implied.”

“What would you have me do? I am not abandoning Cole,
especially after this shitstorm. Please, Dev. Can I make it up to you next
week?”

“How so?” he asks.

“I don’t know. I am sure you will think of something
suitable to your needs,” I say, not in the mood for a negotiation.

“Oh of that I have no doubt,” he says with just a hint of
menace. He wouldn’t dare to outright defy me.

“Very well. Let me off the hook for tonight and you get to
thinking,” I wheedle with my most charming smile and a trailing hand to his arm
that makes him glow.