Page 156 of Untamed

Until the shrill ring of my phone cleaves it in half.

I flinch. So does he, but barely. And just like that, the spell breaks.

I glance toward the counter, where my phone lights up with Bianca’s name.

Ares straightens, face tight, stepping back just enough for the air to chill between us.

I don’t move, and neither does he.

The screen dims. Then lights up again.

Still Bianca. Still ringing, but I ignore it, frozen in the space where his kiss still lingers on my mouth and his hands still warm my skin beneath the oversized T-shirt that smells like him.

“I should answer that,” I murmur, though I make no move to. “She’s called me like twenty-five times.”

Ares’s eyes stay locked on mine. “No,” he says softly, firmly. “Not yet.”

The phone goes silent again. The quiet hums as he steps closer, brushing his fingers down my bare arm before curling them lightly around my wrist. “You do need to go home though, bambina.”

My brows pull together. “I don’t want to.”

He leans in, lowering his voice until it grazes my throat like a touch. “I know, I want you to stay too, believe me, but...” Ares trails off as his fingers trace the edge of my wrist, like he can’t quite let go.

He exhales slowly, eyes locked to mine. “We can’t afford for anyone to find out. Not yet. If this gets out too soon, they’ll tear it apart before it even has a chance. And bythey, I mean my father. He already suspects I’ve got a weakness when it comes to you. That’s why he’s pulled the fucking trigger on this arranged marriage. To control me. To pull me away from you.” I sigh, nodding.

“I know. My sister already warned me off you, too.”

Ares looks away, blinking too slow to be casual. And I see that familiar storm rising behind his eyes. “Of course she did,” he mutters acridly. “Because that’s what people do when they see something they don’t understand. They try to kill it before it grows.”

He moves in closer, the space between us shrinking to nothing. His fingers graze my jaw, tilting my face toward his, his voice low and laced with something raw.

“But I’m not giving you up. I need you to understand that, Jordyn. If staying away is the only way to keep you safe, then I’ll play the part. I’ll pretend. But it’ll be a lie, every second of it.”

A knot forms in my throat as his hand slides around to the back of my neck, firm and grounding. “When you look at me in public, don’t linger. When we speak, keep your voice steady. Act like you hate me if you have to. But when you sneak into my room at night…” His eyes darken. “That’s when you’ll see the truth.”

My breath shudders out. “And what truth is that?”

His mouth brushes mine, not quite a kiss, just a promise. “That I’d burn down the world just to keep you in it.”

The words send a slow, burning ache through me. I nod, swallowing hard. “Okay. If this is what it takes for us to be together, then it’s what we’ll do.”

Ares’s mouth curves into the faintest smile, something soft flickering in his eyes. “Good. Now go get dressed before your sister calls in the entire Sicilian police force.”

I linger for a beat, my fingers trailing down his bare chest before I whisper, “Maybe I’ll sneak out later. Come back to you.”

His hand seizes mine gently, holding it to his skin, right over his heart. The look in his eyes shifts, molten heat and something wicked.

“You do that,” he says lowly, “and we’ll have another sleepless night.”

My pulse trips.

“Promise?” I smile.

He leans in, brushing his mouth against my ear. “Try me.”

I start to turn away, but he doesn’t let go of my hand right away. Just holds it there, against his skin, like he’s imprinting me into him.

Then slowly, reluctantly, he releases me.

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