“Everything’s fucked up and I have to fix it.”
I can fix it,he’d promised, a lifetime ago.
I didn’t remember everything. Fuck, I didn’t even remember most of it. I didn’t know what he had to fix, why he’d made that promise, or how we even knew each other.
Will you love me, if things are different?
The answer I’d never given him formed easily on my lips:I think I love you now. But that was a different Treasure and a different Wilde. I didn’t know who this Wilde was. Every time I tried to find out, he ran away from me.
The stranger who had crashed into my dad.
The attendant who had interrupted a wedding announcement.
The woman Fitz had proclaimed his love to, who loved another man.
The mage who had called my name as he’d kissed me so sweetly, dreaming of another version of us.
Bits and pieces came back to me, but never the whole, and never enough about him. “Who are you?” I whispered into his hair.
There was no answer.
This time he really had fallen asleep.
Six Hours Later
A Guest Suite
Waiting to Pounce
The door slammed open and banged against the wall.Good thing I wasn’t hiding on the other side.Delilah skipped inside and called out, “Wilde! I think I solved your pro—agh!” Her excitement turned into a yelp as I tackled her, wrapping my arms around her midsection and dragging her to the ground.
Being the one topounceinstead of being pouncedonwas so satisfying, I understood why she always attacked me in greeting.
She squirmed and bucked under me, trying to throw me off. Her fluffy hair got in her eyes and mouth, and she spit it out in an undignified sputter. When she finally recognized who had tackled her, she relaxed. “Ha ha, very funny, Trey. Now get off.”
“Nope. You’re staying where I can keep an eye on you until I get some answers.”
“I’m notWilde,” she complained. “I can’t teleport away from you!”
“No, but you could punch me in the stomach and make a run for it.”
She pursed her lips, upset that I had read her thoughts. Turning her head to the side, she said, “Fine, have your way with me.”
“Ew, we arecousins.” It almost worked. I almost released her from shock and revulsion. Instead, I tightened my hold, thwarting her plan to disgust me into letting go.
“Everything alright in there?” Father called. The door to the suite was open, but we were far enough away that no one could see us.
“Fine!” we shouted at the same time.
“We’re going into town for dinner,” Dad called cheerfully. “Try not to kill each other while we’re gone.”
I waited until their door closed, then I released Delilah. We ran for the suite door at the same time, but I reached it first, slamming it shut. I planted myself in front of it and crossed my arms, daring her to try to muscle me out of her way.
She huffed and planted her hands on her hips. “What is this about, Trey?”
“Gee, maybe it has something to do withtime repeating?”
Her eyes widened and she looked frantically around the room. “Where’s Wilde? Did he run away again?”
