“When’s the wedding?”
The question made me feel dead inside. Getting my husband back would be nearly impossible, not to mention marrying him again. I wasn’t even sure I’d be able to seduce him anymore. “Hades is being…kind of an asshole.”
“What’s new?”
“He says he doesn’t want to get back together.”
This time, he took a long pause and stopped issuing smartass comments. “Why would he say that?”
“He’s angry with me for leaving. Says he doesn’t love me anymore.” It broke my heart to say those things out loud.
“Not possible.”
I smiled, but my tears also began.
“I’ve never seen a person love anyone the way he loves you.”
I’d taken Hades for granted for so long. He was so loyal and committed to me, showed me love was real. I was afraid of having a marriage like my mother’s, but he gave me so much more. Now that it was gone, I didn’t know how to go on. “I know…but that’s how he feels.”
He was quiet again. “I noticed he was different when we last spoke. Didn’t realize he was that different…”
“Something snapped inside his head. When he left me in Rome, he said he didn’t want to see me again. That it was too hard. Maybe that decision made him realize life would be easier without me.”
“Maybe for someone else…but not him.” The line turned silent as Damien thought to himself. “What are you going to do?”
“I’m so hurt that I don’t want to bother with him. But I love him so much that I can’t just walk away. I want my husband back. I want my family back. So, I’m going to try to change his mind.”
“Good luck with that. Maddox may be gone, but there’s a new villain in town.”
I didn’t follow his logic. “Who?”
He sighed into the phone. “Hades…god of the underworld.”
21
Hades
I produced the highest yield of crystal of my career. I handed it off to our distributors then told my cooks to get back to work. With Maddox out of the picture and my power unrivaled, I intended to eliminate all other competition and kill anyone that got in my way.
Life was good.
I wasn’t as relieved as I’d thought I would be that Maddox was gone. I hated to admit it, but I’d learned a lot from him. I understood how to delegate to my men, how to terrify my enemies, and how to get shit done with precision. His demise was great news because he couldn’t control me anymore, but in terms of great businessmen, he really had been one of the best.
Now I was the best.
I’d acquired all of his men and tripled my force. Now I sat in my office with my feet on the desk, an invisible crown on my head. Getting rid of Damien was the last thing on my list, and I considered how to kill him.
But I knew I couldn’t do it. Maddox could’ve…but not me.
My phone started to ring on the desk, and I glanced at the screen.
It was Sofia.
That name used to send vibrations into my heart, make my stomach tighten with both excitement and unease. But now, I felt nothing…except a sprinkle of annoyance. I’d made it clear I didn’t want her anymore. I hope she took that seriously. My days of being a pussy-whipped little bitch were over.
She could find some other asshole to torture.
But she was the mother of my son, and of course, I would always care about her. Even if I didn’t love her anymore, I would help her in whatever way I could. I took the call. “Yes?”
“Don’t talk to me that way unless you want to get slapped.” Her tone of voice was so different, I almost didn’t recognize it. She wasn’t the clingy, whiny woman she was the last time I saw her. Now, she was stern and hard, reminding me of the woman I’d originally met years ago.
“You don’t know where I am, so how will you accomplish that?”
In a dead serious tone, she said, “I’ll hunt you down.”
I was quiet because I was surprised by her response.
“I’ve had Andrew for two weeks. I think it’s time you took him for a while. There’re some things I have to take care of, and it’d be nice to have a break.”
I was curious about these plans she had, but I didn’t ask. I’d had Helena make up a room for Andrew down the hall from me because I knew I would be watching him on my own at some point. Having a kid interrupted my bachelor life, but he was so special to me that I didn’t mind. “That’s fine.”
“You want me to drop him off later? I’m going out anyway.”
I didn’t ask what she was up to. “Yeah. Any time after six.”
She didn’t even say goodbye before she hung up.
I listened to the line go dead, and I raised an eyebrow. “Did she just hang up on me?”
I’d just gotten out of the shower when there was a knock on the door. I left my towel on the bathroom counter and pulled on a pair of sweatpants before I opened it.
Sofia stood there holding a car seat with Andrew inside. He was so small that it was easy for her to carry him with one arm. On her shoulder was a blue baby bag with his favorite toys and blankets. “I packed enough bottles of milk to last you three days.” There was no desire in her eyes when she looked at me shirtless. There was no affection either, like she was taking our separation well. “I got his favorite stuffed animals and other stuff he might need.” She was dressed in a tight black dress with little straps over her shoulders. Her tits were bigger than they used to be, and they were proudly displayed in the sweetheart top. Her body wasn’t thin and hard like it once was, but she had a lot of extra curves to make up for it. With silky, shiny hair and painted lips, she looked like a hot piece of ass.
It didn’t look like she’d had a baby at all.
I thought I would want to stare only at my son, but I couldn’t take my eyes off her. Where was she going dressed like that? Did she have a date? Was it too soon for that? “Thanks.” I took the car seat from her and carried him into my bedroom. I placed him on the top of the bed so he could have a look around. It was the first time he’d been in my bedroom since he was born.
She set the bag beside him before she leaned down and kissed him. “I’m gonna miss you so much, baby. But I’ll be back in a couple of days.” She cupped his cheeks and rubbed his nose with hers. “I love you, sweetheart. Have fun with Daddy.” When she bent over like that, the curve in her back was more noticeable, her ass stuck out, and her tits were practically falling out of the front of her dress. She stood up straight. “I gotta go. I’m already late.”
Late for what?
She ran her fingers through her hair and walked past me. “Call me if you need anything. Even if it’s in the middle of the night, I’m happy to help.” Immune to my muscular attractiveness, she headed to the door.
My eyes glanced down to her ass. “I know how to take care of my son.”
She turned around at the door. With one hand on her hip, she gave me a stare ripe with attitude. “But you don’t know how to talk to a woman.”