Ares stepped behind me.
Arms wrapping around my waist.
His voice dropped low in my ear. “Soak it in.”
I leaned back into him slightly.
Letting myself feel it.
All of it.
“We are married now,” he said lowly, like nobody else was supposed to hear it.
My heart skipped.
“That mean you really mine, and I’m taking you seriously.”
His hand moved.
Slow.
Subtle.
Resting against my stomach.
Not intentional.
Not knowing.
Just… There.
I didn’t move or react. I just placed my hand over his for a second.
I kept it to myself.
I’ll tell him soon.
But not today.
CHAPTER 68
Vivi
ONE WEEK LATER…
“Mercy Is for the Weak”
Istood at the foot of Marcel’s bed for a long moment before I moved closer. The oxygen mask fogged slightly with each weak breath he took. The curtains were half drawn, letting in that soft French sunlight that made everything look prettier than it really was.
Even death.
“My daughter,” Marcel whispered, voice thin, fragile in a way I had never heard before.
I didn’t answer right away.
I walked closer instead. My heels barely made a sound against the marble.
For a man who built an empire off fear, power, and control…
