I turned away too fast and slammed my face right into the wall of glass.
"Fuck!" I cursed, stumbling backwards, but big hands caught my waist and broke my fall.
I rasped as a deep chill kissed my spine. My hand had snappily clutched his for balance. It was cold. I couldn’t tell if it was from sweat or his temperature.
"You should watch where you’re going," he mumbled deeply.
I stepped away from him. "And you should keep your hands to yourself."
"You were distracted there."
"D-Distracted? I have seen tons of naked men." I placed my hands on my waist, seizing him up with my eyes. "And I’m not that impressed."
He raised an eyebrow at my remark, a glow of amusement flickering in those icy blue eyes. I bet no woman has told him that before. I may have bruised his ego.
"No offense."
He closed the distance, and I responded by cautiously backing away. My heart was in my throat when my back met the glass, and I was caged.
Ares braced his arm on the glass behind me and leaned toward my face. "A very worrisome thing to say."
"It’s a fact."
"Those facts can get you in trouble, Ms. Lane."
"I’m entitled to my own opinion, Mr. King."
He held my gaze for what seemed like a minute, and for some reason they made the hairs at the back of my neck stood on alert.
"Speaking about other men in my presence violates the contract."
What the hell?
"How much of last night do you remember?" He switched so quickly.
Is he talking about the empty bottle? How many did I have?
"Haven’t you seen a woman drink before? It’s called fun."
"Hmm... You don’t remember." He stepped away from me and left the gym.
What was that about?
I hurried after him. "I-Is there something I should know?"
He didn’t answer, simply using the small towel to wipe the sweat off his face. Those words in Latin were broadly tattooed on his upper back, following the line of his broad shoulders.
With every movement, his muscles tightened in a way that made my legs weak. Maybe the aftermath of drinking myself to a stupor still affected me.
I’d have really appreciated it if he had worn a shirt or something. Striding in, nothing but sweatpants hanging loosely on his waist was like a recipe for disaster.
I shook my head. God, Catherine! Get a grip on yourself.
I got to the last flight of stairs, following him to the kitchen. He opened the cupboards and went straight to cooking.
I thought a home chef did his meals.
I cleared my throat, sitting on the high stool. "So my guess is you saw the bottle or bottles. Sorry about the mess."
I waited for a reply, but I didn’t get any.
Why was I even speaking?
A soft meow came through, and the black cat walked on the counter. Ares dropped his bowl and poured snacks into it.
"What’s his name?"
"Loki."
"Loki?" I looked at the cat buried in his bowl. "That’s a fitting name, King would have been better, though."
Silence stretched again, and I didn’t want to be a chatty nuisance, but talking made it easier to tolerate this man.
He was no longer my boss, and I see no reason why I should maintain professional silence.
Ares was swift as he navigated the kitchen like a pro. I never thought I would see Ares King in all his half-naked glory... cooking. It felt like I had gone incognito.
"Memento Mori—Remember you must die."
"You know Latin?" He flipped the pancake skillfully.
"I know a handful. Why that though?"
He could have tattooed anything on his body, but he chose that.
Yet again, I was left hanging. It was an insufferable stillness until he placed a full plate of pancakes with berries for toppings in front of me. He poured syrup from the small glass pitcher and repeated the same action with his.
He made me breakfast?
"T-Thanks." I skeptically grabbed the cutlery and took a bite. Damn! It tastes so good!
He dropped a glass of juice at the side before he sat and ate his own breakfast in silence.
Strangely, it was a comfortable one, probably because I couldn’t pause from eating these super delicious pancakes. I rushed through mine and washed it down with the juice.
Heavenly.
I sneaked a peek at Ares, calmly eating, scrolling through his iPad, until he showed me something.
"A charity ball is happening tomorrow night. We will be attending our first debut as a couple."
"I was followed yesterday by a paparazzi, I think they already know Ares’ King mystery woman."
"Rest assured, no photos of you from that day will be found."
Was all my spending in vain? Why did I even bother?
"You stopped the one from yesterday, but didn’t with the first?"
"The first was necessary."
"I see... causing a buzz and leaving them in suspense for the grand finale. How very mindful."
He gathered the plates to wash.
"Am I just your wife or a secretary too?"
"Both."
"The contract said I’m only your wife."
"I never approved your resignation letter, Ms. Lane."
This cunning devil.
"It’s simple, I don’t need to play both roles. You can get another. It’s fine by me."
"You’re irreplaceable."
That was very uncomfortable to hear, especially when it came from him.
"S-So um, before the charity ball, we should really work on our acting. We weren’t the most convincing couple at the House of Brides. If we want this to work and not get the bloggers sprouting suspicion, we should do our best."
Ares wiped his hands with the napkin before rounding the counter.
"I know I’m not your type, but I think we should act like we’re." I ate up the distance between us. "Enough to convince them, Ares King found his match."
"Then we’d better get to work, Ms. Lane."
"You suck at acting, so let me take the lead." I interweave my hand with his. "Lesson number one: Touch me like you can’t get enough."