As Hades wrangled Persephone and Cerberus, and the three ultimately started down the sidewalk, I turned to Chloe, who was still captivated by our guests.
“You know, one day, I need you to tell me where you found all these great actors and actresses to play the parts of gods just to keep up the charade,” she said, her hands resting on my chest.
Her hips pulled flush to mine, and I smiled down at her. “One day, I’ll show you it isn’t one.”
She smiled wider, her eyes darting from my own to my lips, fingers moving up my chest to my cheeks. My heart began to stumble as I gazed at her.
“You are a beautiful torture,” I whispered. “Sinful damnation from the gods.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN - CHLOE
I DIDN’T SEE Hades or Persephone leave or have time to comprehend that they were indeed royalty or that they had glamoured Cerberus to look like a Great Dane.
All I saw was Gavin.
All Iwantedwas Gavin.
He was holding me, and I was closer to having him than I’d ever been.
There was a pull between us that left me oblivious to the rest of the world—the draw of being so magnetically attracted to someone’s soul. That’s what it was between us. It wasn’t merely lust or something as simple as love.
My soul recognized his as its eternal partner, and I was beginning to accept that.
He pushed my hair from my face, and I covered his hand with mine, allowing his palm to rest on my cheek.
“As are you,” I managed.
“I don’t know if I can keep denying myself of you,” he said.
“So, don’t,” I almost begged, staring at his lips.
He swallowed, his brows narrowed. “When are you going to tell him?”
A bucket of water practically splashed over my head. I released him and took a step back, unable to breathe at the look on his face. There was desperation in his tone, so much that I could feel how on edge he was, how he was one sentence away from losing it over this.
“Soon,” I managed shakily. “Tomorrow. It isn’t as easy as just packing up my things,” I said. “The wedding is in three weeks. There are many things that I’ll have to cancel and people I need to call and….” I hung my head. “It’s so much.”
“Do all that while you’re with me,” he said, reaching for my hand. “Just tell him. You’re positively miserable. Why can’t you do it tonight?”
“He won’t be there tonight,” I said, frustration rising. “Gavin, what do you want me to do? Just rush in in the morning and tell him it’s over?”
“Yes,” he said flatly.
“There are numerous things to figure out,” I argued. “Where to go, what to tell people, the wedding—“
“Let them figure out what they want to do,” he said. “Fuck, tell them to still have the party. Tell them to go stay at the resort. They’ll have a great time regardless of if there is a wedding.”
A void filled the pit of my gut. I couldn’t speak as I watched him thread his hands through his hair, fists grabbing onto the roots as he twisted in a circle. His jaw was tight, pain and frustration written on his face. Seeing him like this made me want to drop everything in sight and give him the world just to see that light in his eyes again.
“Gavin—“
“Dammit, Chloe. Iloveyou,” he said, his head lifting to mine.
I froze. Tears pricked my eyes. I clenched my jaw. “Gavin…”
“I can’t stop thinking about you,” he continued. “You are on my mind when I wake up, when I make coffee, when I shower. I think about you while sitting in traffic, when I'm listening to the radio. I think about you walking down the sidewalk, and I see a butterfly. You’re on my mind every minute of every day.“
I smiled despite myself at that, blinking back my emotion.
