Chapter 35
Yuna
“I put a gun to his head, so what?”
And I’d do it again. That was the first thing running through my mind while I sat at the long dining table inside this mansion that still didn’t feel real to me.
Across from me sat the woman they introduced as my counselor.
Her name was Dr. Lemaire. Early forties, maybe. Calm eyes. The type of woman trained to read people like open books, as I did. My short time in trying to get my psychology degree taught me to study people as much as they did me.
She folded her hands on the table while the staff finished clearing plates.
“You handled yourself very strongly earlier,” she said gently.
Strongly.
That was a polite word for it.
I almost laughed.
“I pulled a gun on the man who technically owns the house,” I said. “Strong isn’t the word I’d use.”
Her lips curved slightly. “You thought you were protecting yourself.”
I leaned back in my chair.
Protecting myself. That sounded nicer than what it really was.
Because when Ares walked into that room earlier today, every instinct inside me said the same thing.
You’re trapped.
And I didn’t get trapped.
Not by men. Not by families. Not by the bullshit I’d spent years running from.
So, yeah.
I grabbed the gun.
And if the safety hadn’t been on, who knows what would’ve happened.
My fingers tapped the table lightly.
“I’d do it again,” I told her.
“I believe you,” she said, no fear in her eyes.
That made me narrow mine.
Most people tried to talk you out of your anger. Tried to convince you to soften.
She didn’t.
She just watched me.
Observing.
Like she knew the storm inside me wasn’t something you tried to quiet too fast.
Dinner ended not long after that. It had been simple but rich. Herb roasted chicken, buttery mashed potatoes, asparagus slick with olive oil, and warm bread that melted the second it hit my tongue. I hadn’t realized how hungry I was until the plate was empty.
They let me walk back upstairs alone.
That alone part surprised me.
No guards hovering. No locked doors.
Just a quiet hallway that led back to my room.
I told myself it was still a cage.
Just a nicer one with a breathtaking view.
I slept longer than I meant to when I laid down to watch television.
When I woke up, the room was dim and quiet, late evening light leaking through the tall windows.
For a few seconds, I forgot where I was.
Then I felt it.
That feeling of being watched.
My eyes slowly opened.
And there Ares was. Sitting in the chair beside the bed like he’d been there for a while.
Shirtless.
Just watching me.
I blinked slowly, my brain still foggy with sleep.
Broad shoulders. Smooth brown skin. That gold chain with DJ resting against his chest like a crown he didn’t even have to try to wear.
Red flag.
That’s what he looked like.
The kind of man you saw coming and still walked toward.
And that irritated the hell out of me.
“You enjoy staring at people while they sleep?” I muttered.
His eyes didn’t move.
“Only when they point guns at my head.”
I sat up slowly.
My body felt lighter than it had in weeks, but the first thing I noticed was the hunger clawing in my stomach for a snack.
The second thing.
Nicotine.
Fuck, I wanted nicotine.
I rubbed my face and finally looked at him fully.
“You still alive?” I said.
“Last time I checked.”
I studied him quietly.
What bothered me the most about Ares wasn’t the money or the power.
It was the calm he carried naturally.
Men like him usually liked control. Violence. Dominance.
But he wasn’t trying to fight me.
Not earlier.
Not now.
And that made something inside my chest loosen just a little.
Annoying.
“What can I do to make you happy?” he asked.
The question caught me off guard.
I frowned.
“Let me live,” I said immediately. “Let me be me. And get me a fuckin’ vape.”
His lips curved.
“You can have a vape.”
I leaned forward immediately.
“But no nicotine.”
My shoulders dropped.
“You serious?”
“Dead serious.”
I groaned and fell back against the pillows.
“This is prison.”
“It’s detox,” he corrected calmly.
My eyes cut toward him.
“And my cousin?”
His expression shifted slightly.
“Not yet.”
Ugh.
I sat up again, irritation creeping back.
“You said you were going to help me.”
“I am.”
“Then let my people come.”
“Your people helped you destroy yourself.” He continued, “You’re not getting a phone either.”
I scoffed. “You love controlling women. That’s why you went and got five of them.”
“I love keeping people alive.”
He leaned forward slightly.
“Zay, Emily, and your nephew are coming to stay here for a few weeks. You won’t be alone.”
That made something shift inside me.
Zay.
The only person in this world I halfway trusted.
I tried not to show the relief.
“Now come here.”
I frowned. “I don’t want to be close to you like that.”
“Stop acting like you don’t need love right now. I’m not going to try and fuck you,” he said. “Just come here.”
I hesitated before I slid out of the bed.
The floor felt cool under my feet as I walked over.
He reached for me and pulled me gently onto his lap, so I was straddling him.
Normally, that would’ve sent me into panic mode.
But his hands didn’t move anywhere inappropriately.
They just rested lightly on my back.
Waiting.
So, I started talking.
Quiet at first.
“I’m scared.”
The words felt foreign in my mouth.
“I don’t trust my family,” I continued. “I don’t trust you either.”
His hand moved slowly up and down my back.
“I know.”
“My mom’s a piece of shit,” I whispered. “My dad too.”
Silence.
I said the one thing that had been burning in my chest.
“Zay threw me into this. He didn’t say no to them like he has always done for me.”
Ares’ hand stilled.
He gently grabbed my chin so I had to look at him.
“Don’t do that.”
My eyes narrowed.
“What?”
“Don’t turn on Zay.”
I raised my eyebrow.
“He would never put you in harm’s way,” Ares said firmly. “The only reason he agreed to this arrangement is because it was me.”
That made me pause.
“Zay trusts me,” he continued. “So you should too.”
I looked away.
“I’m tired of trusting people.”
His voice dropped slightly.
“I get that.”
He added something that made my stomach flip.
“You can’t turn on me either.”
My eyes snapped back to his.
“Why?”
“Because me and Zay are about to make changes,” he said quietly.
His expression hardened slightly.
“And we need you clean.”
I frowned.
His thumb brushed my cheek.
“You’re about to be my first lady,” he said.
The words hit like a brick.
“So act like it.”
My mouth opened, but he kept going.
“When it’s time for you to step out with me, be ready to point guns at niggas’ heads.”
His dimples appeared slightly.
“Just not mine.”
I slid off his lap quickly.
“I’m not ready to show my face as yours.”
I walked over to the vanity mirror.
The girl staring back at me looked like someone who’d survived too much.
Ares stood behind me a second later.
His arms wrapped around my waist slowly.
My body tensed.
Then, slowly, I relaxed.
I hated powerful men.
Always had.
But something about him made my chest feel different.
Unsteady.
“You’re beautiful,” he said softly.
I shook my head. “You’re lying. I have too many flaws.”
“I see the flaws you see.”
I looked at him through the mirror.
“My teeth.”
“We’ll fix them.”
“I want to grow my hair.”
“We’ll grow it.”
“I need to gain weight.”
“Then we eat.”
I sighed.
“I have black circles under my eyes.”
“Then we sleep.”
I hesitated.
“I need a new wardrobe.”
His lips curved.
“We’ll go shopping.”
I swallowed.
“I don’t want to be known as a Laveau.”
His voice softened.
“I’ll make sure nobody sees your identity online.”
I stared at him in the mirror for a long moment.
“You can’t fix everything for me.”
He held my gaze calmly.
“But I will.”
And that was the problem.
Because the way this calm storm of a man looked at me made me believe him.
And I hated that feeling more than anything.