I stared at him. “You’re going to eat with me?”
“Yes. Eat with you, sleep with you, and escort you wherever you need to go.”
“Whoa,sleepwith me?”
He tipped his head, the corner of his mouth lifting. “Oh, don’t worry. I won’t be sharing your bed. Not unless you ask me to.”He winked. “I’ll take the sofa. I’ll be a roommate until you invite Iblees back into your bed.”
“I’m not sharing my bed with anyone.”
“You shared it with Araz, didn’t you?”
“Araz was my…He was my drohi, and I loved him.”
“Gods, woman were you not listening to anything that was said? Iblees is now Araz. You haven’t lost him. He’s evolved. Can you not accept that? Isn’t it better than not having him at all?”
“I was told the primordial evil burned Araz’s soul to take his body.”
“And now you know that there is no primordial evil. It was a lie created to hide the truth.” He let out a soft huff. “The irony, huh? You were a djinn princess once, and then you were born into the very bloodline responsible for ending your life and incarcerating your twin flame.”
Fuck… “You’re right. It is an irony.”
He gave me a crooked smile, flashing a dimple in his left cheek.
“Who are you? Like seriously,whatare you?”
His smile died. “I don’t know,” he said softly. “I awoke in the prison. Called forth by Iblees’s pain and loneliness. He shaped me. Allowed me to live in his field.”
“Field?”
“His field…the energy that he exudes. He gave me harbor. He called me into being and anchored me there. He named me and gave me agency.”
“What does that mean exactly? You’reboundto him?”
“Not bound by force, but by choice. I choose to stay with him because he is my home, and now, through him, so are you. Now let’s eat and get some rest. There’s still much to learn…for the both of us.”
Chapter 26
AND AT LAST, I SEE THE LIGHT
I’d expected sleep to be evasive with a stranger in my bedroom, but I drifted off quickly, waking to the smell of coffee and a low melodious humming that was achingly familiar. It stopped before I could discern why.
“And she finally awakens,” C’ael said. “The water is hot, there are fresh towels in the washroom, and breakfast awaits. The sooner we start the day, the sooner it will be night and you can claim the rest of your answers from Araz.”
I wiped the sleep from my eyes and stretched. “Iblees. His name is Iblees.”
He sighed. “Iblees. Araz. Same difference. I believe he explained that to you. Several times. So either you’re stupid or you’re being stubborn, and I doubt Iblees, the god of the djinn, would have a moron for a twin flame.” He arched a brow my way. “So which is it?”
I closed my eyes and slumped back against the pillows. “It’s not so easy to wrap your head around.”
“I know. But you will because you must. Now up you get. We have a whole day of exploring to do.”
I climbed out of bed and slipped my feet into the fur-lined slippers he’d given me last night. My nightgown slipped to my ankles as I stood, covering me nicely from neck to foot.
I glanced about for my clothes.
“Fresh clothes in the washroom,” C’ael said, picking up an earthenware mug and sniffing it. “Mmmm, good coffee. Better hurry before it gets cold or before I drink it all.” He made to take a sip, but I snagged the cup off him on the way to the washroom.
“Yeah. Not happening. I need my caffeine.”
