18. Chapter 18
eighteen
“ W hat are you talking about?” I ask Ares as we face each other.
Ares sighs and shakes his head. “Don’t worry about it right now. All I need you to know right now is that you belong with me. You’ve always belonged to me.”
I stare at him in confusion, trying to figure out the meaning behind his cryptic words. Why can’t he just speak plainly? He keeps acting like he’s hiding some big secret from me and that I just won’t understand right now.
It’s driving me crazy.
Especially when he’s using that as a way to create a divide between me and Ethan.
“And that’s all you have to say right now?” I ask him with narrowed eyes.
Ares holds my gaze before nodding in silence.
If he’s going to shut me out, I’m going to shut down this conversation. “Time for dinner. We’ll deal with this another time.”
Ares huffs a little as I walk past him to go inside. He quietly follows me and sits across from me at the dining room table as fresh, hot food is placed in front of us. Per his request, we have dinner together every night.
The dining room is extra quiet tonight since we don’t share many words over dinner. He’s not really a man of many words anyway, but I know he’s being quiet because he’s upset. This feels like a hurdle that we won’t be able to get over, but I still want to have hope.
“I’m going to head up,” I say once I finish my peach pie for dessert.
“Not yet. Please, stay with me. Let’s have a drink and relax. No fighting,” Ares replies with a hopeful look on his face.
It’d be really nice to talk without fighting, and it’s hard to say no to that face. I sigh and stand up with a nod. “All right.”
Ares grins and walks around the table toward me. He holds his arm out, and once I take it, he leads me to the living room where the fireplace is located. A fire steadily burns within, making warmth radiate toward us as we sit on a red rug in front of the fireplace.
“Here you go,” Ares says as he hands me a cocktail glass containing a fruity alcoholic drink while he holds a whiskey for himself in his other hand.
“Thank you,” I tell him as I take the glass. I take a tentative sip, my eyebrows lifting at the sweet taste.
“You like it?” Ares says as he pats my thigh with a warm smile.
“It tastes good.”
“Not as sweet as you,” Ares replies as he shoots me a grin.
It’ll take more than cheesy, sweet words to soothe away all of my anger, though. “Trying to butter me up? ”
Ares sits closer to me, our shoulders brushing as he takes a sip of his whiskey and peers back at me.
“Maybe. Is it working?” he asks.
A smirk crosses my lips as I glance away from him, feeling heat swirl in my lower stomach. I take another sip of my drink, savoring its sweet taste.
Ares clicks his tongue with a playful glint in his eyes. He kisses my shoulder before leaning close to my ear. “I’m happy you’re here with me.”
I should draw away from him, create some distance between us, but I stay rooted to the spot. “It’s nice being home .”
Ares smiles and brushes his fingers along my flushed cheek. “Home.”
“I do feel happy. At times,” I say. “When we’re not fighting.”
“So, this is a happy moment?” Ares asks as his eyes linger on my lips.
This is probably one of the better moments that I’ve experienced since coming home. Things have been so hectic and confusing. “It is.”
Mischief fills his dark eyes. “It can get even better.”
My cheeks heat as he inches closer. But I have to stay strong, not let my feelings for him change the way I think. He did the wrong thing and still makes the wrong choices.
I’m loved more than I ever could’ve imagined being loved. That’s something I’ll always be grateful for, even during the tough times.
“Stay in my room tonight,” Ares whispers as his thumb grazes my bottom lip.
His touch lingers as my breath quivers. My stomach coils as I say the word I shouldn’t. “Okay.”
The word breaks from my lips before I can reel it back. I shouldn’t go to his room with him, especially after his attitude toward Ethan, but the issue is that I long for him even when I’m mad at him.
I guess that’s love… or this mate bond’s doing.
I take another sip of my drink, but it’s a longer one. My head is starting to feel a little warm and fuzzy, and I place the glass down, not wanting to be out of my mind.
I don’t believe Ares will take advantage of me, though. He’ll keep me safe.
“I don’t want you to be mad anymore,” Ares says as he places his finger under my chin, drawing my eyes back to his. “Ethan is coming home in a few days.”
“Thank you, Ares,” I breathe.
Ares cups the back of my neck and draws me closer for a sudden kiss. He easily dominates it, his tongue brushing against mine. His taste is as intoxicating as his smell, dragging me down deeper and deeper into the depths of arousal.
I moan into his mouth, unable to help the sound. It feels so good to kiss him, to let go.
To forget everything and fall again.
As he moves forward, I lean back, resting on my elbows as he crawls over my body. My skin turns hotter than the fire burning nearby.
Ares slots himself between my thighs, grinding against me. He so easily works me up, wrapping me around his finger, and I don’t know if I can fight it. Or if I even want to fight it.
I rake my fingers through his hair, my chest rising and falling heavily with every breath.
“Wait. We shouldn’t…” I say, and another moan breaks from me as he grinds down against me again.
Ares buries his fingers in my hair, his lips tracing my jaw and then down my neck. “Do you want me to stop? ”
I grip the back of his cloak, my head tilting back as my eyes flutter shut. It feels like I’m floating among the clouds, pleasure washing over me like rays of sunlight. I can’t break myself away because I don’t want him to stop.