Page 70 of Unleash Hades
“What?” she almost screamed. “How… why?”
“It’s good that you feed him,” I chuckled. “It allows him to get eyes on you when you’re in New York. But don’t worry about feeding him when you’re not there. If you’re not at home, neither is he.”
She blinked, astonished, her brows up to her hairline.
“And you do it to watch me?” she asked.
“To keep you safe.”
“And… why else?”
“I like to watch you.”
Her fingers dug deeper into my skin, and she shook her head, as if my answers confused her. But it was as simple as that.
I liked to watch her, so I did. I liked her company, so I sought it.
“L’amour est simple.”Love is simple.“I like to watch you, so I watch. I like you safe, so I keep you safe. I want to kill those who wrong you, so I wait for you to command me to do so.”
“And what do you get from it?” she insisted, her lips grimacing as if my lack of answer pained her.
I pinched her chin between my thumb and forefinger, lifting her eyes to mine.
“I get pleasure,” I said, leaning down. “And I will get more, as soon as you let me.”
“You could hurt me,” she said, cautiously. “You could take everything without my permission.”
“That doesn’t sound fun to me.”
“Fun?” she laughed, as if the concept baffled her.
I tilted my head. “There is pleasure in being chosen.”
Because I couldn't resist, I kissed the tip of her nose. She tilted her head to lean into my lips. Just a small taste. A small catch of her scent. The slight feel of her course curls, grazing against my face.
“I am not Richard,” I finally said. “I do not find pleasure in forcing my will on another.”
She stiffened, her eyes shuddering closed.
I knew her, a little, from my observations. She kept her feelings in, even when she was alone. Her eyes could tell an entire story in a single glance, and I had observed in rapt fascination.
She had blocked that incident out of her mind. She needed to, so she could survive. Maybe it was cruel of me to bring it back to mind.
“Will you… do something for me?” she whispered, taking a small step to close the gap between us. Just a small lean would have pressed our bodies together.
“Yes.”
“You haven’t even heard what I’m going to ask.”
I shrugged. “My answer stands.”
She laughed. It was a sad, relieved and hurt sound. As if she wasn’t used to hearing the word yes. As if she had lived in a world full of restraint, and only now felt the hint of freedom, and choice. Like a caged bird, frightened of the first real flap of its wings.
“Will you kiss me?”
I leaned down and took her lips, keeping it soft, and light. Closed lips, softness, and breath.
“More.”
