11. The Taste of Trust

After this we talked more about my time in the past, and I was surprised how much Jared had actually discovered himself. Of course, the hardest part was when talking about when I first arrived there. I didn"t know how he knew, but when he asked the question about meeting him when he was still mortal, I couldn"t help my tense reactions and apprehensive responses. He then assured me that it was all right, that I could trust him not to freak out again (my words, not his). But naturally, he didn"t understand the true depth of what he was asking me for. Of course, I knew that the right thing to do was to tell him about his wife and the treacherous nature in how he came to be the HellBeast King.

But once again, I just couldn"t do it.

I was torn between my subconscious screaming at me to just be honest and the other part of me was utterly terrified. Terrified that he wouldn"t believe me and that the memory of her was still too strong to fight against. We had come so far and been through so much, that this part felt more like an unnecessary cruelty. As if it was just the bitter icing on some Demonic cake that never should have been baked in the first place. The irony of it was not lost on me, because Jared had been too afraid to tell me about his wife for fear of losing me and now I was doing the same.

But of course, I knew that Jared loved me and that, in all likelihood, my fears were unfounded. But that tiny shred of doubt held so much power over me, that I couldn"t help but ask myself what if he didn"t believe it. What if his reaction was one that I couldn"t help but be hurt by? Because it wasn"t just Jared's feelings I was trying to protect. In truth, it was also my own.

So instead of taking what was no doubt the perfect opportunity, like a coward, I pressed on. I told him how one minute I was there and the next I wasn"t. That I was in a different time and faced with a very different Jared. I could tell that he wanted to ask me so many more questions about this. Like he knew that I was holding back, but he too feared what and why it would be. So, in that moment, neither of us pushed for more, nor did we offer anything other than what we had to say to move the story along.

The problem with this was that everything after this point either felt like a lie or a truth I was keeping. Because without giving context behind it, I couldn"t really explain why I had done half the things that I needed to do. Which meant, in the end, I had no choice but to make an excuse to tell him that the reason for me changing my appearance was so Jared wouldn"t recognize me. That my plan had been to steal one of his coins so I could make my way back to the temple.

Of course, after Jared"s comment when waking up and telling me how he knew that he would never have let me go, this was easier for him to believe. To tell him that I had no choice but to mask who I was to him, so that he wouldn"t recognize me from the past and nor would he realize that I was his Chosen One. Because Jared had been spot on, knowing that if he had recognized me as his Chosen from the beginning, he never would have let me go. Hell, he wouldn"t let me go even before he knew this, and time hadn't ever changed that crazed HellBeast mindset. Which was why I explained that my original plan had only ever been to simply get close enough to him so that I may steal the coin. Obviously that plan had gone to shit when history ended up repeating itself and I found myself dancing on his stage again.

His reaction was unsurprising, as he laughed and said, "Yeah well, I bet that plan was shot to shit the second I saw you."

When I asked him to elaborate on that, he told me,

"I have a dick, babe, and I have been led by it before where you are concerned." I frowned back at him and asked in a snippy tone,

"And just what exactly is that supposed to mean?"

"Ella, come on, even before I knew you were my Chosen, I wanted you, and I was not willing to give you up despite you being mortal and on top of that, who your uncle is."

I suppose he had a point there, because that was the one thing that Jared had never faltered at. The consistent truth he had always told in him never being willing to give me up. He had never been willing to let me go, not even when it would have made his life easier. Not even when he thought it would have meant going to war with not only a Vampire King but who was essentially the King of all Kings… my uncle.

I didn"t have much to say about this because, clearly, it wouldn"t have been an argument I could have won, even if I"d have tried or wanted to. So, I pressed on and told him that after he had found me stealing the coin, I"d had no choice but to tell past Jared why. That I had no other option but to come clean and tell him I was from the future. What was funny was his reaction to this, because all that time may have passed between the two versions of Jared, but they were essentially the same. Something he confirmed when he scoffed and asked me how the hell I had proven something like that, knowing instantly that it would have been hard for him to believe.

Of course, before I even said the name, he was there first realizing the only way for me to do this and saying it aloud,

"Marcus."

"Yeah, Marcus." I went on to tell him that the moment I had proven that I wasn"t lying was when he demanded the blood oath, believing that it would be the only way to ensure not only my safety, but also the promise of being forever by his side. Because he never believed there would have been a way for me to get to the fountain with another of his coins in hand. Little did he know though, it was through me pleading with him to help me stop Niniane that would end up being my means of getting home.

This had been the part of the story where I couldn"t help but form tears, remembering the exact moment I broke his heart, along with my promise. He gave me a tender look as he took them away with the pads of his thumbs before asking me,

"Why do you cry, baby girl?" that was when I told him about how guilty I felt after the promise I"d made never to leave. I told him that the hardest thing I had ever done was to watch as I destroyed him with my decision. Naturally, he understood this and, thankfully, he even had sympathy for it despite what the outcome had meant for him. I couldn"t help but be relieved knowing that the alternate timeline had vanished like it had never happened. Because I couldn"t stand the thought that there was a Jared out there whose heart was breaking because of what I had done.

But as I told him this, instead of choosing words of comfort he simply held me tighter. He held me through the pain and took with it the bittersweet relief that I had done what I had done for him. For he knew then that I would have chosen him and this life over any other.

A bittersweet ending that unfortunately, we both knew…

Wasn't over yet.

The next timeI woke it was clear by the light streaming through the blinds that it was morning. And for once, I found that Jared was still fast asleep. But then again, I didn"t really find this surprising, especially considering what he must have been through during his imprisonment. I had seen those cells for myself, and it wasn"t exactly like they had come with even the most basic creature comforts.

But then this is when I remembered the three S"s he had spoken about, realizing he had only gotten two of them. Which was when I decided to make it my mission to get him the last one. So, with this in mind, I slipped out of bed, again smiling at how tired he must be considering he didn"t feel it. An unusual thing for Jared, because he almost always woke up whenever I moved next to him.

I even managed to get dressed without him stirring at the slightest sound that I was making. Of course, it usually would have icked me out having to re-dress in old clothes but after my trip back to the past, I was now over most icks. I did, however, grab one of Jared's oversized T-shirts instead of wearing my dress tucked into my jeans. I was amazed that all my clothes were still intact; I came out of the fountain exactly how I had gone into it.

I also grabbed a zip-up hoodie I found that I had to roll at the sleeves. It looked massive on me, but it was better than wearing a red party dress because that was even more suspect looking.

As for Jared, he was out cold, making me wonder if the smell of cooking might rouse him. Of course, the flaw in this plan was when I went down into the kitchen area and found the cupboards completely bare. It looked like somebody hadn"t lived here for a long time.

It was a far cry from what the last cabin had been like because, clearly, being there had been planned, where staying here had not. Jared had told me last night, that once every few weeks he had a cleaner come in because I had asked him why nothing was covered in dust and why the sheets didn"t smell stale or musty. This was after he admitted he hadn"t been here for quite some time. And obviously, there had been no reason to stock the kitchen with food if nobody was going be here to eat it. And as if on cue, my stomach started to rumble and quite honestly, I couldn"t remember the last time I had eaten anything. I was running on empty, and Jared must have been the same.

Hence why I made the rash decision to go out and get some food, hoping that I would be back before he woke up. But just in case he wasn"t, I wrote him a note. Of course, it also meant stealing from him again, because this plan only started to form in my mind after rummaging through all the cupboards and finding a draw with a wad of cash in it. Man, he must really trust his cleaning lady.

So, with a plan in mind, I quickly wrote my note, then grabbed the wad of cash and the car keys, knowing that there was a local grocery store we passed only about ten minutes away. I was aware that, either way, Jared was going to be pissed but I already knew what my argument in return would be. Because what could possibly go wrong when I had a whole Book of Souls at my fingertips in case anybody thought to attack me? Besides, I was starving.

Which also meant I was out the door five minutes later and, ten minutes after that, I was at the store. Thankfully, they had a variety and I got enough stuff to last us a few days, including the all-important steak I knew Jared was no doubt craving. I also got lots of snacks, and because my sweet tooth was going crazy craving all the stuff I had missed over however many weeks it had been, I ended up at the cashier looking like some junk-food junkie.

Thankfully, she was wise enough not to comment, especially when I grabbed a box of tampons, knowing that I was due on soon. I had skipped my last period, this was true, but I was quite often quite irregular, and this had been something I had been thankful for while back in the past. I really didn't want to know what they used back then, because that would have been some serious icks, no doubt.

As for now, well I knew I was obviously due my period any day now because the stuff I was craving was the same stuff I always craved a few days before. Hence why I was trying to drive and stuff my face with cookies as I drove back. A venture I was happy to report, was without incident as I wrestled the bags inside the cabin, surprised but also relieved to see that Jared was still asleep.

Of course, I knew that when he found out that I had gone to the store, the shit would still hit the fan. But this way I was at least safe and nothing nefarious had befallen me, so I knew this would help my cause in diffusing his anger.

That and… bacon.

So, after unpacking the shopping, I put a skillet on the stove and started cooking and, like I thought it would, the scent of food roused a hungry HellBeast from his slumber.

"Gotta say, babe, seeing you barefoot, looking all sexy in my kitchen and cooking for me is gonna make me hungry for something else," he said, making me grin down at the sizzling bacon before turning around to face him.

"My feet were hot," I told him because, for some weird reason, they were. He smirked at this.

"That's not the only thing that's hot," he said, looking me up and down with a predatory gaze. I had taken off my hoodie and knotted the oversize T-shirt at my belly, as well as taking my shoes and socks off. I winked at him and thought, well this was going better than expected. Of course, this was one thought where I would have spoken too soon had I voiced this aloud. Because the next thing out of his mouth was,

"At this rate, I will be buying my brother a new bike."

"How come?" I asked, now sipping my coffee after clicking the kettle on so I could make him his favorite morning drink, something I knew by now definitely wasn't coffee. As for me, I was on my third cup already and I swear, I thought I was going to orgasm from just the first sip. It had been so long since tasting my addiction.

But then talking about orgasaming, the sight of Jared was enough to have me near drooling. I mean, was it really fair to come down in nothing but a pair of jeans and with all those delicious muscles on show? Of course, the moment he voiced his assumption, all thoughts of jumping his bones fled me.

"The food… in fact, I am surprised I didn't wake up at the sound of his booming voice echoing in this place." I froze at this, knowing what was coming next and, soon enough, the question I was dreading was asked…

"What time did my brother leave?"