Page 66 of Bitter Desire
Law turned, moving to put his hands on my arms. His touch was gentle but it did nothing to stop me from panicking, from wanting to run from the voice I knew. “Honey what’s wrong. Talk to me, princess.”
“Shut the door, Law. Please,” I begged, shaking my head and moving towards the button. I slammed my hand against the button, but it didn’t light up. Didn’t go emerald for me. It stayed dull and dark. I hit it again, but nothing happened then either. “Fuck,” I whispered.
“Princess, what the hell is it?”
“I know that-that person. I know h-her,” I turned to look down the hallway. Connie was blocking my view, but I could see the familiar curve of the woman’s chin, her cheek, the dark hair that had always been thick and lush. Curling and coiling, falling over her shoulders and back in a way that was effortless and chic. My own hair had never done it, no matter how hard I tried.
“Who is it?” Law asked, coming to me. He was looking out the elevator at the woman and Connie. I could hear Connie speaking to her, the low murmur of voices that I wasn’t registering anymore because my heartbeat was a thunderstorm in my ears.
I just wanted to go home.
My fingers slipped away from the elevator button. It was useless. I hated that fucking button. I shouldn’t be seeing her. Not again. Not ever.
“My mother,” I whispered, leaning back against the cold elevator wall.
Law’s head swiveled, eyes coming to me. “What the fuck?”
“Yeah, I know her voice. That’s my mother.”
The sound of voices died down and Law’s eyes narrowed at the sound of Connie’s heels coming close to the elevator. The second she came into view, Law was talking. “What the fuck is that? What is she doing here?”
“Zeus keeps his own company on his own time. This is his world. We only pass through it, Law. You know that.”
“What the fuck is Honey’s mother doing in that room?”
Connie’s brow furrowed. “Her mother?”
“There’s something going on here, and I’m getting sick and tired of my girl being put in the middle of it,” Law growled. He looked back at me. “Do you want to leave? We will fucking leave now. I’ll make you safe. I will tear this place to the fucking ground.”
I knew he meant it. I didn’t even have to look at my man to know he was speaking the truth. If I gave the word Law would unleash unholy hell on this place. He would make me safe. I knew it.
But that didn’t answer the question of why?
Why the hell was this happening? And why was my mother of all people involved? Zeus had to know what was happening. Why else had he brought her into this?
“No,” I said, pushing away from the wall, “we have to see this through. It has to end.” I moved close to him and put a hand on his chest when he looked like he was going to argue with me. “It’s the only way we can go home. You know that.”
Law’s jaw clenched and I knew he was thinking through. That he was looking for a way out. But when he sighed and gave a slight nod of his head, I knew he’d come to the same conclusion that I had.
If we wanted answers we had to go into that room.
After a decade, I had to face my mother down.
Chapter Twenty-Six
LAW
I didn’t like any of this. Not one fucking bit of it.
I’d been tense, waiting for a trap to be sprung, but in all my possible scenarios I had never thought the trap would be for Honey. I had thought they were coming for me, but bringing her ma into this? That was something else.
What the fuck was that woman doing here? If she was with Zeus I didn’t think it could be anything good. I knew I was right from the way Honey trembled and shrank into herself at the first sound of her ma’s voice. She wanted to go forward, to get our answers, and for us to go home.
My chest went tight thinking about how she talked about the penthouse that had just been a place for me to sleep really. A home. She’d made it a home. The soft touches and color she brought to it had me spending more time than I ever had within its four walls. I had breakfast at the table, I let her pick out plates she said were “pretty”, we had the type of coffee mugs she liked best, there were pillows on my goddamn bed. I didn’t know what they needed to be there for, especially when she swept them to the side when we climbed between the sheets, but I let her do it because it made her happy.
If Honey was happy then I was happy.
She moved closer, tucking in close to my side, her nails digging into my skin, but I wouldn’t tell her. I could take it. She wasn’t fucking happy now. This scenario was fucked.
