Everlasting Fate (Third Book)

Chapter Seventeen

"Four more days." I whispered to Gabby in my mind.

"Alduin? How are we speaking right now?" Her voice in my head was as sweet as sugar.

"What are you doing?" I ignored her question.

"Lying in my bed."

"Me too." I smiled wistfully.

"Does it still have the burgundy colors and the fur?" I heard the humor in her voice. I imagined the coy blush spreading on her cheeks.

"Nothing has been altered of my chambers. You still remember it?" I couldn't help but smile a little.

"Of course I do, I spent many nights and years in your chambers." Her voice was whispery and quiet.

"I don't want this to be an affair. I don't want to break apart our pantheon because of this, or cause Alexios any pain. So this cannot continue." I murmured.

"You want me to choose?" She asked softly. "I wish it were that simple, Alduin. I don't want to hurt anyone either. The mere thought of hurting Alex kills me inside."

"But yet you asked to see me?" I sighed. "Look, I will do anything to see you again, hell, to see you every day of forever. But I don't think you can see me and then go back home to him. It's not that easy. What do you think will happen when we meet in a few days?"

"We'll plunge over the invisible boundary line." She sounded sad. "And then we'll be past the point of no return. Alduin please, I have to see you."

I sighed, hesitated for a moment and then replied, "You need to figure out if you're okay with that."

"I need to know how it feels to see you again, alone, with nothing hindering my heart. Meet me this Wednesday at dawn? Please?" Her breathing hitched.

"I won't promise I'll be there. I don't know if I can. I'll let you sleep and consult your conscious."

"Alduin?" She stopped me from pulling away from the conversation. "Goodnight?"

"Goodnight, my Nightingale." As soon as the words left my lips, I broke the connection and rubbed my temples. The dim lighting in my room helped soothe the pounding migraine I was developing. We were playing with fire. It was only a matter of time before we were scorched.

***

Loren's Realm, Seventh Day, Dawn

I had tried everything that morning to distract myself from finding Gabby. I knew that if I did and we spent the day together, everything would change. We would unravel the strong barrier she had constructed all these years and we'd be within a tangled web of lies. I didn't want to live that kind of life. Loren knew my dilemma all too well and it was one he didn't want me to face.

I also didn't want an affair on my conscious. I was a better man than I gave myself credit for. And yet I found myself using my Earth title in the wee hours that morning to track down the sultry angel's whereabouts. I was surprised to find her in my father's realm like me.

It was quiet as usual, even though the holidays were only a month away. Starting November, his fae decorated the whole town in lights and Christmas touches. The winter weather usually started mid-October in his realm, because Lana loved the icy coldness of the snow and the way it looked draped over the treehouse-like realm. There was a thick coating of snow already covering the houses and streets. I bundled myself in furs and walked the streets, following the beating of her heart in my head. I could hear it calling for me as I walked for miles.