Page 211 of Untamed

Across the table, Matteo’s brows pinch. His eyes are locked on Ares, but flick to me, just for a second. And in that second, I see it. Confusion. Hurt. Something raw that tightens his mouth and makes him reach for his drink again, downing the rest in one go.

I stare at Ares like I’m begging.Look at me. Please, look at me.

But he doesn’t. He keeps his eyes on Luciano, the muscle in his jaw twitching like he’s holding something back. Something lethal.

Luciano is still speaking, his voice all pride and tradition, but I can’t hear a single word. My pulse is a siren. My chest aches like it’s being crushed beneath the weight of pretending I’m okay.

Bianca’s grip on my hand tightens, trying to tether me, to ground me.

But I’m already slipping.I can’t breathe.And just when I think I might stand up and run, Ares moves.

Slowly, he rises from his chair without a word. Without permission.

Everyone goes still. Luciano falters mid-sentence.

Ares doesn’t acknowledge him. Doesn’t nod. Doesn’t wait.

He turns and walks.

Not toward Giana.

Towardme.

The world falls away.

My breath catches, shattered and sharp, as he stops beside me. I blink up at him, everything in me breaking open under the weight of his gaze.

And in front of every guest. Every enemy. Every lie spoken tonight, he reaches for me.

His hand slides up, cradling my jaw, thumb brushing the corner of my mouth.

And then he kisses me.

Not soft. Not careful. But like a man at war, one who’s just chosen his side.

Me.

The silence in the room is louder than any scream. Forks drop. A glass shatters. Someone swears under their breath.

And it sounds a lot like Matteo. I see him freeze, wine glass halfway to his lips. He stares at us, at Ares, at me, like he’s just been sucker punched. His knuckles go white around the stem of his glass, jaw clenched hard enough to crack bone.

He doesn’t speak. Doesn’t move. But his eyes stay on us the whole time, dark and unreadable, like something inside him just snapped.

But all I can hear is the sound of my heart stitching itself back together. Ares pulls back just enough to speak, voice low and lethal against my lips.

“Solo tua.” he whispers.

Only yours.

And just like that, the entire world burns. The words barely leave his mouth before he moves again. His hand slides down from my face and takes mine, firm, certain, like this decision was never a question.

He doesn’t look back. Not at Giana. Not at Luciano. Not at the wreckage he just left in his wake.

He justpulls,and I follow.

My chair scrapes against the floor as I rise, our joined hands a silent declaration. The air thickens behind us, every breath in the room stalled, shocked, charged with the kind of tension that comes right before a storm hits.

But I can feel it. The gasps. The tension. The white-hot stares burning into our backs as he leads me out.

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