I forced myself to smile up at him flirtatiously. “You’ve worn me out, Ares. I’m not sure I have the energy to keep up with you another night.”
Lips tilting up in the corners, he brought his wrist to his mouth and sank his teeth into his flesh. I nearly gasped as the scent of his blood whorled between us. With his eyes locked on mine, he brought his bleeding skin to my lips. An aching hunger tore through me, and my vampiric instincts took charge.
Shuddering, I grasped his arm and held him there. And I took a long, long drink. His blood filled my mouth, coating my tongue. A buzzing heat rushed through me. The aching in my body soothed. My swollen eyes resolved, and the remnants of the rain welts quickly vanished.
And a thudding, aching heat pulsed between my thighs.
Ares tasted like life itself. Like desire and heat and power. I didn’t want to let him go.
Laughter rippled down the corridor, and I suddenly remembered we had an audience. Reluctantly, I unclenched his arm and dragged my lips from his skin. Ares reached out and rubbed his thumb across my jaw, wiping away a droplet of his blood. His eyes were hooded. Andhungry.
“Feel better?” he murmured.
“A bit,” I managed to whisper.
“Then come with me to my room. Spend the rest of the day with me.”
I nodded, trying to dull the roaring in my head. The others were still watching, and they’d expect me to go with him. This was to validate the story we’d told. New lovers wouldn’t want to keep their hands off each other.
And just because I went with him didn’t mean I had to stay. We’d make it look like we were spending the next couple of hours together, and then I could return to my rooms.
I slipped my hand back into the crook of his arm, and Ares led me to his bedroom.
35
SELENE
Ares was staying in the east wing. Here, there were no cobwebs clinging to the corners, and faded sheets didn’t hide the furniture or the statues lining the polished stone walls. A long stretch of crimson carpet with gold accents softened our footsteps. In the distance, a chiming bell tolled the time. It was two hours until sundown.
Ares opened a door at the end of the corridor and motioned me inside. As soon as I stepped across the threshold, the scent of him enveloped me. It was a spicy, fiery fragrance threaded with blood and stone. Two torches came alive, illuminating a space much grander than mine. The immense room held several settees surrounding a circular stone table, a writing desk that was hidden beneath a mound of books, and potted plants that crowded every corner. The ceiling loomed high above, decorated in elaborate frescoes.
I moved further into the room to get a better look at the center table. There was something perched on top of it—a carved figurine shaped like two flaming torches. Ares’s second symbol.
“Do you take that thing with you everywhere you go?” I asked.
“Yes,” he answered tensely.
Two archways sat on either wall, leading into what looked to be a bathing chamber and a bedroom. From here, I could see the three stone steps leading up to a large bed draped in black silk sheets. A chandelier hung above it, where flickering candles provided dim, atmospheric lighting.
Cheeks heating, I looked away from it. “How long do you think I need to stay here before I head back to my rooms?”
“Until sundown,” he answered, still standing near the door with his hands tucked into his torn trouser pockets.
I folded my arms. “You can’t possibly expect me to stay here. Your blood helped. But Ares, I amtired. I’m dirty. I want to have a bath and get some rest.”
“To get to the west wing, you have to go back past the megaron. They’ll see you and wonder what’s going on.” He shrugged. “Listen, we’ve gone too far with this to turn back now. You can use my bath.”
The idea of undressing and bathing in his rooms made my heart pound. Of course, it wasn’t as though he hadn’t seen me naked before. I sighed, rocking back on my heels.
“This has gotten a little out of control,” I said.
“You’re right. It has. And if you want to return to your rooms, of course you should. But I’m up for keeping this going just a little longer, to make sure they’re convinced. After tonight’s sacrifice, we can go back to avoiding each other.”
I shook my head, my lips cracking into a smile. “Don’t you mean thatIcan go back to avoidingyou, andyoucan go back to stalking my every move?”
“All right, I deserved that. Now I’m going to get rid of this dirt.” He unbuttoned his shirt and vanished through the archway leading into the bathing chamber. “You coming?”
I hesitated. When he’d first offered the bath, I hadn’t envisioned sharing it with him. Still, I padded across the floor to peek inside. The chamber was even larger than this one, if that was even possible. Four large columns held up the towering ceiling, the bottom halves painted a rusty red. A large rectangular bath, large enough for at least a dozen people, sank into the floor between them, and the surface emitted steam into the air.
