Page 30 of Elf

“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.

Chapter Eighteen

Ezra

Just turning into the long driveway to Brian’s house had Ezra’s stomach churning so hard, he had to swallow back bile. Years he’d spent here being miserable and then toward the end…scared. He’d known his husband wasn’t a good man but hadn’t realized how bad until he’d walked in on Brian slicing someone’s neck. And now, he knew that Brian trafficked human beings. He was one sick motherfucker.

Being here sent that familiar, metallic taste of terror to his tongue. His heart started racing as his palms sweated.

Fingers threaded through his and he looked up to find Alaric watching him with concern tightening his brows. He probably had some kind of supernatural radar that alerted him to how the fear was affecting Ezra physically.

“You shouldn’t have come,” Alaric said softly.

They were sitting in the third section of the SUV with Finn and Bain in the middle. Xavier sat up front with Callan driving. It had been amusing to watch the huge demon curl himself into the vehicle.

“I need to confront him myself. Need to know why he’s trying to have me killed.” Ezra squeezed his fingers. “It’ll be fine. I’m going in with five of you powerful guys. What could he do?” He realized where they were and leaned forward. “You can park here. There are cameras everywhere, but a really nice blind spot around back where we can sneak in.”

Finn turned to look at Ezra. “I’ll go in first and disable the cameras.”

“But won’t that alert him before we can get inside?”

Finn gave him a toothy grin. “I’ll be fast.”

“Trust him,” Alaric said. “He moves quickly in his other form.”

“Wish I had another form,” Ezra muttered. “Would have come in handy when I still lived here.”

Callan parked off the driveway in a stand of trees, and they all got out. Ezra watched with complete fascination as Finn just vaporized in front of his eyes. While they waited, he worried his nerves were going to hit astronomical levels. He’d left Brian the day after witnessing the murder and hadn’t been back, his only contact with his ex over the phone once when he’d caved to the persistent calls. He didn’t even really understand why the man wanted him back. He’d never loved Ezra. Was probably incapable of love entirely. At least he couldn’t imagine the kind of person Brian could care about as anything more than a possession.

In no time at all, Finn returned, and they hurried toward the back door. Hoping his code still worked, Ezra keyed it in, breathing a sigh of relief when the door opened. It wouldn’t take long for Brian’s people to let him know about the cameras, so he hurried toward the office where his ex basically lived. It was a big room with a desk and two couches, various lamps, and the Salvador Dali paintings Brian collected. There was also a fireplace which gave the uncomfortable room a hint of coziness.That coziness had fooled Ezra at first, making him think he’d be welcome in there. That wasn’t the case. Turned out, Brian probably kept a fire going to counter his absolute coldness. The man was ice through and through.

Knowing they still had the element of surprise and that he was surrounded by powerful beings, Ezra boldly marched into the office. “Hello, Brian.”

His ex looked up, firelight playing over his ridiculously handsome features. His white hair was stark against his olive skin, the instant frown and surprise in his expression something Ezra had rarely seen when living here. Showing emotion was not in Brian’s wheelhouse. Those brown eyes slowly moved to each man around Ezra, and Ezra took that moment to count how many people were in the room. Jake was there, along with the other bodyguard, Stephen. Other than them, only one of the usual two really creepy men Ezra had done his best to avoid was there. He didn’t have a glamour for Ezra to see through, but now that he’d been around Xavier, he understood that a lot of preternaturals looked more human than others. So he got the feeling that the creepy man held magic, and that was why he and his buddy had always made Ezra so uncomfortable. The twins, as he liked to call them, held no souls. There was something just…void…about them. He was glad only one of them was there.

“Guess you’re wondering why I’m here, huh?” he asked his ex.

“Of course. You’ve refused to see me for months. But who are your friends?”

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