I rolled up my shirt for Athena to check the wound.
"You’re lucky you came out with this. It could have been worse." She damped the cotton on it, eyeing me. "Cat is gonna be fine, we got to her in time."
I know that, but my body couldn’t seem to find ease.
"What are you gonna do with Noah?"
I frowned when she got to a spot that stung more.
"Never mind. At least now we know that witch wasn’t involved. It was Noah all along. He had the help of Theo’s designs. We can’t allow it to get in the wrong hands again."
"It won’t."
"You know..." She stopped and sat beside me. "You didn’t act like the Ares I knew today."
I narrowed my eyes in question.
"You were willing to risk everything, even your life. You scared me there." She punched my arm lightly. "I know I’m guilty for picturing your death every once in a while, but... You die, I’m gonna die too, so that I can kill you myself in hell."
"Hell..." I said, amused.
She rolled her eyes. "James Shaw is gonna hit you hard. You ruined his empire."
"How would he do that when he doesn’t know it’s me?"
"Good point." She kissed my cheek. "This is why you’re the most badass brother in the world." She pushed to her feet and walked to the door.
"Oh, I know you’re gonna get to Cat either way, so I’ll get Tori outta your hair. You should thank me, because what would you do without me? Nothing apparently." She shut the door.
A small smile crept on my lips as I stood, holding my jacket in my hand, as I stepped out of the room.
I strolled the lobby, making a few turns, catching Athena leading Tori away as they chatted about something.
I neared the guarded door and got through, closing it behind me.
My eyes hovered over Catherine, the only source of light from the lamp on the nightstand, offering a warm glow. Her red hair fanned out on the pillow, her chest rising and falling softly.
I sat on the bed, reaching for the ring on the nightstand. Athena must have found it.
Catherine stirred awake with a groan, slowly opening her eyes. Her lips stretched in a smile.
"Hey. Am I dead?"
"Why would you be?"
"Well, for starters, I bled out of my nose, and the rest is fuzzy."
"You fainted."
"Did you sweep me off my feet?"
I smiled.
"I know you did..." she murmured, eyeing the ring. "I really thought I lost it this time."
"Athena found it."
"Of course she did..."
I took her hand and slid the ring through her finger.
She met my eyes. "It’s weird seeing you do that..."
"Why?"
"Because, Ares King, you never proposed, not that I expected you to..."
"Maybe I should have made more plans."
"W-What plans?"
"A wedding."
Her eyes widened. "L-Look at you! You look like you have just crawled out of a hole."
She changed the topic, sitting up to assess me. She rolled my shirt up to see the bruise.
"I told you it’s just a scratch."
"That doesn’t mean you didn’t get hurt."
I reached for her neck, pushing her hair over her shoulders so that I could see the plaster.
I’m glad I left Noah alive. Now I can deal with him slowly.
"Take off your shirt."
I raised an eyebrow, and she gave me a look that said ’Go on.’
In a swift move, I took it off, and her eyes scanned, checking for any more injuries, but there weren’t.
"Satisfied?"
Worry still drowned her eyes. She lifted them to me, and for a minute I thought she was gonna slap me, but chose not to.
Catherine closed her eyes, shaking her head. "Today was a rollercoaster. I’m just glad we ended up in one piece. What are you gonna do with Noah?"
"Nothing you should worry yourself about. You won’t ever see him again."
"Tori, she..."
"I’ll have my men with her for as long as possible. She will be fine. Your grandparents are safe too."
She nodded again, this time with a sad smile forming. "Stay. Don’t leave my side tonight."
"I won’t."
After I had my shower and changed clothes, I lay next to her on the bed. Catherine used my chest as her pillow.
I could tell she wasn’t asleep, and my presence somehow helped her relax. She’s still shaken by everything that happened, and I knew a good night’s sleep was out of the question.
She moved her face to my neck, and I readjusted so that I could see her.
There was a way she looked at me, it was quite different from that plain lust glance that always bloomed on her face. This was a more delicate look.
I brushed her hair aside, and she closed her eyes when my fingers made contact with her skin.
"You can sleep..." I said. "I’ll be here when you wake up."
"I’m afraid that if I do that, then I will wake up. Maybe this is the dream..." She wavered, trembling slightly. "You haven’t found me yet."
"I’m here..."
"Are you?"
Doubt clouded her gaze, and I realized something then. She thinks this is all a dream since the moment she woke up. Maybe it was the aftereffect of the anesthesia, or perhaps she didn’t wanna believe I was actually here.
I stroked her cheek and leaned close to press my lips on hers. I kissed her slowly, taking my time to imprint my skin against hers.
"How about now?"
She smiled. "You still don’t feel real..."
I repeated my action.
She licked her lips. "Hmm... not yet."
"Something tells me you know quite well this isn’t a dream."
She giggled. "Guilty."
"You should have just told me you wanted a kiss."
"It was worth seeing that puzzle expression on your face. Everything is like a puzzle to you, isn’t it?"
"You are."
"In what way...?"
"Those eyes... I’ve never seen them before. Explain."