Chapter 17
Chapter Seventeen
A laric
Before they left for Kemper’s, Alaric gave Xavier a pointed look then nodded toward the back door before striding outside. Xavier followed, and once Alaric felt they were far enough from the house, he turned to the sorcerer and just blurted out his question. “Is there a reason Ezra can see through glamours? And does that somehow make him, I don’t know, connected to us? To preternaturals?”
His boss didn’t answer for several long, drawn-out moments that made Alaric shuffle his feet impatiently and go on. “You told me to wear the headband and contacts around him, so you obviously knew he was different. What did you know and how?”
A biting wind swept through the yard, making Xavier’s hair billow about his head. Those black eyes watched him closely. “You know I have visions. You also know I can sense things about people, so I’m not sure why you’re so surprised.”
“Not surprised, just honestly kind of annoyed, because there’s something going on here I don’t understand at all. That man in there drives me crazy, but I’m so drawn to him I can barely breathe around him sometimes. I either want to strangle him over that smart mouth or kiss him to shut him up. And the attraction is frankly off the charts. I know you know what’s going on.”
The corner of Xavier’s mouth went up in a rare smile. “He’s your soulmate, Alaric.”
Alaric’s mouth dropped open. He knew about soulmates. He was the product of one such pairing himself. But he’d never heard of a preternatural having a human for one. “But he’s human.”
Xavier nodded and tucked a strand of his loose, black hair behind his ear. “He’s a human who can see through glamours, so that means somewhere in his ancestry was a preternatural. It flows through his blood.”
“I can’t love a human. He’ll die. And if I let myself care for another as I have Sammy…” Alaric groaned and ran his hands through his hair. “It’s not the same. I can try and fool myself all I want but what I’m feeling for Ezra goes so much deeper than the love I have for Sammy, and I didn’t think that was possible. Watching him die would kill me, Xavier. There has to be a way to break this connection.”
“If you feel that connection, it’s already too late.” Xavier laid a hand on his arm. “Your souls have already started to bond. But Alaric, as your soulmate, Ezra is going to change and take on a lifespan similar to your own. He won’t die from old age like your friend.”
Shock punched him in the chest, and it was quickly followed by a spark of hope. Overpowering hope. “How?”
“Like I said, you’re already connected, but I have a spell that will bind you and help cement his change.”
“You’re not surprised by any of this, which means you knew what he was to me, didn’t you?”
“I did.”
“Then why didn’t you tell me? Why let me be blindsided like this?”
“Because I didn’t want to interfere. Yes, I knew you were going to find your soulmate, and I even knew it was Ezra when he called. I had a vision of this happening, just as I did with Bain and Clive, who are also soulmates. But it’s not my place to facilitate because the natural process is a part of it. Tell me, if you’d gone in knowing this ahead of time, what would you have done with that knowledge?”
Alaric couldn’t help his grin. “I would have demanded you assign someone else and stayed as far away as possible.”
“Exactly.” Xavier tightened his fingers on Alaric’s arm. “You need him. And he needs you. Desperately. If there ever was anyone who needed love, it’s that human. I caught a glimpse of his life. He’s been made to feel worthless, and he believes that about himself with a certainty that’s going to make your relationship difficult. He won’t be able to believe your feelings at first. But Alaric, he will. And I know you’re scared because you know that Sammy won’t be here much longer, and you’ve loved her deeply.”
“Ezra could still be killed even if his lifespan does change.”
“That’s a chance we all have to learn to live with. Nothing in life is guaranteed, but living a life in fear, not in love—it’s not worth it. Look at your parents, who are also soulmates. Would you have begrudged their life together?”
“No.” Xavier was right. He was afraid. But he also knew with complete understanding that he would be unable to let Ezra go. And it wasn’t just because the sex was phenomenal. No, it was so much more. A fierce need to give the human a life filled with love. To show him that he was indeed someone worthy of love.
Because love was exactly what he was feeling. It was time he accepted that. Embraced it.
“Come,” Xavier said as he turned back toward the house. “We need to get this confrontation over with so you can start a life with your soulmate.” He paused, turning to look at Alaric. “Believe me when I say that a soulmate will fulfill you in ways that are infinitely precious. You are one of the lucky ones.”
Alaric followed him back into the house, his gaze going instantly to Ezra, who looked back at him with his brows raised in question. He needed reassurance that everything was going to be okay, and Alaric again felt that need to make the world right for this man. Right then, he could only stare at him because he’d never expected to find a soulmate. One of his sisters was over six hundred years old and had never found one. It was so damn rare, and he could only wonder why he’d gotten so lucky.
It was a lot to think about, but they needed to see to Ezra’s ex first.