* “Baby.”

Dionysus

CHAPTER FORTY-FOUR

“Is this a kidnapping?”she tries to joke, but I know she’s very nervous.

“What if it is? Don’t you think it’s a little late to be afraid of me?”

“I’m not afraid of anything,” she says, looking out the window as Anderson drives.

I don’t think she realizes how transparent she is and how anxious she is at the moment. Seeing her so nervous makes me want to protect her because I think I know why.

I’m not the type who appreciates mysteries. Secrets usually irritate me, but with her, I’m making a concession, considering our current situation, her youth, and most of all, her inexperience.

Cecily has gone from a simple existence in Kansas to living in high society, and even though we haven’t been out in public as a couple yet, it’s still a drastic lifestyle change.

She is strong, I have no doubt. She went through hell in her childhood and adolescence—beatings, hunger, and loneliness—and still manages to smile and have love inside her.

However, there is a lot of vulnerability in her as well.

“You told me you wanted to talk,” she says.

“And we will, but not now.”

“I don’t understand. Why did we leave, then?”

I pull her toward me with a hand on the back of her head and take her mouth in a slow kiss. Normally, a simple touch is enough for us to be burning for each other, but today I want more than to fuck her. I want her candor and trust.

She is tense at first, but soon she loosens up, turning her body a little to make me feel better, placing her chest against mine, almost straddling my lap.

When we break apart to catch our breath, I cup her face. “You don’t want us to appear in public yet, but I’m going to take you on a date anyway. You are my girlfriend. If we don’t go to a restaurant, the restaurant will come to us.”

For the first time all night, she smiles. “A surprise?” Her face is relaxed, completely disarmed.

“Do you like them?”

“Good surprises, yes.” She leans her head against my hand, trying to get more affection. “What about our conversation?”

“Later. We’ll have time.”

She doesn’t say anything else. She rests her head on my shoulder while her hand rests on my leg, making imaginary drawings.

Minutes later, it’s still quiet, and I can’t understand the reason for the silence. Cecily is vibrant and happy. She’s not acting in her natural way today.

“Why so quiet?”

“I’m thinking.”

“Talk to me.”

“Why do you want to be with me? You could have any woman you wanted. Why get into this complicated mess?

“I don’t give up on what I want just because it’s complicated.”

“You know what I mean.”

Anderson parks in front of one of my penthouses in the city, across from Central Park. It’s close to Zeus’s old house, where he lived before marrying Madison. It is furnished, and I bought it as an investment. I was going to sell it, but I decided, after Cecily refused to go out in public, that I would bring an entire restaurant here for her.