Chapter 133: Rooftop confessions and Kisses
Miller
I was about to lose my mind. One second, I’m walking the red carpet feeling like a king because I’ve got Leo, the most breathtaking person in the room, right next to me—and the next, some goddess appeared from nowhere, and Leo left my side, sprinting off into the dark.
I followed him immediately, but I got lost in the crowd for a moment until I saw the goddess walking out of a corner. I tried to speak to her, but in the blink of an eye, she was gone, and I decided to follow where she had come from.
I spent ten minutes walking through those empty hallways, my heart thudding hard against the bronze chest piece until I saw the stairs.
It was so hard to figure out where Leo was because he had no scent. Then someone brushed past me.
"Hey!"
It was Nico, the dim light on the stairs casting his face in shadows. "You must be searching for Leo. He is up right there," he said, pointing at the rooftop.
I tried to speak to him, but he was hurriedly walking away as if he had somewhere urgent to get to.
I turned toward the stairs and climbed them until I reached the door and pushed it open, leading onto the rooftop.
Leo was standing near the wall, his head lowered. He raised his head when he saw me.
"What was that about?" I demanded, my voice coming out as a low growl. I was trying to keep the jealousy in check, but it was leaking out of every pore because I could smell the familiar sandalwood of Alaric. "You just left, chasing after a goddess. Where is she?" I asked instead—but I knew there was no goddess here but Alaric de Villier.
"Sandalwood... was de Villier here?"
Leo faced me, shaking his head. His raven-black wig was slightly messy, and those contacts made his eyes look wider, deeper, and I couldn’t help but wonder if anything had happened between them.
"It was... a family matter. Nothing for you to concern yourself with, Miller."
"A family matter?" I laughed, but there was no humor in it. I closed the distance between us until I was looming over him, my silver wolf mask pushed up onto my head so he could see the fire in my eyes. "You chased a girl through here and then I smell De Villier. Don’t give me that family matter crap. You’ve been acting weird since that night, as if I had done something wrong to you!"
"I am not being ’weird,’ Miller. I am being pragmatic," Leo snapped, his chin lifting in that stubborn way that usually made me want to argue, but right now just made me want to grab him. "There are things you don’t understand. And Alaric doesn’t concern you."
"Everything involves me when it comes to you!" I shouted, the frustration finally boiling over.
I grabbed his upper arms, my fingers digging slightly into the white fabric, but not enough to hurt him. "I’m tired of the puzzles, Leo. I’m tired of you acting like I’m just some dumb athlete you have to manage. You told me you didn’t like athletes, then you are fanboying over Alaric. Was he an ex-lover? Is that why you’re always so cold with me? He can’t just be fantasy to you, right?"
Leo’s breath hitched, and for a moment, he didn’t say anything. He just stared at me with a frown on his face. "It’s not about love, Miller. It’s about... I just like him as a fan. That’s it. And besides, you don’t know why I am like that with you! Everyone has something they are keeping. Secrets they hide and..."
"I don’t care about your secrets!" I roared, pulling him flush against my chest.
The bronze of my armor pressed into his white gown as I held him in my chest. "I care about the fact that I can’t breathe when you’re not in the room. I care about the fact that I want to kill any man who looks at you for more than a second. I’m an Alpha, Leo. I don’t do ’subtle.’ I want you. All of you, and I’m tired of you saying you don’t date athletes, then you let me kiss you!"
Leo stared up at me, his chest heaving. "Miller, you don’t know what you’re asking for. I’m not... I’m not what you think I am. If you knew the truth, you’d realize how impossible this is. We can’t be together and..."
"Try me," I whispered, my voice dropping.
I expected him to tell me what he meant, but he didn’t. Instead, he reached up, his hands trembling as he grabbed the lapels of my tuxedo. "You’re an idiot, Miller. A complete, impulsive, irrational idiot."
"Yeah?" I challenged, my face inches from his. "And what are you going to do about it, Doc?"
"This," he breathed and leaned in, crashing his lips against mine.
My eyes widened in shock as his lips slowly moved against mine, and then I shut my eyes, grabbed the back of his head to hold him firmly, and began kissing him back.
He tasted like the cherry gloss the designers had put on him and something uniquely him—something deep and powerful that made my head spin.
I groaned into his mouth, my hands sliding down to his waist, pulling him so tight against me that there was no space left between us.
I didn’t care about what he wasn’t telling me. I just wanted to consume him, mark him, and make him mine only.
Leo was kissing me back like he was drowning, and I was the only air left in the world. I kissed him back like I wanted to swallow him.
It was the perfect kiss that I had always hoped for.
Not accidental, unplanned, or rushed.
When we finally pulled apart, we were both panting, our foreheads resting against each other.
There was silence on the rooftop for a moment, and only the sound of our breathing could be heard. Then I started speaking.
"So," I began, "Does this mean the War God finally caught the Queen?"
Leo let out a shaky, frustrated laugh, smoothing down his white dress. "It means you’ve successfully compromised my professional integrity, Miller. I hope you’re happy. You broke my no-athlete rule."
"I’m ecstatic," I smirked, leaning in to nip at his ear. "So, are we doing this? No more pretending we don’t care about each other?"
Leo looked away for a second, heaving a sigh, then looked back and nodded. "Let’s test the waters, Miller, and see if we can work it out. Let’s see where this irrationality takes us."
"I..." I tried to tell him there was nothing irrational about this, but suddenly, the buzz of my phone shattered the moment.
I groaned, reaching into my pocket. It was a video call from Rhys. I swiped it open, and his face filled the screen. He looked like he was about to pop a vein in his neck.
"WHERE THE HELL ARE YOU TWO?" Rhys roared, the background noise of the party blasting behind him. "Kayden is trying to eat the decorative gold grapes, and I’ve had three ’monsters’ try to touch me here. If you don’t get your asses down here in five minutes, I’m leaving the stupid party!"
Leo leaned into the frame, his long black wig falling over his shoulder as he smirked at the camera. "Calm down, Poseidon. Your impulse control is hovering at a dangerous low. We’re coming, so keep your cool."
"You stupid Hera! How dare you..."
Leo ended the call, and I turned to face him. "He was screaming, and I don’t have the patience for that."
I couldn’t help it. I started laughing. "You and Rhys are like water and fire."
He shrugged. "He loves to get on my nerves for no reason, but let’s get out of here before he loses his cool and punches someone in the face!"
I laughed again and took his hands as we turned toward the stairs. "This conversation isn’t over yet, Leo."
"I never said it was, because I haven’t said yes yet."
"Whatever you say, Hera."