3\/3\u00a0<\/p>\n
Hades plense con you focur\u00a0<\/p>\n
+25 Bonus\u00a0<\/p>\n
Hades, please can you focus?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Violet\u00a0<\/p>\n
God. When was this man going to stop talking this way?\u00a0<\/p>\n
Make people kneel and kiss my feet? That was something only an insane person would say. And besides, the people here weren\u2019t normal people, they were rich, important, and powerful. No matter who Hades was, surely they wouldn\u2019t just let something like that go.\u00a0<\/p>\n
But at this point, I could hardly stop myself from blushing. My throat was dry. My words wouldn\u2019t even come out. All I could do was nod, unable to say anything.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Hades smiled at me. \u201cLet\u2019s go.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
He led me toward a table where the middle\u2013aged man from before stood waiting with others. The man was grinning so hard I honestly thought his lips might rip apart\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cPlease, sit,\u201d he said eagerly.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Hades didn\u2019t even glance at him. Instead, he pulled a chair back for me. The simple gesture made my chest tighten, and I muttered a small, \u201cThank you,\u201d before sitting down.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Hades seated himself beside me, and without hesitation or shame, he placed his large hand on my thigh.\u00a0<\/p>\n
My breath caught in my throat.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I looked at him quickly, but he wasn\u2019t even looking at me, his gaze was fixed on the men across the table. He leaned back lazily and ordered, \u201cSit.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
This was casual, but why was there that evil little smirk tugging at his lips?\u00a0<\/p>\n
And worse, my stomach flipped as I remembered his words in the car. \u201cWe\u2019ll continue this later.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I swallowed hard. He couldn\u2019t possibly mean that. We were in public and there were many people around. But the more I looked at him, the more I realized, he really would.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He was that insane.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cM\u2013Mr. Hades\u2026\u201d the middle\u2013aged man spoke up again, his voice trembling. \u201cI heard you recently relocated your company back to America. That must mean you\u2019re looking to establish fresh partnerships.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Hades raised a brow, bored, as if even responding was an effort. \u201cWhat are you getting at?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The man\u2019s smile widened, though I could\u2019ve sworn his hands were shaking. It was like every word he spoke put his life at risk. \u201cOur firm leads the market in advanced technology. I was hoping\u2026.we might explore a sponsorship arrangement. Of course, it would be mutually beneficial. W can discuss the terms, if you\u2019re open to it\u2026\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The soft click of heels pulled my attention. A waitress in a black and white uniform approached our table, bowing her head politely. \u201cWould you like a drink, ma\u2019am?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
For some reason, my eyes immediately darted to Hades.\u00a0<\/p>\n
And of course, he was already looking at me. Not just looking, staring. That infuriating smile played on his lips. Even worse, the men seated around the table had all turned their attention to me too.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The middle\u2013aged man forced a smile, his tone almost too eger. \u201cPlease, have a drink, miss. I assure you, the taste will not disappoint.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I managed a small smile in return and reached for the glass offered. It wasn\u2019t like I had a choice, not with so many eyes watching. Bringing it to my lips, I sipped slowly.\u00a0<\/p>\n
1\/2\u00a0<\/p>\n
Hades please can you focu\u00a0<\/p>\n
+25 Bonus\u00a0<\/p>\n
Wow, it\u2019s actually\u2026 good.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I expected them to look away now, and return to their business talk, but no. None of them moved. Why would they? Especially not when the man beside me hadn\u2019t looked away once.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Hades had his elbow resting on the table, his head supported by his hand, his gaze fixed solely on me like I was the only person in the entire room. The intensity made my pulse skitter.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Could I throw something at him? Because seriously, did he have to stare like I\u2019d somehow hypnotized him?\u00a0<\/p>\n
I cleared my throat, forcing another smile. \u201cHades, please\u2026 can you focus?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The men stiffened, their eyes widening slightly, as if I\u2019d just committed some unthinkable sin.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I blinked at them, confused by their reaction, but before I could say anything else, Hades\u2019s grin deepened. \u201cAnd what will I get for focusing?\u201d he murmured.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I gave him a look that screamed Really?\u00a0<\/p>\n
He chuckled, clearly entertained by my reaction. \u201cAlright, alright. I\u2019ll focus.\u201d He turned leisurely back toward the others, as if nothing had happened. \u201cWhat were you saying?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
They were still stunned, their expressions screaming disbelief as they tried to piece together how this man could be swayed so easily by me. Honestly, they didn\u2019t need to try so hard. If understanding what goes on in Hades\u2019s head is what they were after, they\u2019d only end up frustrated. The middle\u2013aged man, desperate not to waste the opportunity, cleared his throat and hurried to pick up where he left off.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I didn\u2019t hear a word. Their voices became background noise as I lowered my gaze to my drink again.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I took another sip. God, it was even better the second time. I smiled faintly, savoring it.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I lifted the glass for a third taste, but froze.\u00a0<\/p>\n
My whole body went rigid, choking on the liquid that slid too fast down my throat. I coughed harshly, covering my mouth as the drink nearly spilled. Heat rushed to my cheeks. All eyes turned to me.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I snatched a tissue from the table and dabbed at my lips quickly, heat creeping up my cheeks in embarrassment.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cAre you okay?\u201d one of the men asked.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I blinked up. Hades\u2019s head was tilted, his expression as innocent as a man like him could manage. But the truth was anything but innocent, because beneath the cover of the tablecloth, his hand had slipped between my legs.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYes, Violet. Are you okay?\u201d Hades\u2019s deep voice drawled, amused.\u00a0<\/p>\n
COIN BUNDLE: get more free bonus\u00a0<\/p>\n
P\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Nights Burn With Regret \u2014 by Nathan Perez 52 3\/3\u00a0 Hades plense con you focur\u00a0 +25 Bonus\u00a0 Hades, please can […]<\/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-27968","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\/27968","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=27968"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27968\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=27968"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=27968"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=27968"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}