Chapter Sixty-Five
Helios
I was furious.
She’d been crying.
I was more fucking furious that he’d made her cry.
I picked up the fucking key.
“That wasn’t right.” Her voice wasn’t on-the-edge fall-apart fucked, but I had a goddamn PhD in this woman’s tells, and it was close. “He doesn’t have a home of his own, Helios.”
“Yeah, he does.” Ares had several properties.
“Which proves my fucking point. How much do you really know about him? Do you know where he goes all the goddamn time? You want someone like that coming and going out of here?” It was fucking rhetorical.
That goddamn prick had fucked with her head for the last time.
Haven looked up at me, but it sure as hell wasn’t the look from last night. “Someone?”
“Don’t turn this around on me, woman. He may be my brother, but I’m not fucking defending his ass.
Breaking in before dawn, coming at you hot, demanding to fucking speak to you before his bullshit ass says no one should control you.
What the fuck do you think he was doing, Haven?
” So fucking pissed, I didn’t wait for a response.
“He was doing exactly what he accused me of doing, except that motherfucker wasn’t even remotely transparent about it. That bullshit was PSYOPS one-oh-one.”
“I’m not the one turning things around here, Helios. You’re talking about Ares. This isn’t some covert mission.”
“You think he operates any other way?” Where the hell had she been the past few years?
“I don’t think this was an operation at all. I think he had concerns. I think he was being a brother. I think—I think he saw on that island the same thing Chaos and Saint saw.”
“Yeah? And what the fuck did they see?” I challenged, now really fucking pissed.
Her head dropped, her voice dropped, then she fucking whispered, “They saw a colleague kiss his stepsister.”
“No.” No fucking way was I letting her take any goddamn blame or backslide on this shit.
“They saw a man kiss a woman. Full fucking stop. They saw how I fucking feel about you. Again, full fucking stop. What is so goddamn bad about that, Haven?” I kicked the motherfucking chair that Ares had been sitting in.
“Why don’t you ask yourself that instead of the fucking bullshit Ares put in your head?
Think up a goddamn answer that doesn’t fuck you over while you’re at it.
” I kicked her chair. “I’m making breakfast, then I’m gonna feed your ass because that’s what I do.
Not fucking fuck with your head like him!
” I stormed into the house and aimed for the kitchen.
I made it as far as the fucking counter.
Then I gripped it before I started breaking shit and tried to rein it the hell in.
Ten breaths later, I wasn’t any goddamn calmer. Worse, she was still standing by the outside table.
Except instead of only hurt, she now looked fragile as hell.
Fuck.
Fuck.
I walked back outside.
Then I did what I never goddamn did. I fucking apologized. “I’m sorry.” I pulled her into my arms.
She burst into tears.
I picked up my woman and carried her into the house. Then I sat on the damn couch neither of us had bought and held her until her tears stopped.
Two minutes after that, she was asleep in my arms.
Fucking spent, but knowing damn well I was still in the thick of the battle, I laid my head back.
Then I sacked the fuck out.