\u00a0<\/p>\n
3\/3\u00a0<\/p>\n
We put me pri\u00a0<\/p>\n
+25 Bonus\u00a0<\/p>\n
Were you worried about me, princess?\u00a0<\/p>\n
Violet\u00a0<\/p>\n
I sat down on the bench, pulling my knees together as the cold wind brushed my hair into my face. Winter was coming fast, and the air had that biting chill to it. My fingers trembled slightly. I shivered, tucking my chin down.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Thank God for Hades\u2019s jacket.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Without it, I probably would\u2019ve frozen to death already. It was too big for me, swallowing my frame completely, and it still carried the faint scent of him.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I turned my head and looked back toward the mall. A small rowd had gathered near the entrance. I couldn\u2019t see him from here, but my mind kept trying to imagine what he was doing. He said he never lost, but the man from earlier had been big.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I couldn\u2019t help imagining all the ways this day could end bally.\u00a0<\/p>\n
What if he got angry and, God forbid, punched Hades? Worse, what if he actually hurt him? What if he needed medical help?\u00a0<\/p>\n
I bit my lip, fingers curling tighter around the edges of the jacket.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Why was I so nervous?\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cDon\u2019t be worried about him. He\u2019ll be fine.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The voice was calm, almost bored, and it made me look up. Alec stood a few feet away, leaning against a sleek black car, his arms crossed. The wind caught at his messy white hair.\u00a0<\/p>\n
It had only been a couple of minutes since we left the mall. He\u2019d wanted to put me in the car, but I\u2019d refused, asking him to drop me here instead. He hadn\u2019t argued, but he\u2019d stayed close and I could feel his eyes on me this entire time.\u00a0<\/p>\n
And now he was doing it again, studying me with that unreadable expression, as if peeling back layers I didn\u2019t know I had.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I looked away, my cheeks warming under the cold wind.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m not worried about him,\u201d I said quickly.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIs that so?\u201d His voice held the faintest edge of amusement \u201cMy mistake then. I thought the reason you were fidgeting and looking nervous was because you were worried Hades might get hurt.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Heat flared in my face, and I shook my head too fast. \u201cIt\u2019s not like that.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou don\u2019t need to worry about him,\u201d he said. \u201cThe only people you should be concerned about are the ones in there with him.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I blinked, thrown off. \u201cHuh?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Alec tilted his head slightly, and for a moment, the pale streetlight caught the icy shade of his eye. \u201cHades has a\u00a0<\/p>\n
..\u201d He paused, gaze drifting just slightly as if searching for the right word. \u201cvery smart and devious mind.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cHe always finds a way out. No matter the circumstances, that\u2019s just who he is. So when he\u2019s involved in something, the only person you should be concerned about s the other person. And besides,\u201d He gave a small shrug, \u201cthose people in there aren\u2019t even half the problem you might think they are.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I looked at him, my mind swirling with questions. He had done this before, speaking about Hades in that strange way, like he was someone to be feared, respected, and avoided all at once. As if we were just pieces on a board, and\u00a0<\/p>\n
1\/3\u00a0<\/p>\n
wele you worried about me, pxmener\u00a0<\/p>\n
+25 Bonus\u00a0<\/p>\n
Hades was the one moving them.\u00a0<\/p>\n
It sparked something in me.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I\u2019d always known that the man I\u2019d had a one\u2013night stand with wasn\u2019t simple. But I hadn\u2019t tried to find out who he was, or what kind of man he truly was, because I thought that night would be the last I\u2019d ever see him.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Except, it wasn\u2019t.\u00a0<\/p>\n
First, the flowers. Now, appearing out of nowhere to help me when no one else did.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Why?\u00a0<\/p>\n
Why was he getting involved in my life? And who exactly was he?\u00a0<\/p>\n
I opened my mouth, ready to ask Alec, but he glanced past me and said quietly, \u201cSpeaking of the devil.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
My heart skipped a beat as I turned back.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Hades was walking toward us from the mall entrance. His stride was unhurried, his posture loose, almost lazy, like he\u2019d been out for a casual stroll. His expression was a mask of boredom. But then his eyes found me, and interest sparked in the dark depths. His lips curved into a slow smirk.\u00a0<\/p>\n
My gaze flicked over him automatically, searching. No cuts, no bruises. He moved without a limp, and I almost let out a breath of relief, until my eyes dropped to his hands.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Blood.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The breath caught in my throat. I didn\u2019t even think, my body moved on its own. I stood quickly, the motion so fast that his jacket slid from my shoulders and onto the bench.\u00a0<\/p>\n
When he came close enough, I reached for his hands.\u00a0<\/p>\n
It was warm, and sticky.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Definitely blood.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I looked up at him. \u201cYou injured yourself.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
He blinked at me like my words had thrown him off. Somehow, that took me aback too. I didn\u2019t show it, but my grip on his hand tightened just slightly.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou got hurt because of me,\u201d I said quietly, the words slipping out before I could stop them. \u201cI thought you wouldn\u2019t lose. You were just bluffing, weren\u2019t you?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
He didn\u2019t answer. His eyes stayed on mine, dark and unreadable, until a low chuckle slipped from him. It wasn\u2019t the polite kind of laugh people give out of habit. This was rich, low, and dangerous in a way that made the air between us feel warmer than it should. It slid down my spine like a slow drop of molten honey, and I hated that I noticed how good it sounded.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He stepped in, just enough that I instinctively leaned back, my body trying to create space while my feet stayed stubbornly planted.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cDon\u2019t worry, princess,\u201d he murmured. \u201cIt\u2019s not mine.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I blinked, my gaze darting back down to his hand. I slowly brushed my thumb along one dark smear of blood on his skin, rubbing until it faded from sight.\u00a0<\/p>\n
No torn skin.\u00a0<\/p>\n
It wasn\u2019t his.\u00a0<\/p>\n
2\/3\u00a0<\/p>\n
+25 Bonus\u00a0<\/p>\n
Which meant\u2026 it belonged to someone else\u2019s.\u00a0<\/p>\n
My stomach tightened at the thought. How hard had he hit someone to leave this much blood behind? And why was he standing here like it was just another Saturday?\u00a0<\/p>\n
Before I could ask, he leaned even closer, closing what little distance was left between us.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWere you worried about me, princess?\u201d he asked softly, almost lazily, but I caught the sharp amusement tucked behind the words.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I froze, my eyes flicking up to his face. We were close now I could see the faint curl of his lashes and the way the corner of his mouth lifted in that infuriating, smug smile.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Was I?\u00a0<\/p>\n
D\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Nights Burn With Regret \u2014 by Nathan Perez 45 \u00a0 3\/3\u00a0 We put me pri\u00a0 +25 Bonus\u00a0 Were you worried […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[83],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-27961","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-craving-the-guardian-novel"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27961","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=27961"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27961\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=27961"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=27961"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=27961"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}