[Music: Elk Grove By David Kushner]
CATHERINE
My breath came off hoarse, my head thrashing back and forth. I mumbled faintly, and in the passing second, I wanted so badly to open my eyes, but I couldn’t.
I was stuck in place, forced to bleed through the fresh terrors coming to take me.
"Catherine."
That voice sounded familiar; it warded off the darkness, and when I felt his cold touch, I knew exactly who it was.
Ares.
I slowly opened my eyes as everything temporarily blurred. The sound of my heavy breathing filled my ears, and I was drenched in sweat.
It was just a dream.
"H-How long have I been asleep?"
"A few hours."
That was the longest since last week. At least I had a good night’s sleep.
"Awesome..." I tried to sound lively, but it only ended up bleak. My eyes stung from the coming tears, but I swallowed them back up and kept my fake smile in place.
"I didn’t think the first person I’d see when I wake up would be you," I mumbled.
"What were you dreaming about?" he asked out of the blue.
"It doesn’t concern you."
His cold blue eyes made me rephrase my words before I could think twice.
"I-It was just a nightmare."
It felt as if I were underwater and he was the shark. I was compelled to go on, but I reversed the subject.
"You should be in your private business or something. I have an army of nurses, a director as my doctor, and a very annoying bodyguard."
"So?"
My heart skipped a few beats as I uttered in a whisper. "It means you can leave."
I had no idea why saying that was too difficult for me; it was also as if I wanted him to stay.
When his hand moved away from my face, I realized he had been touching me. "You’re my wife."
He said it as if that was the only explanation he needed.
"Right... the public should know that Ares King caters to his wife personally. I think that would make a few more headlines than my accident. Your act is improving, especially with the jealous act you played there."
I ranted on until the stillness slapped me right in the face, and I realized I had said too much.
"How was your appointment with Dr. Miller?" he asked, straight up disregarding my words.
"It was a waste of time. I’m fine, he confirmed it too."
"Hmm..." he murmured under his breath, the sound causing my heart to leap.
He doesn’t believe me. I didn’t expect him to, and I hope this conversation ends there.
Ares’ phone rang, and he finally broke eye contact with me. He rose to his feet, walking to the corner to answer.
I observed him closely, hand buried in his pocket. He didn’t say a word, and I figured whoever was on the line was doing the talking.
Damn! He has a nice ass. From this view, I was tempted to know how those cakes would feel like when I grabbed them.
Dammit, Catherine, now is not the time to have slutty thoughts! Behave.
I licked my dry lips, moaning from the soreness, a reminder of what happened in that elevator. Heat curled through me, and my distress was suddenly not from my nightmare.
Ares had to be acting when he did that, because I couldn’t picture the almighty King being jealous. Besides, his threat was simply what it was... a sick joke.
Mister Ice decided to crack one and ended up going full-on serial killer. Jerk.
"Handle it." He ended the call.
"G-Going somewhere?" I asked. "Whatever that was must be important."
"I’m not leaving."
I can barely go back to sleep, and the thought of being with Ares through the night felt like I had signed up for an entrance in agony.
He sat back down on the bed, and the silence was colder than the north. Okay... I can’t do this.
"You know, I used to do ballet."
An amusement drowned his eyes, and I loved the look in them; it made them less... icy.
"It was one of my favorite things to do."
The memories came, and I regretted starting this chat. It made me think of mom and dad. They were always present in all my lessons. After they were gone, I did continue, but it got too painful for me, and expensive.
"What made you stop?"
Ares’ question pulled me out of it.
"I grew up..." I spoke in a shaky tone. "From where I come from, Mr. King, chasing dreams doesn’t guarantee you a future."
He blinked at my words but said nothing.
"Besides... I wouldn’t have met you and lived three years of my life in hell."
He raised an eyebrow.
"I told you that, as my husband, I can complain about everything as much as I want. You can’t fire me, Mr. King."
"Complain."
"Yeah, right..." I huffed, but taking a second look at him, I realized he was being serious.
I don’t think my expression has ever lit faster than a bulb. Alright, you asked for this.
I sit up. "Do you have any idea how annoying you can be?"
He smiled.
"And there’s taking orders in those damn heels, those are pure torture. Your coffee orders are the worst! Oh, and that thing you do when you check your watch really makes my life flash before my eyes because if I don’t get things done on that timeline, I’m done for. And there’s your voice! I spent most of the time jumping in fright, and it gave me nightmares because I thought you were gonna magically pop up in my room and demand I finish filing papers. They call me the devil’s secretary because only I can put up with your bullshit. You made my life so..."
I talked a lot, and Ares just listened. I thought he would be infuriated or bored about my endless, meaningful, and meaningless complaints, but there wasn’t a hint of those, just pure delight.