Dante shifts behind me, and I turn to watch as he slinks closer to me, his eyes never leaving mine as he closes the distance between us. My mouth falls open when he slides right behind me, his legs going on either side of mine as he pulls me back against him. I glance over at Ollie who is still holding my hand, but he adjusts himself so Dante can wrap his body around mine without complaint.
Ares continues, his face completely calm. “I put out the word I was looking to relocate, expand out west. Their community was a logical choice, already heavily entrenched with Infinities and their children.”
“What exactly is it you do?” I interrupt him.
“He’s a fixer, a problem solver,” Milo answers for Ares. I look over at him and his eyes meet mine. For a single second I think I see something in his face, jealousy, wistfulness, something, but then it’s gone before I can even decipher it.
“Which means what?”
“I have a security company. But in our society, I’m who they call if something happens that can’t be easily explained. I fix problems,” Ares explains without an ounce of smugness. He states it like it’s a fact that can’t be denied.
I pinch my forehead. “What kind of problems?”
Ares shrugs one wide shoulder. “Anything from some newly transitioned kid starting a fire at school, to a politician who needs to hide that his wife has another husband.”
My back goes straight. “What if you get caught, what if the government or the police find out about you?” I can’t keep the fear from my voice.
Ollie lets out a low chuckle. “What do you think they could do to him? They wouldn’t even be able to hold him.”
“This isn’t funny Oliver.” I pull my hand from his and push him to the side.
“If you understood how powerful he is, you’d know he’s not at risk,” Milo says. I hold my tongue. I want to tell them you should never tempt fate, that you should always assume there is always someone bigger, badder, and tougher than you, but I don’t. I probably just feel that way because my mother drilled those thoughts into my head.
I shake my head, pushing away the thoughts. “How is this still a secret? I mean your abilities, how have you’ve been able to keep the existence of the Infinity a secret?” I’ve often wondered this, but never really gotten around to asking the question.
Ares moves over toward the bed and takes a seat, his shoulders bunch as he props a pillow against the wall and sits. “We do less hiding than you’d think. If you’re reclusive, or super private, people will assume you have something to hide. So, we live our lives. You’d be surprised how many people have seen something they can’t explain, but instead of questioning it, they rationalize it. Their brain tells them they didn’t see a guy disappear into the shadows, that they just couldn’t see him walk away.” Ares settles on the bed, his back leaning against the pillow.
I guess I can understand that, but it seems like someone somewhere would have seen something that isn’t as easy to dismiss. I’ve gone off track again.
“When are you going?” I bite the corner of my lip. I don’t want Ares to go. I hate when I have to go all morning and afternoon without seeing him. What will it be like if he leaves for a few days? “How long are you going to be gone?” The second question comes before he has a chance to answer the first.
Ares lifts his arms and folds them behind his head, his gaze slides over to Dante. “We’re leaving tomorrow morning, pretty early. And I don’t know how long we’ll be gone.”
“Wait.” I pull away from Dante so I can see him behind me, and I look back and forth between the two brothers. “You’re both going?”
Dante’s hand smooths over my thigh. “He really shouldn’t go alone.”
I look down, feeling slightly guilty that I’d assumed he was. Dante’s right though, Ares shouldn’t go alone. As I process their plan, I actually feel better knowing they will be together. But selfishly, I don’t want either of them of leave me.
“You guys are staying though, right?” I switch my gaze to Milo and Ollie.
Milo nods his head as Ollie answers, “We wouldn’t be able to go anyway, we’re not bonded to you yet. We wouldn’t be able to handle the separation.”
My face flushes. That’s something else I wanted to talk to them about. Patting Dante’s leg, I turn in his embrace so I can see Milo and Ollie better on the other side of the bed. “Should we do that now, bond I mean?”
Milo’s head jerks up like I’ve surprised him, and Ollie looks almost eager at the idea. “Are you sure you’re ready for that?” It’s Milo who speaks up. “You don’t really have a good grasp of your abilities yet…” He lets the sentence trail off like there’s more he’s not saying.
The sting of rejection hits hard and fast, and I hope my face doesn’t betray my emotions. “That makes sense,” I croak out, and before Milo can say anything, I turn away from him.
After a brief moment of silence, Ares tells me, “Our flight is at nine, that way we’ll be there before lunch. I don’t want to be gone any longer than I need to be.”
“What about school?”
I feel Dante shrug behind me. “It won’t be a big deal. I can always get an excuse if we’re gone more than a day or two, and we have Thanksgiving break coming up.”
“Is that all you think it’ll take, a day or two?” My voice is small, but hopeful. No one answers me, so I’m not very confident they’ll be back that soon.
“I’m going to shower,” Ollie grumbles. He shoves off the bed in a way that makes me think he’s mad about something. I peer over at Milo but his head is down, and I can’t see his face at all.
I snag Ollie’s hand as he passes, and he pauses and looks down at me. The line of his jaw softens, and he gives me a slow, reluctant smile. He gives my fingers a little jiggle then releases my hand, heading to the bathroom.
I’m not sure what to make of his behavior, but Milo clears his throat the moment the door closes behind Ollie. “I forgot I needed to tell him something.” Milo’s off the bed and rushing to the door before anyone of us can object. It seemed like Ollie wanted a few minutes to himself, but who am I to interfere? They’ve been friends for years.
“That might not go the way he’s expecting,” Ares mutters under his breath.
“What do you mean?”
“Let’s just say Oliver didn’t like Milo’s response to your offer of bonding,” Ares answers. Reaching out one hand, he beckons me forward. “Let them work it out.”
Climbing over Dante’s thigh, I crawl up the bed to lie next to Ares. Dante is close behind and he curls his body around mine, becoming the big spoon as I settle my head on Ares’s torso, whose hand delves into my hair, massaging my scalp.
Ares stays in a lounged seated position, so as I relax my head falls closer to his lap. Dragging in a deep settling breath I tell them both, “I already miss you guys and you haven’t even left yet.” The confession comes easily. I don’t have to worry they’ll think I’m being silly or dramatic. I know they’ll accept my feelings and probably feel similarly.
Dante tucks himself even closer to me, burrowing his face at the nape of my neck. His palm splayed wide, covering as much of my stomach as possible.
“We’ll do what me must, then come home to you, Cara.” Ares’ fingers start pulling through my hair. A feeling of contentment settles over me. I know they won’t be away any longer than absolutely necessary. I let my eyes drift closed with that thought in mind.
Seconds later a crash from the bathroom jolts me from my relaxed state. I lift my head from Ares and look at the door, but Dante rasps, “It’s fine, don’t worry.” I strain to hear any more noises, but it’s quiet.
“I thought Ollie was going to take a shower, why is Milo still in there?”
“Milo has something he still needs to work through, so he and Ollie are talking.” Dante runs his hand from my stomach, up over my hip, and back. He’s trying to distract me, and damn it. It’s working. I let my head fall back against Ares as Dante’s hand continue
s to roam from just under my breasts, down past my belly button, and over my side and hip.
Every time his fingers get close to the apex of my thighs or the underside of my breasts, I hold my breath, thinking this time he’s going to go just a little bit further. The cycle continues until I can’t focus on anything other than his hand. I make a fist, gathering some of the loose fabric of Ares’s sweatpants in my hand. I hadn’t realized it before, but my hand is high on his upper thigh, nearly as close to his center as Dante’s fingers are coming to mine.
Ares’s abdominals go rigid and I lift my head, looking up. I don’t know what he sees on my face, but he scoots down hastily and seals his mouth to mine.
I have a second of hesitation. Dante is right behind me, and I know he’s not sleeping. His hand has stopped moving, but he’s gripping the crest of my hip with rough fingers. Dante’s forehead slides down, touching just below my neck. He doesn’t pull away or say anything. His breathing is a little ragged, but that could just be my own.
Ares coaxes the kiss out of me. He runs his tongue over my bottom lip seductively, and pants a heavy minty breath into my mouth. I’m helpless to resist him, I never wanted to anyway. As soon as he knows he has me, he deepens the kiss. His tongue lapping into my mouth with long, steady strokes, brushing against mine.
The heat of Dante behind me sears into me. I can’t deny the excitement I feel being between them. Dante’s hand jerks my hips back and he grinds into me. He lets out a low rumbling sound that sounds like a warning.
Ares slows his kiss, and he nips my lips a few times in a warning all his own. I’m breathless when he finally pulls away. I almost tuck my face into his chest so he won’t see the effects his kiss and Dante’s nearness had on me, but I don’t. I open my eyes to find Ares staring at me with a look of hunger on his face that probably puts the lust on mine to shame.
Reaching forward, he cradles my jaw in his hand. “I’ll be back soon.” He drops a not so gentle kiss to my mouth unapologetically and pulls back. The promise in his voice is certain, so is the hint of what’s coming.
Dante doesn’t speak as Ares rolls onto his back. I curl into him with Dante still tightly wrapped around me. My heart is thrumming a steady beat in my chest. I slide my hand over Ares’s stomach and place my palm over his heart, feeling the rapid beat of his pulse under my hand. I’m definitely not the only one affected.
Ares flips the switch on the lamp next to his bed, plunging the room into darkness. I hadn’t planned on going to bed so early, but I’m warm and comfortable, and my eyes drift shut as I nestle my cheek against Ares. I hate knowing he and Dante won’t be here with me tomorrow night. It’ll be the first time I haven’t slept next to Ares in weeks.
Sometime later, as I’m drifting in that in-between place of sleep and consciousness, the bathroom door opens. Milo comes out, and I see him briefly before the light coming from the bathroom is extinguished by the closing door. Adjusting my eyes to the darkness, I watch as he makes his way over to the far side of the bed, he drops down heavily and his head falls into his hands.
There’s an air of exhaustion hanging over his slumped shoulders. I think about pulling out from between Dante and Ares, but the sting of his bond refusal is too recent. I don’t know how to get closer to him. It feels like every time I think we might be breaking down the wall he’s built between us, something happens that has him pulling further away from me.
With a heavy sigh, Milo lifts his head and looks over his shoulder, and I slit my eyes, hoping he doesn’t catch me watching him. More carefully than I’d think possible, Milo picks up the pillow at the top of the bed and re-settles it near the edge. Without even removing his shirt, he lays on his back, his arms folded over his chest, hands tucked away. His eyes are wide, staring at the ceiling. Minutes pass and he doesn’t move a muscle, never once pulling the covers up as he lies there separated from me by a few feet, but he feels like he’s miles away.
The door to the bathroom opens again, and that’s when Milo closes his eyes, his breathing shallowing out. He’s pretending to be asleep now too. I watch Ollie as he nears the end of the bed; he doesn’t need the light to know Milo left an empty space between himself and Dante.
Ollie climbs into bed from the bottom, making sure not to disturb his friend as he does. Once settled, he pulls the covers over himself and Milo before turning onto his side and facing Dante.
I need to have a talk with Ollie. With Ares and Dante leaving tomorrow morning, I’ll have plenty of time to get to the bottom of what’s going on between him and Milo.
Chapter 5
“We really need to go.” I’ve heard Dante and Ares mutter these words more times than I can count this morning. This time it happens to be Dante, mumbling against my lips between light kisses.
“I know,” I tell him, but I don’t pull away.
Dante takes a hold of my shoulders and takes a step back from me. I look up at him through my lashes, I can’t stop the pout from forming on my lips. I don’t want him to go. I don’t want either of them to go. “Don’t look at me like that Laura,” Dante chides, and he sounds almost as pained as I am at the thought of not seeing him for days.
I clench my jaw and pull my lips out of the sullen pout. I force my mouth into a smile, but we both know it’s fake. “We’ll be in touch, okay?” Dante bends his knees so he’s eye level with me. He searches back and forth between my eyes, looking for something. I nod and blink several times so the pricking behind my eyes doesn’t turn into tears.
Satisfied with what he sees, Dante looks over my shoulder. I know Milo and Ollie are back there. They’re giving us space to say goodbye, but Dante jerks his head back, his chin going into the air. Refocusing on me, he says, “Anything happens, Ares will be right back.” Dante straightens, his hands smoothing down my arms to catch my fingers.
“I can’t shadow walk with him, but I’ll be right behind him if you need me.” Again, I nod, unwilling to open my mouth. I’m afraid I’ll beg him to stay if I do. Ares already told me this morning that he can be back here quickly if he needs to be, so I already know what Dante is telling me.
I feel a hand on my shoulder, and I look over and see Ollie. He isn’t smiling, which makes my sadness even more real for some reason. “Be safe, keep us updated,” he tells Dante in an uncharacteristically serious voice. Dante releases my hands and I fall, more than lean, into Ollie. He takes me without complaint and holds me up as Dante gives me one last, soft peck on my lips. I lean up on my toes to press my mouth to his, but he pulls away too fast, turning away and jogging over to the car where Ares is already waiting.
Meeting his eyes in the driver’s seat, Ares gives me a wink. I let out a small a chuckle. Milo steps up next to me, and he raises one hand in a wave while shielding his eyes with the other. I wrap my arm around Ollie’s waist, pulling myself even closer to him as Ares makes a turn and the car drives down the lane, leading to the main road.
Briefly, I think back to my stolen moments with Ares in the kitchen this morning. He surprised me by being the first one to wake up this morning. In turn, he woke me with a light caress over my cheek. As soon as I opened my eyes, he held one arm out to me and put a finger against his lips to let me know to stay quiet. I crawled from the bed and into his waiting arms, with Dante and the others still sleeping soundly in bed.
Already showered and dressed, Ares carried me from the room with ease. I dropped my head to his chest and inhaled his fresh scent into my lungs as I relaxed against him. He made a stop at one of the many bathrooms where I was able to handle my morning business and rinse my mouth out a few times, sans toothbrush.
Hand in hand, he guided me to the kitchen where he searched through a few cupboards and handed me a protein bar and a banana with a sheepish grin on his face. “Sorry about breakfast, or lack thereof.”
Reaching forward, I pulled him to me over the counter by the sleeve of his black button-down shirt. “Thank you, but I’d rather have coffee.” I planted a sweet kiss on the corner of h
is lips and released him, falling back into my chair.
“That, I can manage,” he purred, before leaning forward and sealing his lips to mine. His palm landed on the back of my neck, holding me to him. Grateful that I took the time to rinse my mouth, I returned his kiss with just as much passion. If that stupid counter wasn’t between us, I’d have been in his arms.
He pulled away first, and I placed my fingers over my swollen lips, still feeling the slight sting from the light nips he gave them. Ares’s eyes are full black, the whites having been completely swallowed by the darkness. He smoothed his hand down his fitted charcoal gray vest, his hand going south of his waist and disappearing under the counter. My eyes tracked the movement, and I leaned forward, intending to see exactly where that hand went, but noise in the distance had my eyes jumping to meet his.
Ares’s breaths were still heavy when he turned to face the coffee maker. Dropping his head as he grasped the counter, he took in several deep inhales, and I watched as his back rose and fell. Settling myself on the stool, I crossed my legs and brushed away imaginary lint from my leggings. I really wished I could get this attraction thing under control.
Dante shuffled into the kitchen and he bumped his head against mine before dropping into the seat beside me. “You should have woken me up.” His voice was gravely and deep.
With my elbow on the countertop, I dropped my head to my palm, and a sigh left me before I could rein it in. Dante’s voice did magical things to my insides.
Ollie’s voice cuts into my musings, snapping me back to the present. “Well, we only have a few hours before work, what kind of trouble can we find before then?” Ollie announces before the taillights disappear. I glance over at Milo, he’s still staring out into the distance. I think it’s more in avoidance than anything else.
“What would you like to do Milo?”
“Me?” His eyes meet mine for a split second. “Uh… I have—”
Infinity Chronicles Book Three Page 4
