I follow after Ares, taking in the apartment as I go. Off the living room, there is a huge dining room with a modern table and ten chairs. Attached is a kitchen that nearly makes me want to learn how to cook. The hallway stretches beyond that, and next, I find a library with high-end leather furniture occupying the space. Beyond that, there are two large bedrooms and a bathroom with some serious amenities in between them. Next, we find a home gym that makes my mouth water. And finally, a ridiculously long walk later, at the end of the hall, is the last bedroom.
It's beautiful. Beams crisscross the ceiling. A sparkling chandelier hangs from the ceiling. Those heavy drapes frame the stunning arched windows. The bedroom is placed in the corner of the building, offering stunning views of the park andthe impressive buildings down the side road. A king-sized bed dominates the center of the room, an ungodly amount of pillows piled atop the fluffy comforter.
Off the bedroom, Ares wanders into a ridiculously large bathroom, and I follow.
“A tub?” I gape. There it is, a massive and immaculate clawfoot thing in the center of the room, right in front of the window. I’ve lived in five different apartments in New York throughout my life, and I’ve never seen a bathtub in one.
“Not bad,” Ares notes, though he doesn’t have nearly as much wonder in his tone as I do.
There’s also a huge two-person shower, double vanities, and a separate toilet room. And branching off of the bathroom is a walk-in closet that’s the size of a small boutique shop.
It’s also stocked with a decent-sized collection of men’s clothes. All of them are black, with the exception of a few white t-shirts.
“Okay, I know I might be kind of stupid, because you laid it out fairly clearly,” I admit as I look at all of Ares’ clothes hanging in the closet. They’re accompanied by several of my bags sitting on the floor, waiting to be unpacked. “But it didn’t really cross my mind that we’d be sharing a bedroom.”
I feel too embarrassed to look at the man who could probably walk into any club and get any woman he wanted to go home with him. Ares might be terrifying looking in some ways, but he’s also quite possibly the most beautiful man I’ve ever laid eyes on.
And I’m maybe just a little scandalized at the thought of sharing a bed with him.
“I don’t sleep much,” he says instead of making it more awkward. “So, it won’t be a problem. The bed is yours. When Ido have to sleep, I’ll do it somewhere else. The bed in the next room over looked halfway decent.”
“It looked like the most comfortable bed I’ve ever seen in my life,” I point out, finally able to look over at him with his reassurance. I give him a look. One that says I’m beginning to realize he’s a rich man who has never slept on anything less than resort-quality bamboo sheets.
He simply shrugs with a faint smile.
“You don’t do anything halfway, do you?” I ask as we wander back out toward the hall. The movers walk through the door again. I realize then that they’ve already put some of my things in the primary bedroom. It’s so big and so stunning I didn’t even notice the stash of my things.
“It’s all part of the show,” Ares says as we walk back down the hall. He crosses the kitchen and opens the fridge. But, of course, it’s empty.
“Well, why the hell does it have to be so big?” I say softly as I look around again.
“Cause we’re planning to fill it up with kids, remember?”
My eyes snap back to him. He looks at me with those dark eyes of his. “That’s going to take some getting used to. And maybe test my acting skills. I’ve never really been sure if I wanted kids, to be honest.”
“At least we have that in common,” he says. He turns to a cupboard, and I’m surprised it’s fully stocked when he opens it. He grabs a glass and fills it with water. He sets it on the counter in front of me and nods to the barstool. I pull up a seat, and he leans forward, his elbows resting on the gorgeous marble. “We need to make a plan. We have to do this smart, or Augustus is going to know something is wrong. I’m not looking to put you in any more danger than necessary.”
“You always this gallant?” I ask as I grab the glass and lift it to my lips.
“Trust me,” he says as he crooks that signature, small smile of his, “thinking of me as gallant would be a mistake.”
“I don’t know,” I reply as I set the glass back down. “You look like a hardass, and you can talk the talk sometimes, but so far, you’re not nearly as terrifying as I thought you’d be.”
A true smile curls on Ares’ lips and embers spark in his eyes just for a moment before they flare brilliant, blood red.
A curse escapes my mouth as I shove my way back from the counter, knocking the barstool right over.
“Don’t ever forget what I really am, Lana,” he says. There’s still a smile on his lips, but there’s a real warning in his tone. “Just because I have good control now doesn’t mean you aren’t the best smelling dessert I’ve ever come across in my life.”
My face feels hot. I know I must be blushing, probably brilliant red. How the hell am I supposed to interpret that?
“Okay, fine, you’re a terrifying vampire,” I say as I pull the chair upright again and slide back up to the counter. “I won’t forget that. Now, what’s the plan, Venom?”
He arches an eyebrow at me, and the smile pulling at his lips tells me he likes the nickname I’ve just bestowed upon him that’s complimentary to my own.
“I think it’s a fairly across the board thing that family is going to have a million questions when you get engaged,” Ares moves on. “Considering we’ve known each other for,” he checks the incredibly expensive looking watch on his wrist, “twenty-two hours, I think we need to take a few days and get our story straight. I need to know your story, you’re going to need to know mine.”
The idea of having to tell Ares my story makes my skin go cold.
