Page 87 of D'Vaire or Nothing
Ashby wasn’t normally a restless soul. But he kept a steady track through his opulent black, red, and white room as the minutes ticked by. He peeled off his jacket, shucked his tie, and lost his shoes. Walking in the same circuit around the furniture, Ashby muttered as the idea of leaving D’Vaire festered in his brain.
Outside his room was a large common space for himself and the other members of his family sharing the enormous suite, and he heard people coming and going. He hoped everyone was having a wonderful evening at the resort. They deserved it.Would Ashby be forced to catch up with the current events in their lives on occasional visits and with random calls or texts?
His phone rang, and Ashby nearly ignored it, but it would be an escape from the horrifying scenarios plaguing his mind.
“Hello.”
“Hello, is this Bard Ashby D’Vaire?”
“Yes, who is this?” Ashby asked curtly, wondering why some stranger was calling him late on a Friday night.
“My name is Seltivare Tristis, we met earlier.”
Although Ashby was unnerved by the prospect of his newly uncertain future, a spurt of joy burst through his terror. He’d been foolish to forget for even a second that Seltivare was supposed to phone him. His smile formed.
“Hi, Selti. Call me Ashby, remember?”
“Yes, but it’s the first time I’ve called, so I was worried I might have the wrong number.” There was some noise in the background, and Ashby heard someone speaking but couldn’t make out the words.
“It’s the right number, and I’m glad to hear from you.”
“Would you shut up?” Seltivare hissed.
Taken aback, Ashby blinked heavily at Seltivare’s sudden outburst. “I’m sorry?”
“Shit, not you. Sorry, I have a twin brother, and for some stupid reason I told him we met, and now he won’t leave me alone. I’ll ask him what I want, Mavi!”
Pleased to know he hadn’t inadvertently done anything to anger Seltivare, Ashby chuckled. “Do you have any other siblings?”
“If Mavizare doesn’t stop bothering me, I’m going to be an only child in a second.”
“I’ll take that as a no.”
“Do you have brothers or sisters?”
“No.”
“Lucky you, having a twin brother is annoying. Thank Fate he sat on his bed and shut his mouth. I was about ready to forget I was thirty and kick his shin.”
It was nice to know their ages weren’t too far off. Ashby had joined D’Vaire at age twenty-two and spent the last two and a half decades as part of the best family on the planet.
“Do you two live alone?”
“No, we live with our parents. But they’re selling our house. We’ve been here our whole lives. They haven’t even found a new place yet. I guess we should start discussing the stuff for our matebond ceremony or Mavi is going to start blabbing again.”
Ashby knew immediately where he aspired to tie his soul to Seltivare’s, and he wanted everyone they both loved in attendance. Which was why Ashby winced.
“It just hit me that my entire family is on vacation until Monday. My thought was to have it at my home in Arizona with my family and yours, but I guess we’ll have to do something smaller so we can have it this weekend.”
“Is that what you want? To have it at your house?”
“It’s okay, I respect your traditions.”
“Okay, Ashby, listen. I know your impression of Mavi so far is of an annoying, immature brat, and he mostly is. I probably am too, but he’s also my twin. My best friend. He’ll keep a secret for me. I haven’t told my parents yet that we met. They’re already in bed. If I wait a couple of days, we can still have our ceremony how you dreamed. Traditions will be followed, and we’ll both get what we want. Matebonds are supposed to be about compromise, right? That’s what my mom says anyway when she tries to talk my dad into doing something.”
It sounded like a glorious solution to Ashby, but it was also a lie.
“I don’t know how I feel about starting our relationship by being dishonest to your parents. Elven traditions are sacred, right? If they discovered the truth, wouldn’t they be angry?”
