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Ares

CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO

"Dial it down a little, Ares," Dionysus says as he passes me.

“I don't know what you're talking about,” I grumble.

"If looks could kill, that boy would fall over backwards. What's going on between you and Serenity?"

"Nothing that's any of your business."

"So something is happening."

"I haven't decided yet."

"What?"

"You heard me. I don't know what to do about her yet. I want her."

"Holy shit!"

"Don't act surprised. You already guessed, or you wouldn't have noticed that I'm not happy with this unfortunate Otis hovering around her."

“I'm not surprised you want her. She is beautiful. I'm surprised that you just admitted it out loud, even though I know what a hell of a mess it will be if you make her yours. And by yours , I mean in the full sense of the word. Serenity is not the type of woman you are used to."

"And was Cici your type, by any chance?"

"I married Cecily. I made her my wife and mother of my children. That's not what you want with Serenity. And what's more, she's your ward."

"She is an adult."

"Too sweet for you, brother," Hades says, approaching.

"You guys don't have anything else to do, do you?" I ask, worn out by the conversation, although my conscience says they are right.

I watch Eleanor cozying up to that asshole Otis, while a few steps away, Serenity seems engrossed in conversation with Athanasios. I don't believe he likes ballet, but he admires excellence in any field, and there is no doubt that she is a phenomenon at what she does.

I’ve seen several of her performances, without her knowing.

This is a secret that even my brothers don't know: that my sweet ward is also my obsession.

Yes, because what else do you call it when you want something you know you can't have and yet you continue playing with fire?

I never allowed myself to get close enough to let her know I was there, wanting her from a distance, because I knew that if I did, we'd end up naked on a bed.

I'm sure that if I make a move on her, it will have to involve commitment, and I don't want that for myself.

I still don't want that for myself, right?

I see the bastard approach her and place his hands on her hips. I take a step forward, but Dionysus holds me back.

"What are you going to do? You have no claim on Serenity."

"The hell not. She is my ward."

"Fuck, you're completely lost, Ares."

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"You want her for yourself, but you're too stubborn to admit it."

"I want to protect her, that's all. I know I shouldn't take her to bed. I'm just pissed that Serenity broke up with the asshole and yet he keeps going at it."

"She doesn't seem uncomfortable with her ex," Hades mocks.

"Go to hell."

"I already live there, brother. I am the god of the underworld."

"Meeting with Odin," Zeus says, approaching.

"I'm coming."

He looks back, right at where Serenity is with her shitty ex. "Now, brother. You don't want to upset Eleanor with your jealousy. A fight here between you and the German boy would definitely upset her."

"I'm not a jerk. I have no reason to fight him."

He laughs, making me a little more pissed off.

"Go to the library, Ares. He doesn't stand a chance with Serenity," Madison says as she approaches. Being the nosy person that she is, she was listening to our conversation.

"What do you mean?"

"You know perfectly well what I'm talking about. Serenity has looked at you all day. The boy is out of contention."

Almost an hour later, we are ending the video call with Odin and Christos.

"So, the man who put the scorpion in Serenity's bag at the airport was disguised as a woman?" I ask.

"Well, I'm assuming it's a man. And since the only person who approached her, according to the footage I watched, was an elderly woman, yes, I think the idiot disguised himself. Christos's friend Beau sent us the footage he got of the airport, from a different angle than I got."

"Yes. According to what he told me," my older cousin interjects, "the experts also concluded that it was a man in disguise."

"Why couldn't it have been a woman?" I ask.

"Wait a moment," Odin urges. He types something into the laptop, and then a small screen appears at the top of the video call.

In it, there is a lady slowly approaching Serenity. She seems harmless, walking with difficulty, and even when she bumps into the girl, her movements are slow.

"That must have been why she didn't attract the bodyguards' attention," Zeus says.

"Yes," Odin confirms. "Now notice that right after the bump, her behavior changes."

I watch, astonished, as the elderly woman almost runs away after refusing to accept help to get up.

Yes, now it looks like someone in disguise.

"Fuck me."

"Did you notice she was wearing gloves?" Odin asks.

"Yes. Wearing gloves in the middle of summer in Louisiana," Christos says.

"So that's it? Our hands are tied?" Zeus asks.

"So far, yes. If only Serenity had kept the tickets." Odin says.

"They would be useless. They did not contain DNA. Her mentor ordered them to be tested,” I say.

Odin looks frustrated. "If she had told you sooner, we would never have gotten to this point, but maybe there is a solution. Let him think she is vulnerable."

"No, I'm not going to make Serenity a target. There has to be another way."

He nods. "All good. I don't like the idea, either. I'll think of another solutio