Fallen Ever After

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Authors: A. C. James
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the huge elephant in the room—even from beyond the grave. I wondered how long Julian and Arie had known one another. It must have been a pretty long time if he’d picked up on my resemblance to the woman he’d turned sometime in the 1600s. Unless there was something that Arie wasn’t telling me… I pushed the niggling mistrust to the background.
    “Subtlety never was your strong suit,” Arie said.
    Julian laughed. “Subtlety never gets you anywhere. It’s been too long. I can’t remember the last time I’ve seen you. How’ve you been?”
    “I can. New York. Eight years ago. I seem to remember bailing you out of jail after another bar brawl—kind of like this one.” There was a crinkle around Arie’s eyes that reminded me of crow’s feet set in marble. It made him look incredibly sexy. I could tell from the playful tone in their banter that he was pleased but puzzled to see an old friend. “But I guess I’ve been all right. How’ve you been?”
    “I can’t complain—business as usual.” Julian grinned. “Oh, yeah. I remember now. I guess it has been about eight years. Yeah, that place was a dive. But even if you hadn’t bailed me out, it’s not like I would have sat there for long, and it certainly wouldn’t have stuck…not in my city.”
    “So what brings you to Chicago?” Arie asked, grinning back at his friend.
    Julian’s grin faded and his expression turned serious. “Unfortunately, I’m the one bailing someone else out. I’m looking for my cousin Ty. He took off and I hear he headed out here and shacked up with some half-faerie.”
    “I can see how that’s a problem. Your people won’t approve,” Arie said.
    “You think I’m bad. He’s always been the black sheep of the family. Keeping him out of trouble is almost a full-time job. I’ve got enough shit to deal with without having to come all the way out here just because he can’t keep it in his pants.”
    Arie arched an eyebrow. “I never understood your customs. Don’t you think the Old Ways are outdated? It is the twenty-first century. Shack up with whoever you damn well please. I certainly wouldn’t let some archaic custom determine who I should and shouldn’t fuck.”
    I had no clue what Arie was talking about. “What do you mean? Why shouldn’t you be with whoever you want to be with?” I said with a shrug. “That’s the way it’s supposed to be, isn’t it?”
    “I wish it were that simple, Holly.” Julian frowned, running a hand through his hair. “According to the Old Ways, werewolves can’t mate outside of our own race, let alone species. It’s punishable by death.”
    Werewolf. That explains the animalistic smell.
    Of course now I could see the hint of a predatory gleam in his eyes. When he grinned, his eyes lit up and covered the animal instincts running just beneath the surface. After learning about the existence of vampires and faeries, it was easy to accept Julian as just another supernatural being, and it didn’t seem shocking considering the circumstances.
    After all, I’d died.
    If I’d learned anything, it was that everything I thought I knew didn’t even touch the surface of what was really out there. Reality was determined by experience, and the one thing that I was certain of was how quickly reality could change from one moment to the next. If you stopped long enough to analyze it or absorb the shock, something else would take its place. Although, I thought that it was wrong that in their world you could die just for loving someone. It was hard enough to find love without limiting your options.
    I frowned. “And what about love?”
    “Love doesn’t matter,” Julian said. He looked lost for a moment before his customary grin returned. “And it certainly doesn’t cause anything but trouble.”
    Arie grinned. “Hey, I’d agree with that. These days it’s been keeping me on my toes.”
    I knew Arie was trying to cover his friend’s shift in mood. Still, those seemed like the words

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