Savage Little Lies (Court Legacy 2)

Like a few things tonight, I had no idea where Ares’s attention was coming from. Maybe it was because my brother and I were pretty new in his space, but Bru or I had never given Ares a reason to think we’d destroy anything.

I recalled him being very territorial the last time I was over here as well. He kept us outside the whole time when we painted.

Ares took a seat next to Wells with a grunt, and Dorian slow-clapped for him.

“Nicely delivered TedTalk, buddy,” he joshed, and Ares grumbled.

Ares lifted a hand.

“Just don’t want anyone fucking with my shit.” He settled back. “We all do that, and we’re cool.”

The room got rather quiet then, awkward, and that may be why Dorian got the guys to start up a video game. The pizza still wasn’t here yet, and he suggested the game while we waited. The boys were just starting to get it geared up when I got up. I needed to go to the bathroom.

“Want me to go with you?” Dorian got up, and even Bow asked, but I remembered where at least one of the bathrooms was in this house. I’d been here before.

I told both him and Bow no and stepped past Ares. He’d been getting additional controllers set up. He stopped in front of me. “Where are you going?”

“The bathroom, that okay?” I crossed around him. “I remember where it is. Down the hall, right?”

“Yeah, but—”

I started to go, but he crossed in front of me again. I rolled my eyes. “Ares, I know where it’s at.”

“And this is a big fucking house.” His lips pulled tight. “D or I should take you.”

“I already told him I had it covered.” Again, I crossed in front of him. “Lay off. I won’t break anything.”

I left him standing there, and it was by the grace of God he actually let me go by myself. The guy was being super anal about his stupid fucking rules.

I felt his eyes on my back the whole way, and when I eventually did come out, I was surprised he wasn’t waiting outside the door for me. I started to go back to the others, but stopped when I took a second to admire all the art pieces on the walls. I’d noticed them when I passed them initially, but with Ares’s eyes on my back, I couldn’t study them.

I did now, truly in awe of them. There was lots of metalwork gracing the walls, bent steel in abstract pieces. I’d never done anything like that myself, and I wondered if Ares had created these.

“There you are.”

Wells came sauntering down the hallway, his hands in his pockets. His grin easy, he angled in beside me. “His Majesty asked me to see what the holdup was with you.”

My eyes narrowed. “Dorian asked that?”

“Nah, Wolf.” Wells scrubbed into his hair, my brow twitching up. “Guy’s on hundred today about these fucking rules. Wanted to make sure you didn’t get lost on your way back.”

Oh, dear God. I growled. “What the fuck is his problem?”

“Don’t know, but it’s probably us, Thatcher and me,” Wells stated, chuckling. “I guess you break a thing or two in your buddy’s house, and he gets some kind of way.”

Apparently.

Wells glanced at the artwork. “Wolf probably should have assumed this would hold you up, though.” He grinned, folding his arms. “He’s an artist just like you, and this shit is so sweet.”

He was right about that. I studied the angles. “I didn’t know he was into this kind of stuff. Well, this kind of art.”

“This one looks like his pop’s actually.” Wells hiked an arm against the wall, staring up. He pointed at a corner of the piece. “His dad’s name is on this one. Ramses Mallick.”

Leaning in, I did see the R and M bent into the work. “He likes to work with metals?” I recalled Ares saying his dad was an artist.

“Oh, yeah,” he said, putting his fingers to his lips. He waved. “Wolf will kill me, but his dad keeps the good stuff in his home studio. Come on. We’ll take a quick peek. Wolf won’t even notice.”

I didn’t know how I felt about that. Especially since Ares was acting crazy right now.