I bite down on my lip and look down. “Look, Sierra… there’s something I haven’t told you.”
She frowns, and I sit down on her bed. “Remember that night we went out and Ares came to pick us up because we were so drunk?”
She nods and sits down next to me, her eyes on mine as I tell her all about how I climbed onto his lap, the way I tried to seduce him, the things I said. “He wasn’t even remotely tempted, Sierra. A small part of me thought that I could get him to fold if I truly gave it my all, but I couldn’t. He wasn’t moved.”
She looks away and shakes her head. “I really doubt that, Rave. Even if that’s the case, it’s different now. You were off-limits to him before, but you’re his wife now. If he repeatedly sees you in various states of undress, he’s going to end up wanting you, even if he doesn’t right now. He won’t be able to stay away from you for three years, and he won’t cheat on you.”
I cross my arms and nod hesitantly. “Yeah,” I admit. “I don’t think he’ll cheat.”
She smiles at me and holds up the nightgown she bought me. “If you two end up sleeping together, he’ll end up falling for you. I know you think he’ll never stop loving your sister, but I call bullshit. He’s always looked at you a certain way, and there’s always been this unshakeable bond between you two. He just needs a push. Ares is a man of morals, and so long as he thinks he’s doing right by both Hannah and you by staying away, he will. Give him a reason to fold. Honestly, if you just outright tell him you want him to meet your physical needs, he’d fall as fast as a house of cards. I know he wants you. He just won’t admit it to himself.”
I stare at Sierra, wondering if it’s all just her own wishful thinking, or if she might be right. I feel like I played my hand and lost the night he took us home. I’m scared to put myself out there in the same way again.
“Trust me,” she tells me. “I know my brother, and he does not just see you as Hannah’s sister. If you aren’t comfortable with pursuing him directly, then just do this much, okay? Just wear the nightgowns I bought you and see how he responds to that. Just seduce him, slowly, until he gives in and comes to you. Watch his actions, Rave. I’m certain he’ll betray himself sooner or later. He wants you… and the line between lust and love is thin.”
I reach for the white nightgown she bought me and examine it. It’d barely cover anything… it’s too much.
“Just try it, Rave.”
I nod. “Fine. I’ll try it, but if it backfires, you’ll never hear the end of it.”
“It won’t,” she promises. Sierra seems so sure… I wish I could borrow some of her confidence. What is it that she’s seeing between Ares and me that I’m not seeing?
Chapter Twenty-Six
Ares
I place my coffee cup on the counter when I hear the front door swing closed and walk toward the sounds in the hallway.
Raven looks up in surprise and freezes. Her hair is wet, and she’s dressed in the same clothes she was wearing yesterday. She clearly spent the night somewhere, and it sure as hell wasn’t here, in my bed — where she was supposed to be.
“Where have you been?” I ask, my voice deceptively calm.
“Ares.” She lifts her hand to her chest. “You’re up early.”
I stare her down, trying to keep her from realizing how angry I am. “I asked you a question.”
She frowns at me and tries to walk past me, but I grab her wrist and pull her against me. “Where. Were. You?” I snap.
She grits her teeth and glares at me. “Do you have any right to ask me that after you went for dinner with my sister? Don’t be a hypocrite.”
I pull her closer, until I’ve got her body flush against mine. “I do have that right, Raven. I’m your husband.”
Her eyes flash and she smiles humorlessly. “You certainly don’t act like it,” she says, her voice filled with venom. “You went for dinner with Hannah a day after marrying me. Did you even come home last night, or did you just get in? Did you fuck her, Ares?”
I clench my jaw as I turn us around, pushing her against the wall. “What did you just say?” I ask through gritted teeth. “Did I fuck her?”
Raven looks up at me, her eyes flashing with anger… but there’s pain there too. I inhale shakily and drop my forehead to hers. “No,” I whisper. “I didn’t fuck her, Raven. Of course I didn’t. I promised you fidelity, and I always keep my promises. Do you truly think so little of me?”
She slides her arms around my neck and inhales shakily. “I don’t know what to think, Ares,” she admits. “I never thought we’d find ourselves in this situation, but now that we’re here, I’m not willing to stand aside and let you chase after your happiness.”
I nod and pull away a little to look at her. “I get it. You made sacrifices, and I can acknowledge that much. Perhaps it was wrong of me to go for dinner with Hannah, but I thought it would be best to get that conversation out of the way. I didn’t go see her because I missed her or wanted alone-time with her, Rave. I went to see her so I could put proper boundaries in place and end things with her.”
Her eyes widen. “You did?”
I reach for her and push a strand of her hair behind her ear. “Of course I did. Maybe she and I will find our way back together in a few years. Who knows? But in the meantime, she can’t be more than a friend to me. I won’t betray you. Hannah made her choice, and she’ll have to live with it the same way we do.”
She stares at me as though she can’t quite figure out if I’m lying to her or not, but I suppose there isn’t much I can say to convince her. Only time can prove my sincerity.
“Where were you?” I ask again, my tone calmer now.
“Sierra’s,” she says, and I exhale in relief. Of course. I should’ve known that.
“Don’t stay away from home without notifying me and pick up when I call you. It isn’t just because we can’t spend much time apart, but also because I was worried, Rave. I know you didn’t want to get married, but you are now, and it comes with some new responsibilities. One of them is keeping me informed of this kind of thing.”
“Home,” she repeats, her face scrunched up in disgust. “This isn’t my home,” she says, looking exhausted. “I’m not even sure it’s yours. It’s Hannah’s.”
I take a step back and look around. She’s right. Nearly every single thing in here was chosen by Hannah. I let her do whatever she wanted, and I’ve never even truly loved my own home as a result. How did I never see that before?
“Raven,” I tell her. “I meant what I said when you and I got married. It isn’t what either of us wanted, but we’re married now. I’ll do right by you, starting with a formal announcement next month.”
“What?” she asks, her eyes widening. “I thought…”
“You thought we’d keep our marriage a secret? We can’t. Rumors about our wedding have already started to spread. We’re much better off confirming the gossip. I refuse to sneak around with my own damn wife. Besides, do you really think Grandma would let us get away with that? If we don’t break the news, she will. This way, we at least control the narrative.”