Forever in the Past and Forever in the Future

I'm on the phone for an hour and a half with Ashley and the PR team, coming up with a statement for the media anda plan for how Kas and I should respond if we're asked questions by reporters. I hang up and rub my hands over my face. I really fucked up. The PR team is mad, Ashley’s mad. I can only imagine how mad Lenora is. This was an international event. She is going to have to deal with it, too. I'm surprised she hasn't called to yell at me yet. And tabloids reporting that Kas is pregnant, too? Ican only imagine how upset she is.

I sit back in my seat and sigh. The television is on mute, but I look over and see an image of me sitting on the edge of the fountain with my hand on Kas’s belly. Oh shit. I can’t hear what the reporter is saying, but she has a huge grin on her face. The tabloids aren't just making shit up. They saw us talking about it. Even if they couldn't hear our conversation, they saw the body language. That’s all they need to run with a false story.

Fuck.

I lean forward and put my head in my hands and hear Kas out of the bedroom.

I can't bear to look at her. She gently pushes my chest to get me to sit up. When I look up, I see she’s wearing our shirt, hair tousled like it always is when she first wakes up. I let her take my arms and wrap them around her when she sits in my lap, so she is comfortable. She takes a deep breath and breathes in my scent.

“Bronx, can we go home now, please? I want to sleep in our bed, even if it's only for a few days.”

“Of course, Baby. Our flight is scheduled for tomorrow and we don't have any other travel plans scheduled. You'll sleep in our bed for as many nights as you want starting tomorrow. Not justa few days. I can see if Carly can move up the flight if you want to leave sooner?”

“No. I can wait one more night,” she sighs and curls herself up tighter against me, “I can just stay in here though, right? I don’t have to leave the room?”

“Yeah, you can just stay in the room. Kas, I really fucked up this time. I’m so sorry,” I whisper into her forehead. I realize I'm rocking her back and forth slightly.

“It's going to be alright, Bronx. People will forget about it soon enough,” her voice is hollow, like she doesn’t believe the words she’s saying. I can feel an emotion coming from her. I think it’s sadness, but it’s more complicated than that.

“What's wrong, Kas? If all this is too stressful, I will pull strings. We can get out of here in an hour if that’s what you want. I know! fucked up. I will do whatever it takes to fix it. Just give the word and we are on our way to the airport,” I give her a kiss on the temple and whisper into her ear.

“I'm fine, Sweetheart. Just a little-”

I wait for her to finish, but she doesn't. I look down and see she is asleep. Her head and top half of her body drops forward heavily when I try to look at her.

“Kas?” I adjust my position to tilt her back, making her head roll back heavily against my bicep, “Kas?!”

I pat my hand against her face, but she doesn’t respond. I take a deep breath and smell her scent. Her body is warm and I can still feel the sparks of our mate bond. I lift her eyelid, but her eyes don’t have the hollow, empty look they do when she falls into a vision. They’re just rolled back slightly, like she passed out.

“James! Get Delilah. Something’s wrong with Kas,” I command through a mind link while I take her into the bedroom, “ It’s not a Code Violet. Not like one we've seen before, anyway.”

Kas still in wolf form?” James asks, sounding

she shifted back. I’m putting her in bed

kiss her fingertips. I feel my breath getting heavier as I try not to panic, “Kas, come on,

in the room with James and Delilah right behind him. Delilah rushes over to her friend, “What happened to

hours while she runs her hands down Kas’s body without touching her. A

spirit is in her body right now. The only thing I could do is try

I would never try to get in your way when you're trying to help someone, especially Kas, but you can’t try to leave your body

her way back. Something or someone pulled her

nods her head and wipes away a tear, then takes Kas’s hand, “Ou es-tu mon ami? Reviens chez nous. [Where are you, my friend? Come back to

Kas’s POV

my eyes and look around. I'm in the hall of Mount Olympus, where I first met Zeus. I look in both

echoes down the hall, “My name

hallway, I see a woman materialize out of thin air. She has light blonde hair that seems to flow in a non-existent breeze. She is wearing a tiara with a crescent moon. Her blue eyes shine like moonlight and become more clear as she glides closer to me. I can't see her

impossibly fast pace, even though she walks slowly. She kneels down to the ground and sits in front of me witha loving look and a

my little warrior child,” she says. I hear her voice in my mind, but her lips

I feel tears trying to prick at the corners

she stands and takes my hand. She isn’t as tall as Zeus, but she is well over six feet. When I

Mother?” I

can wait a few more minutes,” she looks down and smiles. I have never heard someone tell me

with giant throne-like chairs around the perimeter. As we enter, people materialize in the chairs. Some of them I recognize from pictures and statues I have seen. Zeus materializes in

my darling,”

is a compass rose etched into the floor. I look around at the children of Titan Gods surrounding me. Out of the corner of my eye, I see two people

what’s happening?” I

worry. Everything's going to be fine,” she smiles with her soft blue eyes.

You go by Kas now, correct?” Zeus’s voice

call me Kas,” I gulp hard, feeling like my voice

nods before he continues, “Kas, your mate, Bronx