“Of course I did. Kept the money, though. He was so drunk, he didn’t even ask for it back!”
I slap the bar with a guffaw of laughter. “What did you spend it on?”
Soren’s humor sobers. “My granddad needed knee surgery, and his insurance wouldn’t cover it, so I chipped in.”
His grandfather? Soren never had a grandfather. All his family except for his father were killed in the attack on his village. Whoever this man is, he isn’t his relative. So who is he?
“That was kind of you. You must care for him deeply.”
Soren smiles, soft and loving. I missed that sight. “He’s the best. My mom had me really young, and she took off and left me with him. I can’t imagine raising kids was something he wanted to do after he retired, but he gave it his all.”
What? His mother? Realization slams into me, making my hand curl into a fist. These must be the memories the Council planted in Soren’s mind to help him adjust to this new timeline. It’s not real, any of it, but he believes it is with his whole heart.
I push my drink aside, the taste like ash in my mouth. If Soren were to learn the truth, that his entire life has been a lie… it would devastate him. Who is his grandfather? Is he somehow in on this whole thing?
Gods, I wish I could tell Soren the truth. He deserves to know. But I can’t. It would bring ruin to my family. I can’t risk it.
“You okay?” Soren nudges my foot, his gaze soft and concerned. He rubs my shoulder, and I lean into the warmth and sturdiness of his touch.
“Aye. Just… happy you had him.” A lump rises in my throat, but I smile around it.
It should have been me. I should have been there with him. If I had gone, mayhap the Council would have taken both our memories of the past, but let us be together.
What have I done?
“Hey, there’s a rage room!” Soren says, pointing toward a door with a big flashing sign above it. “Wanna go smash shit up?”
That sounds like a good way to let loose all my despair and frustration. “Sounds good.” I rise when he does.
We’re handed safety gear and shown the way to the dressing room. Once we’re alone, Soren clears his throat. “Guess we better… strip.” While I can’t catch Soren’s natural scent, I can still smell his emotions and hear the skip in his heart. He’s nervous and… aroused. Turning away to hide my smirk, I make a show of slowly peeling up my sweater and tossing it onto the bench. I rotate my shoulders, my muscles popping. In the quiet, the sharp hitch in Soren’s breathing is quite loud.
He’s watching me.
I toss my hair over my shoulder and turn to glance at him. Soren looks away and focuses on removing his own clothing. His coat comes off, then his sweater, revealingfair skin and a hairy chest I want to nuzzle into. His body looks different, soft in places where he used to be toned and hard. In my time, he had the body of a warrior, honed for battle. This Soren lives a different life now, a softer, easier life.
Even if we did get back together, would he still feel at home in the past?
Our lives have gone in such different directions.
“See something you like?” Soren asks.
I look away, my neck warming. “Oh, aye. Very much.”
Soren sweeps his gaze up and down my bare chest. “Okay.” He snorts, not sounding as if he believes me at all.
“I do,” I insist. Why doesn’t he believe me? He looks different now, but that hardly matters. I still want to put my hands and mouth anywhere he’ll let me. “Shall I prove it to you?”
Soren swallows loudly. “Prove… what?”
A smile lifts the edge of my mouth. Soren leans back against the lockers as I close in until the space between us diminishes. The heat from his body warms me from head to toe, and his breath ghosts over my lips. Reaching out, my hand oddly shaky, I trace his jaw with the back of my knuckles. My stomach swoops.
I’m touching him. Soren’slettingme touch him.
His eyelids lower and he angles his head, leaning into my touch. His lips look so soft, and they’re so close that the warm gust of his breath tickles my mouth. Gods, I’vedreamed every night about kissing him again, of having him in my arms. My chest aches with the need to lean in and kiss him.
“Soren.” His name cracks in my throat. “I’ve thought of nothing but this all day.”
Years. I’ve wanted you for years.
