The kids are settled in the guest rooms, finally asleep after hours of questions about why we had to leave Hades' house and come here.I told them it was an adventure, a sleepover at Uncle Hades' work.They bought it, mostly because they trust me to keep them safe.
I wish I had that same certainty.
I'm standing in the kitchen, staring out the window at the night sky, when Hades finds me.He's been in meetings all evening, coordinating with his brothers about whatever they're planning to do to Ethan.
"Can't sleep?"he asks quietly.
"Too much adrenaline."
He moves closer, and I can feel the heat of him even before he touches me."You should try.Tonight’s going to be complicated."
"Tonight, you're going to kill someone."
The blunt statement hangs between us.He doesn't deny it, doesn't try to soften the truth.
"Yeah.I am."
I turn to face him, studying his expression in the dim light."And you're okay with that?With becoming a murderer?"
"I'm okay with protecting my family.Whatever it takes."
"Even if it changes who you are?"
"Angel, I've always been this person.You're just seeing it clearly for the first time."
The honesty in his voice makes my chest tight.He's right.The capacity for violence has always been there, lurking beneath the surface.I just chose not to see it because it was easier to pretend he was just the helpful uncle who fixed broken things.
"I'm scared," I admit.
"Of me?"
"Of everything.Of Ethan, of what might happen to you tomorrow, of how much I want you when I should be thinking about what's best for the kids."
"What do you want, Evangeline?"
The way he says my full name, serious and intense, makes something hot coil low in my belly.
"I want to stop being afraid.I want one night where I don't think about danger or responsibility or what might go wrong."
"And what do you want instead?"
"You."
The word comes out barely more than a whisper, but it lands between us like a bomb.His dark eyes go even darker, pupils dilating with want.
"You sure about that?"
"No.But I'm done letting fear control my choices."
I close the distance between us, rising on my toes to press my lips to his.The kiss starts gentle, tentative, like I'm testing whether this is really what I want.
It takes about three seconds to realize it absolutely is.
Hades groans into my mouth, his hands coming up to frame my face as he deepens the kiss.This isn't like the almost-kisses we've shared before, weighted with hesitation and interrupted by reality.This is permission granted, walls dropped, everything we've been holding back finally released.
"Angel," he breathes against my lips."If we do this, there's no taking it back."
"Good.I don't want to take it back."
