Hades

Chapter 33

The next morning I was cautiously optimistic. I knew there was a chance that we wouldn't be going anywhere, that he had fled somewhere during the night or early morning without me even noticing. What he did didn't always have an exact schedule. So, before I got too excited, I slipped into my floral robe and walked around the house bare foot, looking for him. 

I found him less than twenty feet from my door, walking with a newspaper in his hand and his eyes down.

"Morning," I chirped. 

"Morning," he repeated with an easy smile, but when he lifted his eyes his gaze fell into something hard. He examined my exposed legs and the deep opening on my chest that was all too present very suddenly.

"I just wanted to see if you were still home," I began. I think, if I had been a good woman, I would've pulled my robe closed a little more, but having his eyes on me like that gave me confidence I wasn't used to. Sure, Caleb told me I was beautiful, the same way that any boyfriend would, but I had never been the pretty girl. And now, knowing what he had done I hated the idea that he had ever found me attractive. But with Sebastian it was different. I was almost tempted to undo the sash that hung around my waist. I gave myself a mental shake and continued. "And I needed to know what we were doing so I could pick out what to wear."

"Right," Sebastian said, snapping his gaze to my face. It was almost comical to see him like this sometimes. When we had first met he had been the epitome of control, but as our relationship progressed there were cracks in the surface. I enjoyed being a part of his weaknesses, though I wondered why he wasn't pushing more. "Something you can move in, probably something you would work out in."

"Do I get to know where we are going?"

"Nope, it's a surprise."

I wasn't someone who was particularly fond of surprises, but when I narrowed my eyes at Sebastian in silent questioning he just smiled brighter. I let it be and went back to my room to find something I would deem workout worthy. I tried to take care of myself by eating well and being active, but I wasn't a gym person. The clothes I usually was active in was jeans and sweaters for chilly fall walks and tank tops for digging in the garden. I had to dig for quite a while before i found a decent pair of leggings and a shirt that I could sweat in without it showing.

"Are you ready? We have to head out pretty soon," Sebastian hinted from the other side of the door.

"Almost done," I called back, staring at my butt for the thousandth time in the mirror. I certainly didn't look like a fitness model like this and knowing how in shape he was made me a little nervous. I grabbed a sweater and pulled it over my head, satisfied when it covered more of my curves.

I pulled open my bedroom door and found him leaning against the opposing wall. 

"Is this okay?" I asked, noticing that he had swapped his usual attire for a university hoodie and a pair of shorts.

His stare moved over me slowly. "Perfect."

We set off for the day in his Nissan SUV and I wondered why he had such a nice car if he never drove it. It seemed like a waste since he always chose this old, bright yellow beater instead.

"What are you humming?" Sebastian asked.

"What?"

"You were humming. I notice that you do it whenever you're thinking really hard, but I can't figure out what tune you're humming," he explained.

"Oh, I didn't even realize that I did that," I muttered, feeling a little red faced.

"I think it's cute," he said, moving his eyes off the road for a split second to smile at me. "It was one of the first things I was able to figure out about you."