It works. He blinks, his eyes returning to their usual piercing blue, and he instantly looks down at me, his gaze then dipping lower. My cheeks flush involuntarily as I realise I forgot my gown, too. And suddenly I’m far too aware of the way his knee is right between my thighs, or that he’s close… too close. I never realised how plump his lips were before…
His eyes flick to my neck for a moment, and then he lets go of me and staggers back, stumbles and hits the floor, groaning on impact.
“What the hell are you doing here?” he asks as he sits there, clearly exhausted and annoyed.
Why though?
“I sensed that there was something wrong with you, and I thought I’d come check. I didn’t realise you would try to choke me,” I retort as I sit up and fix my hair, now wishing my hair wasn’t tied back.
He cocks a brow. “What? Did you think I was going to fucking run so that you had to come check on me?” he asks.
“No…” I don’t know how to respond to that.
My heart is still pounding, and I can’t seem to calm it down. He was too close!
“Lucky for you, I had already finished talking to Hades. If you had interrupted us, he would have left, and we’d have needed another three souls. You really are becoming annoying.”
I glower at him. “Well, I was simply concerned,” I reply haughtily. “So, you talked to him?”
“Yeah… but I’m really exhausted; we’ll talk tomorrow.”
“Why are you so tired?” I ask, noticing he isn’t even getting up.
He looks at me with pure annoyance. “Because, Little Miss Know-It-All, being in the presence of a god is draining. Hades loves to take me to the brink of death before we ‘discuss’ anything.”
I feel a sliver of guilt but don’t show it. “Oh… Well, we can talk tomorrow then.”
“Great,” he replies sarcastically as he lies down on the floor, closing his eyes.
I stand up and look down at him. “Will you stay on thefloor?”
“Yep.” He doesn’t open his eyes.
“Want me to give you a hand to the sofa?” I ask.
“I’ll be fine on the floor.”
But it’s uncomfortable. “I don’t know how you sleep on the floor. You know I’ve tried it, but it’s so uncomfortable, I wasn’t able to get even a wink of sleep.”
He cracks his eyes open and smirks. “Obviously, you’re a princess.”
I roll my eyes, grab the cushion from the sofa and kneel down beside him. “Lift your head. You should feel honoured that this princess is being nice.”
He snickers. “You’re feeling guilty, aren’t you?” he asks smugly.
I frown at him as he half sits up, allowing me to put the pillow under his head, the move only emphasising those chiselled abs even more. My stomach knots, and I’m about to bolt when he reaches up, his large hand cupping my neck. My breath hitches, my eyes widen as my control over my emotions seems to spiral a little. What is he doing?
His thumb brushes the centre of my neck, and I swallow. The humour is gone from his face as a frown creases his brow.
“I’ve left a mark…”
“It’s nothing a small healing spell won’t cure,” I whisper softly.
What is wrong with me?
His eyes flick to mine, and he smirks. “Good, the last thing I want is everyone after my head.” He lets go of me and drops back onto the cushion, groaning. “Now, go to bed, Blondie.”
I don’t reply as I quickly get to my feet.
