Ben'hamin Ch. 06

"Surely you are not in a hurry," he teased. "Eat and rest...enjoy the day for a change. I need a break, even if you do not," he admitted ruefully.

He picked up a piece of baked fish and held it up to her lips letting her nibble it from his fingers." That is my baby...eat up," he encouraged happily pulling more food off of his own plate to feed her. Before long, he had her giggling and relaxed right where the household could see them together. One of the kitchen helpers returned with enormous drinks for them. "Thank you, Kiev." The boy hesitated before leaving glancing back several times. "What? I don't say 'thank you'..." He looked bemused by his odd reaction.

"No," Dirge informed him. "In the time I have known you...hundreds of years...and you have never called the kitchen staff by name."

"I did, too," he protested indignantly. "Right after our wedding..."

"Oh, yeah...right before you killed my parents and best friend," Dirge stated coolly trying to boost her immune system against his charming nature.

"Me," Everest said with a mild grin. "Okay, say I killed your parents, sweetie...I know for a fact your best friend is still alive, because I personally escorted him to his home. His father was royally," he chuckled frowning as he tried to keep a straight face, "pissed."

"Andy is alive! Why did you go through so much play acting to make me think he was dead? You are such a despicable bastard!" He held up more food watching her face leisurely.

"Am I really such a jerk? People keep telling me I am," he mused thoughtfully. "You liked me once. Was I a bad husband before your parents died?" He widened his eyes for a second making a funny face as he asked.

"No," Dirge whispered, "you were a wonderful husband before they died, Everest. What I don't understand is why you had to kill them! Your business meant so much to you that you could not wait to work out the trade contracts another way? Why do you do this? I hate it!"

Everest frowned, again looking contemplative, as he pushed a piece of shrimp around. "Destiny...I..."

"You never call me that!" He blinked startled by her outburst.

"I have," he stated angrily.

"Yeah, before their deaths...Everest, what is going on? You can't snap into 'evil twin mode' for centuries and then just go all 'nice man I married' without a very good explanation!" His gorgeous lips tilted up in surprised mirth.

"Sorry," he mumbled.

"Why do you know the kitchen helpers names when I know you have not once bothered to care in the last two centuries?"

He sighed. "Can we not discuss this? Honestly, I have better things to be doing than hashing out history!" His irritation chilled her to the bone, but brought on an odd sense of relief. Nice Everest wasn't an Everest she knew how to accept any more. The last one had ended in misery worse than his usual petty cruelties. She ate off of her plate until she was too full to eat more.

"I didn't mean to snarl at you...Tell me," he searched visibly for a topic, "about your best friend. How did you meet him?"

"You don't want to hear this," she protested. His sweet smile flickered into a sullen glare.

"I asked," he stated shortly.

"Alright, I was kidnapped when I was six months old," she sighed. "My parents told me this story, obviously, since I do not remember it. They searched and searched frantically, but couldn't find me. My Andy found me..."

The sound of her voice was enough to tell him how much she loved him. "The man who kidnapped me hired a wet nurse to take care of me, but a plan is only as good as its perpetrators. The men couldn't leave the nurse be, and accidentally killed her with the frequency of their attentions."