A Family Visit

Chapter Five

A Family Visit

“What’s wrong?” He asked when I tensed in the morning during my average morning pain.

“Nothing.” I promised rolling over and smiling when it was over and concentrating on not letting any of the other aftereffects show.

“It’s been so long since you stayed here you forgot…” he trailed off as the front door banged open. “This might not be pretty.” He whispered.

“Who’s here?” I asked glad somebody was interrupting and he wouldn’t know I was actually mad this morning.

“Do you remember my family?” He checked and I nodded. “Then get dressed and then meet me downstairs.”

“Are my clothes still here from where I filled up a closet last time?”

“They should be.” He nodded opening the second closet in the room, which was actually the walk-in closet because he used the small one. He walked out and I heard him downstairs greeting everybody.

“Nice to see that you can still tell when she’s mad.” I heard Hamilton, who could read feelings, tell Damon. I dropped all my choices of clothes and just ran over to the door praying I’d get there before Damon and lock the door. Just as I got to the lock though I felt his powerful strength opening the door, even when Damon wasn’t trying he was more powerful than I was.

“I’m changing!” I called out the door finding a way to keep him out.

“You haven’t been in there long enough to find an outfit especially with you mad at me.” He called my lie but his hand had moved off the door long enough for me to lock it so I just moved back over to the clothes and started to go through them holding the choices up to me deciding which would look best and which Damon would like best. “Unlock the door Daphne.” He warned angrily.

“No.” I snapped.

“We need to talk.” He said.

“No I’m not talking to you right now.”

“I don’t know what I did.” His voice turned desperate.

“And you still wouldn’t understand even if we talked so it’s better without talking.” I said walking out in the chosen outfit. He tried to put his arms around me but I pulled away.

“So you won’t tell me what I did… You won’t talk about it… and you won’t let me try to make up for it?” He asked and I knew he was trying to beat some sense into me.

“Hey Nadia!” I smiled going over to her and hugging her she was one of my best friends during each life and I couldn’t have been happier she was finally back in this one.

“I had a vision that you got all your memories back last night so I thought we’d…” She’d trailed off and I automatically turned to look at Damon knowing he knew now what he’d done.

“Cleo…” He begged.

“No just answer the question you know I have.” I whispered.

“I have seen her this life.” He nodded and I started towards the door automatically feeling the pain in my chest kick up yet again today. He didn’t know that I knew what happened when he saw his ex every life he just thought it was my jealousy issues overloading because he’d been engaged to marry her before we’d met. I would have been over that little issue though if the little issue of him cheating on me with her wouldn’t happen.

“What’s wrong?” My favorite brother of his, Sabino, asked coming over and sitting by me.

“I’ve never told anybody this because Damon can’t know that I know…” I whispered but I knew I could tell Sabino because he wasn’t a vampire and he wasn’t a human either he was just immortal so Damon couldn’t read his mind.

“What’s going on?” He asked.

“Whenever Damon sees Aimi he cheats on me.” I whispered looking away but I felt the tears falling down my face.

“Why haven’t you asked him about it? Maybe the person that told you was lying.” Sabino asked me. I knew that Damon was his favorite brother and he had as hard of a time as I had imagining it until I’d had proof.

“I followed him one day to her house. A couple lives ago when I was trying to work on my jealousy issues and I let them get together all the time. I followed him to her house and saw enough of it to be positive.” I whispered and Sabino pulled me into his chest.

“That explains why you have outlawed him seeing her the past few lives.” He whispered.

“And he’s still seeing her. He just told me in there that he’s already seen her… this life.”

“That doesn’t mean he’s seen her.” Sabino assured me. “The only way you’d ever know that would be to ask him.”

“I can’t deal with this right now.” I shook my head.

“Cleo…?” Damon said softly a few feet away a couple minutes later.

“What?” I snapped.

“We’ve got to get to school.” He said just as worriedly.

“I’m riding with Sabino.”

“Cage and…”

“You can tell them why I’m riding with Sabino then.” I said murderously and Sabino’s arms tightened.

“Please Cleo…” Damon begged.

“No you please Damon!!” I yelled, “You please quit lying to me!! Quit cheating on me!!! And quit making me feel so dang crappy when I can’t leave you!!!” I screamed and then when I looked at his face for a second I realized what all I’d said and then I looked at Sabino and he nodded telling me it’d been a good slip.

“Cheating on you…?” Damon whispered but his voice told me it wasn’t a lie just surprise I knew.

“Aimi told me about it a few lives ago when I was letting you see her all the time and then I followed you one day to make sure… we all know I’m not going to trust a s**t like her.” I snapped but we could all hear the hurt it was causing me to hear from his lips he really had cheated on me.

“Cleo…” he begged taking a hesitant step forward and I took two steps back.

“I can’t.” I shook my head. “Not when it’s already started this life. I can’t deal with the cheating anymore.” I looked around and saw that the whole family was around us but Sabino just wrapped his arms around me and walked me to the car. We all heard Damon’s destruction of the forest though but all pretended not to for my sake.

“Are you okay?” Nadia asked me as we walked into lunch.

“I won’t be if one more person asks me where he is.” I whispered but then suddenly I saw him but I also saw her on the opposite side of the lunch room and I turned around.

“No come on it will be okay. He’s been gone all day trying to find her.”

“Just the ending I needed to a wonderful day!!” I yelled, “My boyfriend… who refuses to even propose when we all know we’ll get married… running off to find that s**t!!!” Their eyes turned to extreme worry at my breakdown but then Damon and Aimi came over.

“He had me stay on the opposite side of the cafeteria so that you could be positive nothing has happened today.” Aimi told me, “I know that you’re a witch now so I want to let you know for Damon… The last few lives ever since the one where I told you what was going on the only thing he’s ever given me is a goodbye kiss and that is because I won’t move on.” I walked away from all them and into the darkness of the trophy case but it was only a second later that Damon joined me.

“I know that a kiss is still cheating.” He whispered, “I also know that I never should have let anything happen with her. You have every right to tell me that you can never forgive me for cheating and that I need to just get lost and let you move on but…”

“I just need to hear you say five words.” I whispered interrupting him.

“What?” he asked.

“I need you to apologize and promise that you still love me.” I whispered feeling the tears fall from my eyes yet again.

“I’m sorry, my Princess… but why in the world would I not love you…”

“Please I just need to hear.” I begged feeling so uncertain since the memories had come.

“I love you very…” He trailed off on my lips and just let me stay there wrapping his arms around me as we made up right there in the privacy of the corner trophy case.

“Daphne?” Aimi’s voice came interrupting our make out just a few minutes later and I tensed.

“Yes Aimi?” I whispered carefully.

“I was wondering if maybe you would go out to dinner with me tonight?” She asked and I realized she wanted us to be friends like she was friends with Edlyn.

“We can try.” I nodded after a deep breath knowing it’d take work but then I added, “You have to promise to stay away from Damon unless I’m right there with you two though.” Damon tightened his arms around me hearing the pain.

“I promise. I didn’t think it’d hurt me so bad to see you so hurt.” She whispered.

“I can’t say it’s okay yet. I can say we’ll work on it.” I promised, “It seems like we’re meant to have to deal with each other forever we might as well be friends.”

“Thank you.” She smiled but then the bell rang and Damon held me as we went from class to class. It’d been a long time since we’d been so close like the secret of his affair had been pulling us apart and we hadn’t even noticed.

“Do I look okay for a dinner with Aimi?” I whispered nervously to Edlyn later that night.

“You look gorgeous now just take a deep breath and relax before you cause one of your pains. If you cause another one I’m calling Damon.”

“I told you those stopped weeks ago, Ed.” I promised smiling through the pain that I’d caused this was one of my worse ones but I knew she hadn’t been kidding any of the times she’d warned me about calling Damon and Damon would overreact.