“Agreed,” Milo adds quickly. I almost let out a sigh of relief. I thought I had a couple more days before I had to meet awhole bunch of people.
Mal pokes his head into the mudroom, his lips twisted up in a sly grin. “I heard that,” he singsongs and ducks away just as quickly.
“Damn it,” Ares curses.
“He won’t say anything, hejustwants to make ussweat,” Dante offers.
“Let’s hope not, if he tellsMom, she’ll have a fit.” Ares places his hand on the small of my back. He’s in his customary suit pants, button-up shirt, and vest. He looks amazing, delectable, but I feel like I come up lacking next to him in my sweater and jeans.
“We better go out there and make sure hedoesn’t say anything,” Milo urges, pushing us out of the mudroom.
Ares leans down and whispers in my ear, “Stay close to one of us while we’re here.”
“You don’t have to worry about that,” I mutter under my breath, thinking today might be a good day to be invisible.
Milo and Ollie are leading the group as we make our way past the kitchen and into the formal living room. I spot Scott and Carolyn first, they’re chatting with a woman and two men I’ve never seen before near the wall. Carolyn is smiling and their conversation seems relaxed.
Ollie walks over in their direction, placing a kiss on his mom’s cheek when she notices him. He stands there and nods as the people his parents are talking tostart to include him in the conversation. He looks over in me, my hand in Ares’s, and he pulls a face.
I rub my cheek against Ares’s arm to hide my smile. Thank goodness no one is making a big deal about our arrival.
Milo migrates over to one of his dads, greeting him with a hand on his back. Ares squeezes my hand and leads me over to a small bar set against the wall, keeping my hand in his as he pours himself a short glass of amber liquid. I glance around to see where Dante is, but he’s not in the room. My eyes skipovera few people and I notice that some of them are watching us. Some are trying not to make it obvious, but others don’tbother tohide their interest.
I turn back around pretending not to notice, but I lean in closer to Ares. “People are staring,” I say under my breath.
“They won’t come over.” He doesn’t keep his voice down. He turns back around and levels his gaze on the room. Every eye in the room is now directed elsewhere. He leans down and places a kiss on the top of my head. “They won’t bother us.” He pulls back and gives me a devastatingly handsome grin. “Why do you think they agreed to let you stay with me?”
“I didn’t realize they even discussed it,” I tell him honestly.
Ares’s smile doesn’t falter. “Do you really think they want to be playing the distraction instead of being here with you?”
I look over at Ollie, who looks about asbored as he could be, then over at Milo. “They’re talking to their parents.”
“No, they are answering all the questions about us so we don’t have to.” I look again, Milo is speaking, his head nodding, with a plastic smile on his lips.
“Well, that’s not far. They shouldn’t have to do that alone.” I take a step forward.
Ares stops me, holding my hand tightly. “They don’t mind Laura.”
“But youjustsaid… and Ollie looks miserable.”
“Let me put it this way, they would rather it be them than you.”
I look up at Ares. His face is more closed off than I’ve seen it in weeks and his posture is stiff. “How did you get stuck with me?”
He chuckles under his breath, but outwardly his features don’t shift. “Sweetheart, I’m the one keeping them away.” He pauses, and his next words stun me. “These people only pretend not to fear me.”
My heart aches at his declaration, which was delivered harshly. I look out at the people milling around the room, seeing them in a different light. A wave of fierce protectiveness crashes into me. His words may sound like he’s angry, but I can sense the hurt underneath.
With a subtle movement I go from clinging to him, to standing a little in front of him. I dare one of these people to treat him with anything other than kindness.
“Laura, how are you darling? Ares,” Rosa calls, coming into the room with her arms already outstretch as she approaches. She gives me a quick kiss on my cheek and moves to Ares’s other side. There’s something about the way she is speaking, just a little too loudly, and the way she’s standing, that makes me think she’s doing exactly what I am. Protecting the most powerful of our kind. Her eyes land on mine and she gives me a wink of understanding.
“Dinner is just about ready. If everyone would like to follow me.” Ares guides me from the room, while his mother waits for everyone else to rise from the seats and gather near her. I look back as we leave the room, and almost every eye is on us.
Dante meets us near the formal dining room, his hands shoved deep into the pockets of his dark jeans. “Hey, were therea lot of people in there?”
“Some,” Ares answers noncommittally. I reach for Dante’s arm with my free hand, not liking the frown marring his brow. I think back to when Ares had taken meto meet Dante’s tiger for the first time, how nervous they both were for me to see him in his shifted form. I don’t think it was an accident that Dante didn’t follow us into the room. How long has Ares been taking on the brunt of their shared unacceptance?
