Forever (Betrothed Book 7) Read online

  “Soon, I’ll have three babies to take care of.” She cast a glance at Hades, who was staring at Damien.

  I chuckled. “When are you going on maternity leave?”

  “Whenever I have the baby. Want to keep working as much as possible.” She rocked Andrew gently as she continued to feed him. “I just hate staying at home all day. So boring.”

  I knew that all too well.

  “What’s new with you?”

  I assumed Hades had already told her what happened with Liam. “Nothing much.” I didn’t want to discuss my complicated feelings for Damien when he was right across the table from me. He didn’t seem to be listening to anything I said, but still.

  “Damien being good to you?”

  He was much more than I deserved. “Always.”

  She gave a slight smile before she continued to rock her son.

  Hades and Damien excused themselves from the table and took their drinks onto the balcony, as if they wanted to discuss business away from us. They stood outside and leaned against the stone railing, drinks in hand.

  I watched Damien for a moment, admiring his sculpted features and that handsome face. “Damien told me Hades had to quit drinking.”

  “Yes. He wasn’t happy about it, but too bad. He has to live a long time for us.” She watched her husband out the window while holding the bottle.

  “Sometimes, I worry Damien drinks too much.”

  “He does,” she said immediately. “He’ll fall into my husband’s footsteps if he hasn’t already.”

  “He told me I can’t be concerned about his health unless I’m sleeping with him.”

  “As in, you aren’t?” she asked, surprise in her tone.

  “No…”

  “You have the restraint of a monk.” When Andrew was finished with his bottle, she set it on the table and wiped his mouth with a napkin. The second he got his drink, he went right back to sleep.

  “I haven’t been divorced very long… Don’t want to jump into anything.”

  “Well, your ex-husband jumped into another woman’s bed when he was still married to you—twice. If the reason you aren’t doing what you want is out of guilt, then that’s unnecessary. You owe him nothing, Anna.”

  “I know…”

  “Then what’s stopping you?”

  “I don’t know… I guess that is the reason.”

  “Then forget about it,” she said. “You’ve wanted Damien the entire time you were married. You can have him now—so, have him.”

  “Exactly…that’s why I feel guilty.”

  She gave me a confused expression.

  “I blame Liam for our divorce, but it’s really my fault.”

  “You didn’t cheat, Anna. He did.”

  “I know, but it’s more complicated than that.”

  She watched the guys out the window for a while before she turned back to me. “If you wanted another man while you were married, getting divorced was probably the best thing for both you and Liam. You were never going to last if you were head over heels for someone else. It’s unfortunate, but that’s what happened. And let’s not forget, you got divorced in the first place because Liam was unfaithful. It’s still not your fault.”

  I stared out the window a long time, not even really looking at Damien. My thoughts just started to wander, to drift away. “Can I tell you something?”

  “You can tell me anything, Anna.”

  “And for it not to be shared with your husband.”

  “Honey, I don’t share any of our conversations with him. I know he’ll tell Damien every little thing.”

  “Well…I haven’t really thought about Liam much.”

  She leaned back in her chair once Andrew was asleep. Nestled in one arm, he slept with his favorite blanket tucked around him. Instead of questioning me about my exact meaning, she let me continue to speak.

  “I really wanted that marriage to work, but once he hurt me…I mentally checked out. I lived alone for a while, and I was upset. But now that I’m around Damien all the time, I don’t think about Liam at all…and I guess I feel bad about that. I got over my marriage really quickly. Moved on to someone else like it never happened. It just… I don’t know.”

  “I don’t think you should feel guilty about that. If anything, I think you should feel excited.”

  I had no idea what that meant, so my eyes shifted back to hers.

  “It means you know Damien is the right person.”

  My heart raced at the idea of getting what I’d always wanted, what I wanted the moment I met him. Our time together had been short, but the amount of love I’d developed in that amount of time was enormous…and it never went away.

  “And since he’s the right person…be with him.”

  After we said goodnight to Hades and Sofia, we returned to his bedroom, where the table was as clean as new because Patricia cleaned everything the moment we were gone. It was spotless, a vase of fresh flowers in the middle of the table instead of the bottle of wine.

  The fire had been almost dead by the time they’d left, but now it was burning at full blast once again.

  “It was nice having them over.” I stood in front of the fire before I turned to look back at him.

  He pulled his shirt over his head, eager to get his clothes off the second he wasn’t entertaining. A lean body of muscle that rippled with his movements was visible. His tanned skin was kissable, beautiful. He tossed the t-shirt on one of the chairs then removed his jeans in the closet. When he came back out, he was in a pair of black sweatpants. “I knew you’d appreciate the company.” He moved to the couch and sat down, his arms stretching across the back in both directions.

  “You invited them here for me?”

  He gave a slight shrug. “I thought you could spend time with Sofia. I know you get lonely home alone.”

  “That was sweet.”

  “I mean, I see Hades all fucking day. The last thing I want to do is talk to that guy.”

  I knew he was kidding, so I smiled. “Your father asked if I wanted to play chess with him tomorrow.”

  “Yeah? He’s pretty good.”

  “I’m pretty good too.” I moved toward the couch and stopped when I stood over him.

  “But he’s old. All he ever does it play chess. He’s got a lot more experience than you do.”

  “Experience isn’t everything.” I sat on the couch beside him. “Do you play?”

  “Not often. But yes.”

  “Did he teach you?”

  He nodded. “Catalina is really good. She usually beats me.”

  “Wow. I’m surprised you would admit that.”

  “I’m not intimidated when a woman beats me at something.”

  A soft smile spread across my lips.

  He continued to stare at the fire, his jawline sprinkled with a shadow. His thin lips were kissable in the firelight. His eyes reflected the dancing flames, making his bronzed skin glow like he was a god. “Why don’t you join us?”

  “Because I work for a living.”

  “Well, why don’t we have dinner with your family tomorrow?”

  “You want to subject yourself to that? I’m still annoyed with Catalina.”

  “She’s your sister. Let it go.” I scooted close into his side, wanting to snuggle his hard body.

  Once he felt me touch him, his body tensed, as if it affected him as much as it affected me. His hand moved into my hair, touching me like I was his.

  I stared into his face with my mouth close to his. His cologne was addictive, the smell of a real man. My hand slowly slid to his stomach, stroking that hard surface like a tabletop before I slid upward. My fingers grazed over his hard muscles, over his concrete chest, and moved up his neck until my fingers touched his soft cheek.

  His gaze hardened as he felt me touch him, felt me touch him in a way I hadn’t for almost a year. His fingers froze in my hair as he waited for something to happen, as he prayed he would get what he wanted. He couldn’t hide the expression in his
eyes, that he hoped tonight would be the night something more would happen, that we would do more than combine our hands together.

  My fingers slid to the corner of his mouth as I stared at his lips, as I treasured this quiet moment with the man I loved. My heart beat for him as much as it ever had. I still dreamed of him, even when he was right next to me. Something told me he loved me in a way Liam never had, even at our best. Damien had hurt me before, but he wouldn’t do it again.

  I leaned in and pressed my mouth to his, feeling the fire leap higher in my throat. The skin of our mouths immediately stuck together at the embrace, like two magnets finding each other. I closed my eyes and treasured the contact, the way I felt so much with so little.

  His lips didn’t move, as if he wanted to see what I would do before he kissed me the way he wanted.

  My fingers cupped his cheek, and I kissed him again, pressing his bottom lip with purposeful intensity.

  He still didn’t respond, but his breathing increased.

  “Kiss me, Damien…”

  He inhaled a deep breath before his fingers fisted a big chunk of hair and he pulled me tighter into him, kissing me harder. His mouth held mine delicately, but also with barely restrained passion. Between every kiss was a definitive pause, as if he wanted to treasure every step of this dance. He turned his head the other way to kiss me differently, to feel the other side of my mouth with the same desire. His fingers dug deeper, and his kisses became harder, more consuming.

  It felt right…like always.

  His lips parted mine before his tongue slipped inside. He moved until he felt mine, our tongues touching each other like two clouds bumping in the sky. He breathed deep into me, sharing his oxygen with me, and then he kissed me again…and again.

  I couldn’t remember the last time we’d kissed like this. The balcony at the charity event came to mind, but it was over so quickly that I never got to really enjoy it. But tonight, it was beautiful the way it used to be, deep, powerful, and spiritual. My fingers glided to the back of his neck, and I pulled at the short strands of his dark hair. A moan escaped my mouth, so quiet that I doubted he could hear it.

  But he moaned back like he had.

  He started to lower me to the couch, moving on top of me so he could pin me to the cushions below. His body turned to one side so he could keep the rest of his weight off me while one hand was still buried in my hair. The other slid under my shirt and felt the skin of my belly, gripping my hip and squeezing me.

  My arm hooked under his shoulder, and I scooped him closer to me, my nails clawing at his back even though he wasn’t inside me. The kiss was better than sex, better than any experience I had ever had with another man. It was because I was in love with a man who was in love with me.

  I knew he would never hurt me. He wouldn’t lie to me. He would never be unfaithful.

  Because he was the one.

  I slowed our kisses down until they came to a standstill. I wanted to kiss him forever, but I also wanted to stop, wanted to pause to appreciate the moment.

  His eyes looked into mine, eagerness in his gaze.

  “I love you…” It was the first time I’d said the words without being afraid of what he would say back. There was no guilt as the words escaped my lips into the air, into the world. My hand moved to the back of his neck, and I held him there, seeing those green eyes stare back into mine.

  His fingers slid down from my hair until he cupped my cheek. Without blinking, without hesitating, he looked deep into my gaze and said it back. “I love you too, Annabella.”

  I lay in bed beside him, my hand resting on his hard chest as it gently rose with his breathing. He was dead asleep, clueless to the morning light creeping through the cracks in the curtains and slowly reaching closer to the bed. The sunlight hit our feet, but the heat wasn’t enough to stir him from sleep.

  I was wide awake because I couldn’t sleep. Not because I wasn’t tired. Not because I was uneasy. I was just happy, being there with him, sleeping in that big bed the way I used. All we’d done was make out on the couch last night because I wasn’t ready to jump into a deeply physical relationship, but it was still a level of intimacy I hadn’t had with Liam once our relationship turned sour.

  It was never magical like that.

  Damien’s alarm went off, beeping loudly.

  He groaned and reached for the phone, swiping on the screen so the obnoxious noise would end. His fingers dove into his hair, and he sighed as the morning greeted him unkindly. His head turned back to me, and his sleepy eyes found mine. When he realized I was really there beside him, that the memory of last night wasn’t just in his head, his arm pulled me tighter, and his other hand cupped my face as he kissed me on the forehead.

  Wow, that was nice.

  He took a deep breath as he touched me, as he woke up to the feeling of my body in his arms. “You’re wide awake.”

  “I’ve been awake for a few hours.”

  “And you just lay there? You didn’t go down and ask Patricia to make you breakfast?”

  My hand rubbed his chest. “Why would I want breakfast when I can have you?”

  He smiled slightly. “Good answer.” He rolled on top of me, his large mass making me sink into the bed. Playfully, he grabbed both of my wrists and pinned them to the sheets before he leaned down and kissed me on the mouth.

  I melted like a piece of chocolate over a flame.

  His hand slid into my hair as he embraced me, his dick hard through his boxers as he held me close. He gently pressed it against me on purpose, as if he wanted me to know that I was the reason he was this way.

  Oh, I knew.

  When he broke our kiss, he gave me a gentle rub of his nose before he got off me. He stood next to the nightstand, placing his arms over his head as he stretched. His muscles were chiseled and strong, and his boxers hung low on his hips because his big dick was dragging them down. “I’m gonna get in the shower.”

  “Do you have to go to work today?” I wanted to stay home with him all day, right here in this big bed.

  He turned back around, his abs endless rivers of muscles. “Yes. But I’m yours after work.”

  I pouted my lips.

  He smiled slightly. “If I didn’t have an important meeting, I would blow it off. I’d probably quit my job on the spot if Hades would let me.” He came back to the bed and kissed me once again before he walked into the shower. “But I’ll make it up to you tonight.”

  “Yeah? Anything specific in mind?” I said after him.

  He continued to walk. “You’ll see.”

  Eleven

  Damien

  Hades sat behind his desk.

  I was in the armchair, flipping through paperwork with my legs crossed. Numbers were boring, even if they reflected my paycheck, but I smiled anyway, thinking about the sexy brunette waiting for me at home.

  “What are you smiling about?”

  I lifted my gaze but continued to turn the pages over.

  “Gonna leave me hanging, huh?”

  “You know I don’t kiss and tell.”

  He turned back to his laptop. “Finally got laid. Good for you.”

  “No. Annabella kissed me last night.”

  He turned back to me, his eyebrow raised. “You’re that excited about a kiss? Did she kiss your dick?”

  I shot him a glare.

  “You know I’m kidding, Damien. I’m happy for you.”

  “You better be.”

  “It’s a start.”

  “Yeah.” It wasn’t sex or anything kinky, but that wasn’t important to me anymore. I just wanted her. I grew impatient waiting for Liam to leave her thoughts. After she’d stayed with me a few weeks, that seemed to fix the problem.

  We organized the stack of papers and put them into two different files before we were finished. Hades looked at me, giving me that familiar gaze I’d seen for a decade. “It’s nice to see you happy.”

  He wasn’t a mushy kind of guy, so I appreciated those comments whe
never they came. “Yeah, it’s nice. Never thought I would be a one-woman kind of guy. But there’s only one woman I want. So, I guess I am that guy…”

  He smiled slightly. “Yeah. I couldn’t believe it either when it happened to me. But the sex is so much hotter when it is with that one woman, that one woman you can’t get enough of. It’s better than all my nights in the alleyways, public restrooms, and everywhere else I fucked around.”

  It’d been so long since I’d actually had Annabella, but my memory hadn’t faded at all. “I’m gonna head back to my office. I’ll meet you in the conference room for the meeting.” I rose from my chair and headed to the door.

  Hades watch me go. “Good. I don’t have to see your face for another hour.”

  I flipped him off before I walked down the hallway.

  I headed to my office, and I thought about how much my life had changed. When Hades and I weren’t friends, I didn’t have this camaraderie with anyone. No one to bullshit with. No one who knew me well enough to make a joke that landed. And now I had the one woman who’d ever meant anything to me in my bed at this very moment.

  That high disappeared when I turned the corner and entered my office. A large man sat in the chair facing my desk, huge shoulders packed with layers of muscle and forearms that were thicker than mature tree branches. He didn’t need to show his face to give away his identity. I knew exactly who he was.

  Liam didn’t turn around. “Your assistant’s nice.”

  I stilled for just a second to digest the situation, but then I moved past him and walked over to my desk. With a slow beating heart, I lowered myself into the chair and faced one of my nemeses. My face was stoic, and I showed no fear because this man didn’t deserve any reaction from me. He could have a gun in his pocket, a bullet with my name on it, and I still wouldn’t care. “Yeah, she’s delightful.” I sat there with my hands together on my lap and leaned back into the chair, like this was a real meeting with a real client. My gaze was focused on his hard expression, and I waited for him to announce his intentions. He was probably there to kill me, but he wanted to give a speech first. “How can I help you?”