25. Ares
A res~
There was no way that it wasn’t love, and the proof was in how I had paid one of TCC’s private investigators to tap into Capri’s locations, then got into my truck to chase her the fuck down.
Luckily, like most men that could afford it, I had both a car and a truck because someone always needed a truck for something or another
Anyways, as soon as I’d found out that she was at some cabin up north, I’d chosen to ignore all the weather warnings, then had driven up through the cold and snow, and it was safe to say that I wasn’t in the best of moods right now.
Not only had my wife chosen to run away versus talking this out like two grown adults, but she had also put herself in danger by driving all the way up here alone.
Yeah, to say that I was pissed was an understatement.
Pulling up to the front of the cabin, I saw a black jeep parked in front, and it was only a small point in her favor that it looked efficient enough to have gotten her up here.
Nevertheless, with the way that the snow was coming down now, Capri was going to need chains to get back down the hill, so she was actually lucky that I’d been pissed off enough to hunt her down.
As a man that prided himself on always being prepared, I grabbed my overnight bag from the passenger seat, then got out of my truck. Though she was probably going to slam the door in my face, I had enough money to repair any windows that I might have to break to finally fix things with my wife.
After knocking on the door, I was surprised that Capri actually answered only a few seconds later.
The door had a peephole, so she knew who was on the other side, so either she wanted to straighten this shit out just as badly as I did, or else she didn’t want to get charged with manslaughter for letting me freeze to death in the snow.
I was betting on the latter.
“How did you find me?” she asked in lieu of a greeting.
“Have you forgotten? I have an abundance of informational resources,” I drawled out, letting her see just how annoyed I was with her.
Capri stepped back to let me in, but she also confirmed my suspicions. “Don’t get too excited,” she huffed. “I’m only letting you inside because I don’t want my reputation ruined by accusations of being a gold-digging murderess.”
Despite her honesty, I walked into the cabin, and it really wasn’t a cabin at all.
Though rustic in décor, it was more of a manor than anything else.
The thing was two-story, and nobody renting this place was doing so to ‘camp’ or anything like that.
A quick glance around told me that it had a lot of high-end extras, and this was more of a vacation home than a cabin for camping.
“Nice digs,” I remarked sarcastically.
“Oh, cut the bullshit, Ares,” Capri bit out. “Let’s just get this over with.”
I turned to face her as I arched a brow. “And to think, I still have your period to experience.”
Her back immediately straightened.
“Well, buckle up, asshole,” she fired back. “You’ve only got one week to prepare.”
Ignoring that- especially since I deserved it -I tossed my bag onto the floor, letting it bounce against the couch.
“First thing’s first,” I said, and those three words caused my wife to cross her arms over her chest. “I don’t give a fuck how mad you are at me in the future, you will never put yourself in harm’s way again, and I mean it, Capri. ”
She scowled as her arms dropped to her sides. “What? What are you talking about?”
“Driving up here during a goddamn weather watch warning, Capri,” I snapped. “What in the hell were you thinking?”
As cool as a cucumber, she said, “That facing a blizzard was more favorable than having to deal with your crap.”
“I’m not playing!” I roared.
Now, while my wife might end up bringing me to my knees by the time that we were finished here, her safety was something that I would never compromise on.
It was the very reason that she had a driver now, and after this little bit of bullshit, she’d be lucky if I didn’t assign two additional bodyguards to her as well.
In fact, I should do it just to prove my point.
“Jesus Christ, Ares,” she replied tersely. “You act as if I’m not thirty-eight and haven’t driven myself around for the past twenty years.”
“Ask me if I give a fuck?” I replied seriously.
“It wasn’t even snowing hard enough to need chains yet, Ares,” she pointed out. “The possibility of a blizzard isn’t even in effect until around midnight.”
“Which might bleed into the weekend,” I fired back. “Do you even have enough food to last you all weekend long?”
She shot me a look, showing me just how much she didn’t appreciate the question.
“I’m not an imbecile, Ares. When I booked the cabin, I asked about food and necessities, and the property manager assured me that the cabin would be stocked plenty by the time I got here.
Surprise, surprise, but she was also aware of the weather reports. ”
Ignoring her sarcasm, I said, “I will give you a say in everything else in our marriage, but not this, Capri. If there’s a possibility that you may be harmed or even mildly inconvenienced, then the answer will always be no.”
“You’re being ridiculous, Ares,” she said before letting out a tired sigh.
“Oh, baby, you haven’t even begun to see ridiculous,” I told her truthfully. “Do something reckless like this again, and I’ll show you ridiculous.”
I watched her let out a deep breath, but what she didn’t know was that I was at the point where I’d even entertain marriage counseling just to put us on the right track.
I wanted this to work more than I’d ever wanted anything else in my life, and unfortunately for my wife, I refused to fail at anything.
“You’re driving me crazy, Ares,” she stated tiredly. “I...I have no idea where we even go from here. It’s only been a couple of weeks, but it feels like I’ve been fighting with you for years.”
I didn’t like her like this. Yes, my life would be easier if Capri had a compliant personality, but that’s not what I wanted. I wanted a mutual give and take, not where I pushed her to the point where she felt like giving up was her only option.
Letting out a frustrating breath of my own, I reached for her hands, then walked her over to the couch. When I took a seat, I patted the cushion next to me. “Sit down, baby.”
Reluctantly, she took a seat, her blue gaze eyeing me untrustingly, and I really hated that she felt that way. I had never lied to her, so while she had every right to be angry at me, she had no reason not to trust me. If anything, that one should be reserved for her father.
“What?” she asked petulantly, though I still considered it a win that she was sitting and willing to speak with me.
“The most important thing you need to know is that I’m not going anywhere,” I told her.
“I don’t know how long you rented this place for, but whether here or at home, I’m not going anywhere, and you need to come to grips with that fact.
Even though I know that you haven’t filed a dismissal on the divorce yet, we aren’t divorcing, Capri. I will never allow that to happen.”
“Then is this marriage all about what you want only?” she countered. “Because that’s what it’s sounding like.”
“When it comes to the topic of divorce, then yes,” I answered. “I will hear you out on everything else, but I will never entertain a discussion on divorce, Capri. Never.”
“So, where does that leave us?” she asked. “Fighting like cats and dogs for the rest of our lives?”
She had no idea how her words affected me, because more than I didn’t want a divorce, I didn’t want us to be my parents.
I wanted Capri to be happy, and I wanted her to be happy with me.
I didn’t want to end up loathing her voice or forgetting the sound of her laugh.
I wanted to see that blue fire in her eyes, not blank indifference.
I wanted her moaning my name as I buried myself deep inside her, not us both wishing that we were with someone else.
Yeah, fuck that.
“No,” I answered. “It leaves us stuck in this cabin until we work our shit out.”
“I only rented this place through the weekend,” she deadpanned, and as serious as this was, I still couldn’t help but smirk.
I glanced upward, then let out another sigh as I prayed for patience. However, it only lasted a few seconds before I looked over at her again. “Then I’ll buy the damn place if I have to.”
“Like you buy everything else?”
“I didn’t buy you, baby,” I said, doing my damnedest to make her believe me.
“Yes, you did,” she argued.
“No, I didn’t,” I argued back.
Capri let out another sigh before she said, “Then you better make it make sense to me, Ares.”
Yeah, no pressure.