"You love me, of that I have no doubt," Asher murmurs.

"But I am not the only person you love." It might be a different sort of love, but he has no illusions that Nathaniel would be a hell of a lot less angry if he had slept with anyone other than Anita.

"You are young, Nathaniel, and still so very human." He stands painfully still, less emotion than a statue, his voice very carefully controlled. "There are others who would be...more suited to you, perhaps. And yes, I expect the worst. But that is because I have had six centuries of receiving it, six hundred years of pain and betrayal."