Page 15 of Hades

It was like they stepped into a whole new world. Upstairs was a business, but down here was like an upscale club. A dazzling chandelier hung from the ceiling, hookahs sat on the tables, and there was a full bar with mirrors fastened to the wall behind it.

They were also no longer alone. People were spread through the room, drinking, eating, and smoking. When Hadesentered the space, everyone noticed. Harley trailed behind him, bashfully avoiding eye contact and doing her best to prevent a nervous breakdown.

“Lady Bug?”

Harley whirled around at the sound of her nickname. Only two people in the world called her that anymore… It was theonlything she allowed to breach over into her adult life. When she told Sage and Blair about her childhood early on in their friendship, the nickname slipped, and her friends took to it. She allowed it because it reminded her of the only person who ever loved her in her childhood.

Tears filled her eyes as her mind tried to compute what she saw.

“Cati?” Harley felt as though she had seen a ghost. Twenty years was a long time to go without seeing someone, but Harley would recognize her sister anywhere. She had grown, of course, but she still looked the same.Cati. Her Cati.

Harley stood frozen as they stared at one another, taking each other in. It felt like hours passed, but it was only seconds. Oddly, the only thing Harley could compute at the moment was her sister’s eyes. They mirrored her own, dark as obsidian and full of emotion.

When Cati took a step toward her, Harley snapped out of her daze and stumbled backward before turning and bolting toward the elevator. Nothing else mattered at that moment but running from her past—from hersister.

Harley jammed her finger into the elevator button repeatedly and slipped inside as soon as it opened up enough for her to do so. Just as she was about to jam her finger into the doorclosebutton, she was shoved against the elevator wall with a large hand around her throat.

“You running from me, Tink?” Hades’s deep, gravelly voice thundered in her ears as her hands instinctively went to his large one that wrapped around her throat.

She was vaguely aware that they were moving up, but she was too focused on allowing air into her lungs to rejoice in the distance between her and her sister.

“Please.” Her words squeaked out as she struggled against him.

He growled in her face. Like actuallygrowled, and amid everything currently happening, Harley noted her panties soaking as her nipples hardened.

What the hell is wrong with me?

She hadn’t been turned on by a man since she and Drew broke up. There had been some subtle tension between her and Hades, but this was insane to her. This was not the time for her coochie to literally be leaking when this maniac was growling in her face and cutting off her air supply.

When the elevator doors opened, Hades let go of her neck, and she gasped for air as he yanked her by her arm and pulled her into yet another new space. They must have been right above the showroom, and this had to be Hades’s office.

The large windows in the room allowed the brightly shining sun to show off, and under different circumstances, Harley would have marveled at the space.

When they reached the large desk, Harley jumped when Hades used one of his large arms to swipe everything, including a MacBook, off the surface. The next thing she knew, she was sitting on the desk while he stood in front of her, glaring down at her.

“You’re new here, so you don’t know the rules. For that, I’ll give you a pass. One fuckin’ pass, Tink. I told you that you’re staying with me to take care of my nephew, right?”

Tears fell from her eyes as she gazed up at him. Her body trembled as her emotions ran wild. She thought she was shell-shocked or something because she couldn’t comprehend a single thought as he waited for her response. Finally, she found her voice and whispered, “Yes, but?—”

“Then why the fuck did you run from me?” he roared.

“I w-wasn’t?—”

His hand wrapped around her throat again, this time with less pressure as a crazed look shaped his features. He leaned forward so his mouth was inches from hers. “You. Are. Not. Allowed. To. Go. Anywhere.”

His words were clipped, and his breathing seemed staggered as their chests heaved from the tension radiating between them.

Harley felt as though that panic attack she had been holding at bay was finally pushing forward. Tears streamed down her face as she tried to catch her breath and take in everything that had happened in the last five minutes.

“I-I…”

Once again, she was cut off. This time, though, Hades’s lips pressed against hers, stunning her. She stiffened slightly as she felt the panic shove back inside before she relaxed into the kiss, allowing her feverish body to take over her actions.

Her small hands gripped his shirt as she pulled him closer, opening her legs so he stood between them. A low rumble vibrated through his chest and ricocheted off hers.

His large hand went from her neck down to her breasts, squeezing one roughly and causing her to moan into him. Tears still fell from her eyes, but she let them fall freely as she enjoyed the sensations Hades offered her.

Slowly, his hand moved down to the waistband of her leggings, and he tugged them down while she lifted to make it easier. She didn’t think. She didn’t allow her worries or her thoughts to get in the way of Hades exploring her body.

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