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I nod and leave the stack of plates where they are. “I might take a shower, and then we can head out.”

Brawley says that he is ready whenever I am, so I head upstairs, trying not to think about Aaron and what happened over the past few days. He wouldn’t be stupid enough to come back here—there’s no way.

The bathroom adjoining the spare room is small, but at least there’s a towel already hanging on the rack. Turning on the water, I strip down and step in, letting the hot spray wash away all the thoughts in my head. I need to hold it together; I’m physically okay, and that is all that matters.

The bathroom door opens, and I wipe my hand across the foggy screen to find Ares leaning against the sink. He pushes off and opens the shower door, stepping inside fully dressed.

“Your clothes are getting wet.” He shrugs as the water runs down the side of his face, and he stares at me. “You don’t have to check on me.”

“I wanted to.”

I step back so the water runs over my back and shoulders. “Do you really want to know, or is this you wanting something to use against me later?”

He is quiet for a moment. “Honestly, I don’t know. All I know is that I wanted to make sure you were okay, and honestly, that scares the shit out of me. When you were being dug up, my heart raced so fast. The thought of losing you killed me.”

“And that bothers you?”

“Yes, because what if this is me feeling something? What does that mean for my entire life? Why you and no one else? Or have I convinced myself that I care because this way I don’t have to lie to you?”

I place my hands on the hem of his shirt, pulling it up, helping him remove the now heavy fabric. “You know you can ask me anything. I already need you, Ares, more than you know. When I was in that coffin, all I wanted was for you to know I needed you.”

Ares undoes his pants, and they drop to the ground.

“For what it’s worth, not knowing something about yourself doesn’t have to be a problem,” I continue, picking up the shampoo.

Ares takes it from my hand and pours some into his, then motions for me to spin around so he can help me wash my hair. “It does when your operating system relies on knowing everything.”

“Then maybe it needs an update. I’m not going anywhere, and we have time to figure out how this works for us. I need you, Ares, and now you get to figure out what you want from me.”

“Kayla, I can’t promise I won’t use what I know to manipulate you,” he says as I wash out the shampoo, then turn back to face him.

“But I think deep down you’re a good man who uses what he knows for good. You love to be needed, and right now I need you more than you know. We start with the job at your bar, so I can pay my bills.”

He drops his forehead to mine. “That I can do. I already feel like I’m winning the best boyfriend award—the others will be jealous.”

“Boyfriend, huh? But it’s not a competition.”

Ares laughs. “Yes, boyfriend, because even though I’m not sure how to feel anything, I know I want you. And it very much is a competition, and right now I’m winning.”

I shake my head as I laugh. Things are about to get interesting.

Ares lowers himself to his knees and lifts my leg over his shoulder.

“You don’t have to do that,” I say, as flashbacks of Aaron telling me he hated doing it out of obligation flash through my head.

“Yes, I do. How else will I make sure you need me more? If I eat your pussy the best, you will keep coming back to me.”

He dips his tongue into my core, and I reach for his hair as I buck against his face.

Oh fuck, a girl could get used to this. If this is how he wants me to need him, I am more than happy to oblige.

Chapter Eight

Ares

Having systems in place is how I function, but the issue is that I know the instant something is off. I woke up at five a.m., and while that isn’t unusual, I have this unsettled feeling, which is absurd because I don’t do emotions.

I went over the logs this morning and erased all traces of Luca working here, looping any footage with him in it to cover ourselves in case it comes back to bite us in the ass.