“That doesn’t give you the right to—”
“Liam, stop.” Meg smacked him on the arm. “She needs me.”
“So? It can’t—” The words died on his lips at Meg’s threatening stare.
Amaia broke the silence. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to interrupt. I waited until you were done. I just really need to talk to you, Meg.”
“It’s fine. Don’t worry about it. Where do you want to go?”
“Anywhere.”
“All right. Liam, I’ll see you later.”
“Don’t bother leaving. I’ll go. Let me know if you need me.” Liam kissed Meg on the forehead. Amaia found the tenderness difficult to watch.
“Of course.” Meg waited until Liam was out of earshot and she had fully dressed before turning to Amaia. “It’s him isn’t it?”
“Yes.”
Meg came close, placing both her hands on Amaia’s arms. Their weight steadied her. “Tell me.”
This was going to be the hardest part. How did she tell her best friend that she had essentially been lying to her for two decades? Her hands fidgeted in front of her, a physical outlet for her angst. “I contacted him in his last life.”
“Are you crazy, Amaia?” Meg dropped her hold on Amaia, and her eyes were severe as she searched Amaia’s face. Amaia didn’t know what she hoped to find.
Amaia spread her arms in front of her, pleading for understanding. “It didn’t seem crazy at the time. It seemed like the sanest thing I’d done in a while.”
“While I thought you were fine, finally letting him go, you were actually seeing him?”
“Not him, her. You see, that’s the craziest part. He came back as a woman. A nun to be precise.”
Meg’s eyes widened. “A woman?”
“Yes.”
“And not just a woman. A nun?”
Amaia nodded.
Meg’s hand flew to her mouth as she barely contained a giggle. Amaia couldn’t bring herself to smile. “Oh, come now, Amaia. You don’t find that a little bit funny?”
Amaia shook her head. “You won’t either when you hear that she thought she recognized me.”
“What do you mean?” Meg sobered.
“I mean she kept asking me if we had met. It was unsettling. I only talked to her once. I wasn’t foolish enough to approach her again.”
Meg nodded. When Amaia stayed silent, Meg urged her. “What happened today?”
Amaia began to walk, not going anywhere in particular, just needing to move, to process what had happened. Meg fell in step beside her. “I’ve been watching him. I decided that today was the day to approach him, to try to befriend him.”
“Yes, it worked out so well last time.” Meg raised her eyebrows and glared.
“Lawrence is the only person who knew me before. I wanted the chance to learn about the man I’d loved. When I approached him today, he called me by my mortal name. I haven’t heard it in almost a century. In some ways, it’s hard to believe that girl ever existed.”
“I know what you mean.” Meg nodded.
“It terrified me, Meg, more than anything ever has. Even more than when I saw him the first time. How does he know me?”
“How much does he know?”
“He doesn’t know what I am, if that’s what you’re asking. He seems confused about how he reincarnates. He did notice that I look exactly the same while he looks different each time.”
“He remembers his other lives?”
“Yes. He said they’re like dreams, only he knows they’re really memories. He seems to remember me quite clearly. By his actions, I’d judge that he thinks he’s still in love with me.”
“And what about you?”
“What do you mean?”
“Are you in love with him?”
Amaia looked at Meg, wondering if she had lost her mind. “Of course not. How could I be?”
“How could any of this be happening?”
Meg had a fair point. “I don’t know.”
“What are you going to do?”
“I have no idea.”
“What do you want?”
“I want for none of this to be happening. I want for my life to go back to the way it was before I saw him in that tavern.”
“Amaia, you can’t undo the past.”
“I know that.”
“What are you going to do about it now? Are you going to see him again?”
“I must. I promised.”
“Since when does a promise to a mortal mean anything?”
Meg was right. It shouldn’t mean anything, but it did. It was a promise to Michael.
“You have to end it.”
“I’m not sure I can.” It took a certain amount of strength to admit it.