Chapter 5 #2
He doesn’t laugh, just holds my gaze a little too long.
“Hades was steady. Just. Fair,” he says, voice low. “The world needs someone like that.”
I press my lips together to keep from smiling. Hayes is more like his father than he realizes—just as fiercely proud of his Greek heritage, taking any slight against mythology as a personal attack. I don’t really get it, but it’s kind of adorable how worked up he gets.
“Oh yeah? Like how?” I ask, egging him on. Not because I need a mythology lesson but because I know he wants to give it.
“Well, like the story of Orpheus,” he says, his whole posture shifting, energized.
“His wife dies, right? So he goes to the Underworld to bring her back. Everyone paints Hades as this heartless monster, but he lets the wife go. He bends the rules because he respects Orpheus’s music…
and because he understands what it means to love someone so much you’d risk everything for them.
Hades was absolutely crazy about his wife, Persephone. ”
There’s something different in his voice. Softer. Like maybe the story means more to him than he’s letting on.
“Yeah, I remember. Your dad told us that one.” I study him, something tightening in my chest. “But isn’t it a tragedy? She doesn’t make it out.”
“That’s because they didn’t listen.” Hayes shrugs. “Hades gave them one rule—don’t look back. And what does the guy do? He looks.” He grabs a handful of popcorn and turns back toward the screen. “That’s on them.”
I curl deeper into my seat, drawing the blanket tighter around me as gunshots ring out from the TV. Onscreen, the protagonist is now fleeing from more demons.
“Still. It’s pretty romantic, huh? Going all the way to the Underworld for someone you love.” I sigh, quiet and admittedly a little bitter. “No one would ever do that for me.”
“I would.”
His reply is instant.
No hesitation. No need to think it over. Like it’s something he’s considered before and the answer’s always been yes.
“Really?” My voice barely rises above a whisper. “You’d risk your life for me?”
Something flickers across his face, shy, sweet, and dangerously sincere. “For you? There’s nothing I wouldn’t do.” His eyes hold mine in the dark—steady, intense. “If you go, I go.”
For one suspended beat, the world stills. And then—
“Besides, I gotta keep you alive to help me host all my wild parties, Alligator,” he says, playful now, lobbing one of his mom’s beaded throw pillows at my side.
I dodge it, laughing too fast, trying to ignore the way my heart’s still pounding in my chest. “Speaking of—what time are you coming over tonight?”
“Nope. Not happening.”
Hayes is throwing his first college party tonight—a welcome bash for his new frat and the entire football team. Kegs. A DJ. Poolside bartenders. The works.
I know I should want to go. Most girls would kill for an invite, especially from Hayes himself. But me? I’m just not feeling it.
“C’mon, Al,” he says. “I need my best girl by my side. You’re the only one who won’t let me get blackout wasted and end up in some sort of scandal.”
I roll my eyes, half-smiling. “That sounds like a you problem.”
“Pretty please?” He grins. “I’m not asking you to shotgun beers or dance on tables. Just show up. Keep me grounded. Help me survive the night.”
“There is absolutely, positively, no way I’m—”
“Oh yes, you are.” He launches another pillow straight at my face this time. “And I won’t take no for an answer.”
I shriek, swatting it away, and dissolve into laughter as we tumble sideways in a tangle of cushions and limbs, wrestling like we’re twelve again. The dog lets out a startled yelp and scrambles to the other side of the room, getting as far away from us as possible.
“Let go, idiot!” I gasp, breathless from giggling as I jab at his ribs.
He catches my wrist with a fast, practiced grip and twists it gently behind my back, his movements fast—too fast. Too smooth. And just like that, we’re no longer tangled in a playful mess. I’m pinned helplessly to the floor, and he’s on top of me.
The realization slams into me like a second heartbeat.
HAYES… IS ON TOP… OF ME.
Warmth radiates between us. His hair, just a little too long, brushes my cheek.
Our bodies touch, lightly, but it’s enough to send a current skimming across my nerves.
Sharp and electric. Like we could set something on fire if either of us moved even a fraction. One shift closer and we’ll both ignite.
I tilt my face toward him, slowly, like I’m drifting forward without meaning to.
He does the same.
My pulse races like a jet plane, not just from adrenaline, but from something deeper. Hungrier. My eyes fix on his mouth—those full lips, so close now, I can almost feel them on mine. If I moved just an inch closer… would he stop me?
Would he kiss me?
“Al. I really need you tonight.”
His eyes are darker now. And hot. Molten hot. The blue is so deep it almost bruises violet at the edges.
Why does he have to look at me like that?
And why, oh why, does my body betray me every single time he’s near?
NO. NO. NO.
Must stop fantasizing about my best friend.
Right. Now.
I tear my gaze away, fixating instead on a random spot above his left ear. The flickering light from the screen dances across his skin, golden and soft, too perfect to be real.
“Is it because of Amber?” he asks, watching me carefully. “Is that why you don’t want to come?”
I stiffen. Just the mention of her name is enough to set my jaw.
“No.”
I try to sound casual, like it’s not a big deal. Like I hadn’t immediately thought of Amber the second he told me about the party.
Because of course she’ll be there.
Whether or not they’re technically back together, there’s no way my sister would miss tonight. And I’d rather not subject myself to Amber—or her flock of loyal minions—if I can help it.
“You know you’re going to have to forgive her eventually, right?” he asks. “She is your sister.”
“So you are inviting her,” I say, too sharp, too accusing.
“Of course I am. But you can’t skip out on me just because she’s coming.”
I can see the flicker of something behind his eyes—regret, maybe. Or disappointment.
“It’s not about her.” I force my body to move. To untangle and stand. “I just… don’t want to go.”
“Uh huh.”
“It’s not!”
I sink back onto the couch, tucking my legs underneath me as the dog curls up beside me again. Reaching for the popcorn, I shove a few kernels into my mouth, trying to come up with some excuse—anything—that sounds believable.
“I mean, we both know your parents would flip if they knew you were throwing a party,” I say, forcing a shrug. “Maybe you don’t care, but I do. I love them and want to stay on their good side.”
Even to my own ears, it sounds flimsy. And we both already know the truth. Of course it’s about her.
It’s always been about her.
“My parents won’t even notice,” he says. “They’re too busy launching new fleets or building skyscrapers or whatever they’re doing in Athens.”
Guilt pricks at me.
I’ve been so wrapped up in my own issues, I keep forgetting he’s hurting too, just… in a different way than I am.
“I’m sorry they’re not home yet,” I say softly.
“Yeah, well, at least I’ve got Dimitra.” He gives me a half-smile that doesn’t quite reach his eyes. “And her homemade spanakopita.”
Dimitra’s been the Vassilioses’ live-in housekeeper since forever. She came over with the family when they first moved here from Greece. She’s more like family than staff.
But… she’s not his parents.
The end credits roll, and Hayes clicks off the TV. He yawns, stretching, his broad arms arching overhead.
“It’s getting late,” he says, checking the time on the new gold Rolex he recently got for his eighteenth birthday. “You need to go home and get dolled up for tonight. You know—cake your face, try on a hundred different outfits. Normal girl stuff.”
“You forget. I’m not normal.” I snort. “And I’m not trying to impress anyone.”
“Not even me?” he asks, mock-wounded.
“Especially not you.”
“Fine. Wear whatever you want. I don’t care,” he says. “Just please… change your mind.”
He gives me that look—the one that always gets me. Gentle. Familiar. Like I’m the only person in the world who really matters. Something in my chest pulls, and against my better judgment, I sigh and throw my hands up.
“Okay, whatever. I’ll come,” I say. “Now stop harassing me.”
“Deal.” He grins. “Go get ready,” he says, reaching over and yanking the lever on my recliner. The seat snaps upright with such force I nearly launch out of it.
On my way out, I kneel beside the dog and press a kiss to the tip of his black nose.
Hayes arches a brow. “Hey! Where’s my kiss?”
“Oh please.” I smirk. “I’m sure you’ll get plenty of them tonight, lover boy.”
“True.”
My hand lingers on the dog’s thick fur a moment longer. “About time we name this guy, don’t you think?”
“It’s only been a week. Someone might still come looking for him,” Hayes says.
“It’s a name, not a marriage proposal,” I tease. “God, you really are allergic to commitment.” I toss him a grin over my shoulder and head for the hallway.
“Just be here at nine sharp, smartass!” he yells after me. “And bring some of your mom’s oatmeal lavender cookies. I’m seriously craving them.”
By the time I reach my car, the weight of what I just agreed to is already sinking in. I can’t believe I let Hayes talk me into the party. He just has this… power over me. Something impossible to fight. Like magic.
I already know tonight is going to hurt in all the ways I’ve been trying to avoid. Seeing Amber. Her friends. Their looks and whispers. Wondering if Hayes is still hers.
This has disaster written all over it.