Page 214 of The Life of Anna-Tenth Anniversary Edition: Act 2

The stabbing pain in his heart brought to mind what Vati had told him a few days ago. Anna was dating someone. Alex rubbed his chest. That was one of the reasons he had wanted to get to New York as soon as possible. What if she fell in love with this guy? Where would that leave Alex? It didn’t help that Tom said that Hugo was a good guy. Anna was his wife!

He growled and imagined punching the guy in his face.

Laughter from behind him made him jump. He somersaulted out of bed and was in a defensive pose before he realized what he was doing.

“Sebastian!” He hadn’t seen his Immortal since they’d been taken by Vitaly’s men. He looked exactly as he had the last day he’d seen him. The two embraced. “What took you so long to come?”

Sebastian scrunched his face and shook his head. “I had to get out without Kaveh knowing.”

Alex had forgotten about the other Immortal’s involvement. “Does he know you’re gone?”

Sebastian shook his head. “I finally convinced the Immortal Father that what Kaveh was doing was wrong. Since the humans finally acknowledged the harm Devin was doing, he allowed me to return to help. Kaveh and the others will be dealt with. They are protecting me and staying out of it until you deal with Devin. But I promise you, Kaveh will be dealt with.”

Alex nodded. “Good.” He grinned. “I can’t shoot Kaveh, can I?”

Sebastian chuckled. “Well, you can, but it will not do any good. Do not worry. He, and the others, will pay for what they have done.”

Alex set his jaw and nodded again. “Good.” He ran his hand through his hair. It was still long. For some reason, he was reluctant to cut it or shave off his beard. He supposed it made him feel less vulnerable. He wasn’t immediately recognizable, even though he couldn’t leave the estate until he was ready to go to New York. How long would that be?

“Not long, Alex,” Sebastian said sympathetically. “You must be patient.”

Alex frowned. “I hate it when you do that.” Though sometimes it was nice not to have to talk.

Sebastian laughed and then sat down on a chair near the fireplace. “How are things going here? Why do you want to punch someone in the face?”

Alex stood and walked to the chair opposite Sebastian. “Anna’s dating someone.”

“Ah.”

“I’ve been told he’s a good guy.”

“You are amusing when you are jealous.”

Alex growled. “How can I not be? That man is fucking my wife.”

“Alex, she thinks of herself as a widow. She has finally accepted it and moved on.” Sebastian smiled. “You must woo her back.”

Alex slumped into the chair across from Sebastian. “Is it possible? Will she be able to love me again?”

“I firmly believe so. But you will have to be careful with her. She has likely changed quite a bit from the girl you married.”

“I hope it’s in a good way.”

Sebastian shrugged. “Gavin told me she has been through a lot. She has more emotional scars than before. Your death being the biggest.”

“How do I approach her?”

“Slowly and carefully. Talk to Tom and Tommy. See what you can glean from them. Did you know she is living with Aaron?”

Alex nodded, his heart squeezing again. He missed Aaron, too. Guilt washed over him when he realized he hadn’t considered Aaron’s reaction to his return. And all his other friends. They’d suffered too. Oh, what a mess Devin had made. He would make sure Devin paid for it all.

Alex paced outside in the garden the next morning, troubled by the thought of Anna removing her wedding ring and dating the dancer in New York. When Tom had called the previous night to tell them what Anna had done to Jack, it hadn’t fully registered, but this morning, the thought refused to leave his mind.

She’d moved on. She’d given up on him. He shook his head and sat down hard on the cement bench, staring at the ground, twisting his own wedding ring on his finger.

Was he being selfish? Should he just let her go? If she found a man who would take care of her?—

“No!” He wouldn’t give her up without a fight. He’d come too far to give up so easily. What would happen if Devin found her? This other man wouldn’t be able to protect her. He would unquestionably be killed if he tried. Then she would be even worse off.

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