Chapter Two
CHAPTER TWO
Caolan
I stroll alongside Garin toward the office where our new allies work.
Once our operations were moved from Sam and Gideon’s house back to the CSG building, we were allocated a room in which to work.
It’s just down the hall from their office and a nice size, with actual windows, which some other rooms don’t have.
Sam told me it was used as a meeting room, but it’s ours for as long as we need it.
Eerika, Garin, and I have found it useful to retreat there and exchange notes on what we’ve learned. I thought we had a decent understanding of the Earth species, but apparently they’ve changed a lot since the last time we had any meaningful interaction with them, nearly eleven thousand cycles ago.
That’s another thing I need to get used to—thinking of things in terms of Earth time.
Their cycle—or year, as they call it—is longer than ours.
For them, our last contact was nine thousand years ago.
And they break the day up into tiny pieces.
It’s going to take a lot of effort to schedule myself so rigidly, but I’m definitely going to try. It will make David happy.
My pace quickens. David. I think I’m on time to meet him, but we’ve been notoriously bad at timekeeping so far.
It’s just so difficult to keep track of all the…
mintees? No, minutes! That’s the word. Minutes.
We don’t have an equivalent for it in any of our languages, so the translator spell uses the original English word.
It sounds clumsy and is difficult to get my mouth around.
But eventually, I will need to learn the native languages.
There’s no point relying on a translator spell for the rest of my life.
The usual pang of fear and sorrow stabs at me as I’m reminded once again that my beautiful home will be no more.
Not that it’s truly beautiful any longer—éibhear’s selfishness has rendered it unrecognizable.
Still, it hurts on a cell-deep level to know it will be destroyed and I’ll never be able to go back there.
Earth seems nice enough, and I’m definitely grateful to have somewhere to come to—all who survive are—but it’s not my home.
Not yet, anyway. Maybe one day I’ll be able to think of it as such. When the ache of loss has faded to a dull throb and I’m comfortable in these new surroundings. Perhaps I’ll even have someone special to call my own.
Which brings my thoughts back to David.
Beautiful David.
I can’t help but smile when I think of him.
These Earth species look a lot like us, but there are enough differences to bone structure and facial features that it’s easy to see them as alien.
I never thought I could so easily find one of them attractive, but David truly is, both outside and in.
His soul shines from him, a little dented in parts by his life, but pure and good.
I just want to bask in his presence and heal his past hurts.
There are other things I want to do with him, too, but it would be an adventure in and of itself: sex with a sorcerer. It’s not something I’ve ever done before—how would I have, with travel between our dimensions banned?—and I’m not sure if things have changed since all the old stories.
Still, licking every inch of his skin should be safe enough.
“Why are you smiling like that?” Garin asks me, then groans. “You’re thinking about your sorcerer again, aren’t you?”
“He’s not mine,” I remind him with a wistful sigh.
Even if Lucifer Percy hadn’t requested we not become intimately involved until diplomatic matters are settled, David himself seems reluctant to do so—at all.
I would be discouraged, except his friends have been very supportive and reassuring.
They say he’s just so dedicated to his work that the idea of having more than that in his life is a strange one for him.
It’s easy to believe, since he’s sleeping in the office instead of at his home.
Besides, his soul calls to mine in a way that can’t be an accident.
I can’t technically see if they’re paired, not being able to see my own soul, but I can’t imagine that they’re not.
I’ve never experienced this kind of intrinsic connection with anyone before, not even Ailíse, and we were paired souls.
As always, I feel a twinge of loss for Ailíse. It’s been a long time, but part of me will always miss her. That same part is also excited to start something new with David.
“He’s yours,” Garin scoffs. “I can’t see soul bonds like you, but even I can tell there’s something between you. These Earth people are just slow. He’ll realize soon enough. Did you talk to his friends this morning?”
I nod. “Yes. Aidan was right; he is sleeping in the office. Sam said he wasn’t eating properly because of it and suggested I bring him his favorite breakfast.”
“Excellent idea. Every time I drink a decent ale, I fondly remember the barmaid from the tavern in my hometown when I was young. She always brought me the perfect ale.”
It takes me a moment to process that and make the connection. “You think if I keep bringing him his favorite foods, he’ll associate the pleasure he gets from them with me?”
He nods. “Yes.”
I suppose it can’t hurt to try. If nothing else, it will ensure David has some good meals. Anything that keeps him fed and healthy can’t be bad. “Thank you. That’s a good idea.”
“And while we’re visiting with the king, you should ask him whether David’s soul pairs with yours. You’ve been desperate to find out.”
“I have not,” I declare, somewhat indignantly. Yes, I’d like to know, but whether our souls pair or not doesn’t change how I feel about David. I am not desperate to find out.
“If Eerika or I could have told you, we would, just to keep you from fretting,” Garin continues blithely, as though I hadn’t spoken.
“I wasn’t fretting,” I protest. “David and I will have a beautiful relationship even if our souls aren’t paired.”
He claps me on the shoulder as we reach the door to David and his friends’ office. “That’s the right attitude.” He pushes open the door and goes in. I stare after him and wonder whether maintaining a lifelong friendship is really something I want to do.
I can think about that another time. I don’t want to be late for David.
But when I follow Garin into the office, David’s not there. Could I be early? Or am I so late that he gave up waiting?
“Are we late?” I ask, somewhat fearfully. That’s not the kind of thing that will impress David with how much I care about his feelings.
Sam smiles. “No, you’re right on time. The others are running a bit behind—Percy had some last-minute instructions to give them.”
Excellent! When David arrives, he’ll see me waiting and know my timekeeping has improved. Although, if he’s meeting with the lucifer now, has he had any time to eat?
“Did David get his breakfast?” I ask Sam, eyeing his desk where I left the food and trying not to sound anxious.
“Oh, he did,” Noah assures me. “He was very appreciative. Tell me, is gifting food a traditional part of elven courtship?”
I eye him warily. He looks innocent, but something about that question makes me feel as though there’s a trap right in front of me.
“When the situation warrants it,” I answer cautiously.
“There are few ‘traditional’ elements to elven courtship. We’re not that formal when it comes to forming relationships.
” I pause for a beat, waiting to see if I used the contraction correctly.
My translator spell is learning and adapting, but I’m still hesitant about many of the more casual and informal aspects of their language.
After all, I don’t want to inadvertently offend the people who are giving us sanctuary.
Nobody looks confused or amused, so I must have said it right. I mentally congratulate myself.
“Well, David really enjoyed his coffee and toast,” Sam assures me.
“If you don’t mind me asking,” Andrew says, getting out of his chair and coming around the desk to perch on the front of it, “what are your plans to progress this courtship?”
“I told him to keep bringing David his favorite foods,” Garin volunteers.
“That’s an excellent idea,” Elinor says, smiling approvingly. But then, she’s a shifter, and while I haven’t known these people long, I already know that shifters are very committed to food and eating.
“Food’s good,” Andrew agrees. “Fuck knows, someone needs to make sure David’s eating properly. But what else?” He leans forward. “David’s my best friend. It’s my job to have his back.”
The translator spell fumbles a little with “have his back” but finally suggests “protect his back” as the best alternative.
Which means Andrew is looking out for his friend, and I like that.
David should have friends who want to take care of him.
“The first step is to show David I am serious in my admiration and that he can trust me not to use any feelings between us to impact the diplomatic situation we’re both part of,” I say seriously.
“That means respecting Lucifer Percy’s directive and David’s wish not to progress to an intimate relationship just yet.
” I shrug. “I will continue to express my adoration of him through words and small gifts, and by the time the situation settles, he will be confident in my esteem and ready to progress.”
“Oh my god, I don’t know if that’s adorable or creepy,” Noah mutters, and panic stabs at me.
“Creepy? I don’t want to be creepy. Creepy is bad, correct?”
“Creepy is bad,” Andrew agrees, “but I don’t think you’re being creepy. Just to be on the safe side, I’m going to talk to David, and if he feels at all creeped out, I’ll let you know that you need to back off.”
I nod. “That would be a most excellent solution. David should feel comforted and… and fancied by my attention, not threatened. If I need to slow the pace of our courtship and solidify our friendship first, I will. I have time.”