Page 36 of Broken Obsession
“This is risky,” Yarrow argued. “Your future—”
“Some things are worth the risk.” Eden looked determined. “When should I be packed, Mr. Major?”
“I told you to call me Ares.” He leaned in, lips barely brushing against the curve of Eden’s left ear. “But you can call me God if you really want to.”
“Not until you’ve explained why I woke up alone, asshole.” Eden shoved him away.
Ares laughed. “Start getting ready tonight. I need a couple more days to get Round One of our new game in order. I’ll call you.”
It was obvious he wanted more answers, but when Ares motioned him to move with one finger, Eden stepped to the side, hands tightening to fists at his sides.
Without a second glance, Ares exited the office and left Eden and Yarrow to argue it out to their heart's content. He didn’t need to be there for that. Yarrow’s opinion no longer mattered.
Eden Baldur had agreed to leave with him.
Chapter 8:
It was the middle of the night two days later that Eden finally heard from Ares. The call woke him from a light sleep, and he cursed as he snatched his multi-slate off the end table, ready to scream at the idiot disturbing him. According to the clock, he’d only managed to be out for an hour or so, and he could feel it in the tight way his muscles ached and how his mind struggled to catch up with the autopilot movements of his body.
“What?” he growled as he answered, frustration only growing when the voice that responded sounded chipper and well-rested.
“Come out,” Ares ordered.
“Are you here?” He glanced at the door and pulled the covers tighter around himself. “Just let yourself in. You managed fine the last time.”
“I’m sending you an address. If you don’t come, you lose.”
“Lose what?”
The bastard hung up.
“God of Creating a pain in my ass,” Eden growled to himself as he climbed out from the warmth of his bed and instantly shivered from the cold. “What the hell am I even listening to him for?”
He got dressed quickly, curiosity getting the better of him despite all the reasons he should ignore the younger man and go back to sleep. Ares was crazy, for one. Clearly. The man had more than a single screw loose, and that made him unpredictable.
If you couldn’t guess what a person might do next, that made them dangerous.
Before the death of his family, Eden had been averse to dangerous situations and people. He’d avoided anything that could be considered even remotely risky. But all that had changed afterward. When he’d been the only member of his line left breathing. Something in him had cracked; he’d felt the very moment it’d happened.
He wouldn’t consider himself an adrenaline junkie, but regular people didn’t find random hookups online and invite them over for a round of CNC, or to play Captive and Robber.
Thinking about how Ares had tricked him into letting his guard down the other night had Eden’s anger flickering back to life, his pride still damaged from that particular hit. The fact that he’d practically made bedroom eyes at his attacker, and then all but suggested they fuck even after realizing he wasn’t who he’d been expecting, only added salt to the wound.
Yet another reason to turn around and climb back between the covers. Forget this whole thing had ever happened.
Only, Eden was already putting on his boots and stepping outside. A thin layer of frost coated the ground, crunching beneath him every step of the way. His bike, an old model that’d been patched with duct tape and prayers, took a hot minute to turn on, but as soon as the engine purred to life, he let out a sigh of relief.
Why he was relieved was beyond him. If anything, he should have hoped it wouldn’t work so he could text Ares an excuse and call it a night.
The blowjob had made him weak. He never would have said any of that stuff to the devil if he’d been in his right mind at the time. Ares had a wicked tongue and he knew how to use it, though, and damn it, it didn’t matter how many times Eden listed all the ways this could end up biting him, he couldn’t shake the curiosity.
Heneededto know if Ares was as skilled with his cock as he was with his mouth. Like, he was actually losing sleep over it, that’s how much the thought haunted him.
Eden popped the earbud attachment from his multi-slate into his right ear and hit the GPS, pulling out of his driveway a moment later. The location he’d been sent wasn’t far, only around twelve minutes, which was good, because the wind practically cut into him.
He’d never been a fan of the weather on Usurn. When he’d been younger, he and his sister used to fantasize about getting off planet and moving somewhere tropical. Somewhere the sun shone all the time, and snow could only be seen on a screen. Eden had mostly forgotten about those plans, but the memories came back to him now as he sped down the deserted streets, frost forming on his eyelashes.
They were bright bursts of light in an otherwise bleak existence, and he welcomed them. Pulled those images of his sister’s laughter as she drew palm trees and seagulls on scraps of paper that would be worth a small fortune to him now.