Ascension - Book Eight - Man x Man

Chapter 130 (M)

The man's attention to detail is truly remarkable, I'd never been in a relationship really before him. I'd had the occasional boy I'd fancied or been with my teachers in school, though we never did anything beyond sexual favors. I'd read books and watched movies, there were supposed to be acts of kindness and things that showed endearment that hadn't really meshed well into our lives. 

I knew he loved me, and in his own ways, he did small things to make my life easier, but to remember the details I'd requested in our argument about the build of our home in France was not what I expected. 

The front gates weren't changed much, save for fixed into place from where they'd been torn down and remodeled to open and close by a keypad. A stone and iron fence formed the front entrance that spaned a healthy distance in both directions. The long driveway was no longer gravel, but paved in a familiar cobblestone and lined with new growth trees that resembled the entrance to my home in Romania. While the trees weren't the same species, I recognized it instantly and could picture what they would look like once they'd grown in. 

Silent, we drive down the long path, Verando tracks the improvements with an occasional grumble while I absorb every detail. A man on a small motorized quad vehicle chases the herd of black cows back towards the rear lot, I tilt my head and Verando scoffs at my confusion. 

"The place had to stay running, darling. It is a working farm, I didn't know if you'd want to keep the animals or not. not much a fan of the work myself but there is plenty of land here for it. Tyler's father seemed insistent that we at least try to maintain it as it should be." 

I almost crack, laughing deeper than I had in weeks. "You, farming?"

Shrugging one shoulder, he sighs, "I was a slave, remember? What do you think I did during that time? I assure you, it wasn't house chores." He reminds me, making my mouth fall and I stare ahead as we pull up to the home. 

"What... did you do? As a slave?" I ask, we really hadn't spoken much about that time of his life. I knew he belonged to elves, that he'd been discharged to Taryek in the end and that was his final destination before liberation. I knew he'd been bought and sold a few times, but not much of what that life was like. It had been a hard topic, considering my family had owned many of the lycan slaves we'd created. 

Considering this, he cocks an eyebrow at me as I put the car into park and turn it off. "This is what you want to talk about right now?" He questions, though the tone of his voice is flat, not guarded as I'd expected. 

"Living here is going to bring back a lot of memories. I want you to know that I'm open to talking about it... My family owned a lot of slaves, sometimes, when I used to go into purgatory when I'd used to much, my father would show me the past and one time..." Hesitating, I keep my hands firmly on the wheel, looking back into the shadowy memory that I'd tried to forget so many times. "I saw you, I saw him turn you through his eyes. I try not to think about it much, but I want you to know that I.. do.. think about it."

Quiet, we sit until Tomas pulls in behind us and Verando simply climbs out of the car to move to my side and open the door for me. I take his hand, his expression was much more controlled, deep in thought I'd imagine as he gestures for me to head toward the house. The large wrap-around porch as impressive, I note that the home is an attempt on its former glory though much less modern and more designed towards a late 18th-century Victorian home. It takes my breath away with its height, larger than I'd thought he'd ever want to dwell in again. 

Massive pillars from the large harvested trees form the bones of the porch, intricately carved molding decorating the rafters and leading to the polished front door. 

Three healthy stories, with a small tower to the front, the cone-shaped peak at the highest point of the home though behind it held a flat space. I push the large, oak front doors open and see the grand staircase climbing to the upper level, the open floor plan, and stone floors. It'd be cool in the summer, we'd need that with our lycan lineage. I worry about the chill in the winter, taking in the pale color scheme and letting my eyes settle on the various, large-scale photographs marking the walls on canvas prints.