She stared at the lamp placed on the bed side. Her glassy eyes appeared as swirling waves of ocean swallowing a reddish orange halo. The lamp's dull luminescence, gleaming in those ripples, painted an alluring picture of a sunset.

She yawned, stretching her limbs. The haze around her senses was clearing away bit by bit. Her mind registered a dull throbbing in her bruised neck. She carefully touched the swollen area. 'What happened?'

Events of the pureblood incident came crashing down on her. Her mind swarmed with every scary detail as a shiver of fright passed through her body. She scrunched her eyebrows thinking back to the point Ares came to save them.

She blushed thinking about their small. 'I came back for my family.' She recalled his words in her mind. She felt like burying her face in the pillow and screaming loudly. He called her his family!

She stopped with her daydreaming when she noticed the foreign interior of the room. 'This isn't the room I had been staying in.'

She was lying in a king sized, four poster bed. Black silk sheets were bundled around her as a soft duvet hugged her small frame. Thin translucent drapes were hanging down the canopy obstructing her view of the unfamiliar room. She pushed the quilt away, getting out of the bed. Her feet made contact with the cold floor making her squeak with surprise.

'Leaving the warm bed doesn't seem like a great idea.' She thought standing in the middle of the room. The weather had turned the nights chilly. She shivered involuntarily, rubbing her arms, as she passed a curious glance over the room's interior.

It was a spacious room, much bigger than the previous one. The walls were made of black stone, making the room seem darker in appearance. The bedroom was fairly empty except for the king sized bed and a couch placed against the opposite wall. A glass table faced the couch, resting on an expensive looking plush rug. A book was set neatly on top of the shiny glass surface.

She tried taking a peek at the title but the lack of light in the room didn't allow it. She walked closer, the soft fur of the rug tickling her bare feet. She bent down to pick up the book in her hands, reading the title.

'He has been studying about all those years he missed.' She pursed her lips placing the book back at the table. Standing straight, she continued analysing the room.

Suddenly a strong urge to empty her bladder hit her. 'The previous room had a bathroom attached to it. This room should too. Right?'

That's how she found herself opening every door inside the bedroom. There were four doors in total.

One lead to the hallways. The entrance door of the room.

The second door was locked.

She opened the third door to reveal an attached bathroom. She sighed with relief, hurrying inside to ease her urge.

~*~

She stood in front the bathroom mirror staring at her disheveled state. Her hair resembled a bird's nest. The rim of her eyes seemed red and swollen. There were bluish purple bruises on her neck from when the crazy vampire had tried attacking her.

She brushed her teeth with a spare toothbrush she found in the cupboard, rinsing her mouth of the bad taste. Passing a hand through her messy hair, she tried to brush the tangles out of them as much as possible. She left it at that when her efforts didn't succeed.

She walked out of the bathroom hoping she'd find Ares sitting in the room but the room remained as vacant as when she had left it.

Looking around the room, her eyes stopped at the fourth door. Curiosity got the better of her as she sauntered towards it. Placing her hand on the handle, she rotated her wrist downwards.

Click.

The door opened. She pushed it slightly to get a better view of inside. A gasp left her lips as she stared at the scene in front of her.

It was a big room with a swimming pool in its centre, covering most of its volume. The floors and walls were lined with cream coloured marble, which enchanced the light glow from sconces by reflection. The ceiling was covered with numerous small light bulbs giving it a starry night look. The clear water from the swimming pool below, reproduced their image in its core, showering the whole room in an ethereal radiance.

Her feet padded on the cold marble as she walked towards the pool. Standing at its edge, she gazed inside the blue waters, awestruck.

"Faith."

Surprised, she tried to turn around abruptly. Her foot slipped in the process resulting in her falling down into the pool. She squealed as the cold water enveloped her from every direction.

Her head emerged to the surface after a second with her hair sticking close to her face. She resembled a drowned cat. She pushed the hair away from her eyes, glaring daggers at the man standing before her.

"You did this on purpose!" She said clenching her teeth.

"Why would I?" He feigned innocence but the smile lurking at the corners of his mouth gave it away.

'He looks more handsome when he smiles.' She swam to where he was standing.

"Help me up?" She extended a hand towards him with a sweet smile.

He looked at her extended hand for a small second before crouching down and taking her small hand in his. She smiled triumphantly before pulling him down with all her might. He didn't budge. She tried again. Nothing.

She looked up at him with a sheepish smile. He poked the side of her head with his finger.

"Why do you always forget that I can read your mind?" He looked smug.

She puffed out her cheeks, taking her hand out of his. "You cheated!"

She turned around swimming away from him. When she had put a fair distance between them she stopped with her back to him.

"Come out, Faith." She heard his exasperated voice.

She didn't. She felt like being irrational. She had a feeling he wouldn't mind handling her childish side.

"You'll catch a cold, come out!" He put more stress on his words this time.

She crossed her arms in front of her chest continuing to give him the silent treatment. She was staring at her reflection in the water when she saw ripples originating from behind her. 'Wasn't I the only one in the water?'

Arms snaked around her waist pulling her to a hard chest. Her breath got caught in her throat as he pressed her harder to his body. "Isn't this what you wished for? I complied." He turned her around in his embrace. "Come out, now."

Every soft curve of her figure touched his tough muscles. She gulped inaudibly at their closeness. Thin wet clothes clinging to their bodies did nothing to separate them. She gripped his strong arms as she her eyes moved up his sleek physique. The black shirt sticking to his chest gave her a fair idea of the hard abs hidden behind them. She wanted to place her hands on top of his sturdy pectorals to feel his slow calming heartbeat. Just like she had felt it the night he visited her apartment.

Clear water droplets dripped down his long neck, escaping inside the half opened shirt. She had a sudden urge to lick every single one of them. 'Where did that thought come from?' Her grip on his arms loosened.

'Did he... hear this, too?' She kept her eyes glued to his neck, refusing to meet his gaze. She was sure she'd be blushing with embarrassment if she hadn't been standing in the cold water.

"Faith." His deep voice called her name softly in a hushed whisper.

She raised her eyes slowly to meet his heated gaze. "Yes, Lord Ares?"

He seemed surpirsed. "Why the sudden obedience?"

"You saved my life. More than once. I owe you this much at least." She looked down avoiding eye contact.

His hand traced her delicate neck with his long fingers before gripping the back of her head, forcing her to meet his gaze. "Do you?"

She stared at him intently. He looked just as she had seen him back at the castle's hallway. Maybe weaker. She remembered he had to feed his blood to Henry in order to revive him.

'He needs to feed.' Without thinking twice, she moved her hair away from her neck, offering it to him. "Drink my blood."

He held her gaze for a moment before looking away. "I don't need to."

"What do you mean you don't need to?!" She raised her voice with every word that left her mouth, "You look worn out. Exhausted. How are you supposed to protect your people when you don't take care of your own self?!"

His jaw ticked. "I'm fine."

She gripped his shoulders staring striaght into his eyes. "No, you aren't."

"I am." He put emphasis on both words.

She opened her mouth to retort before closing it without uttering a word. Arguing with him was futile. She already knew that. He was stubborn, always using seduction to get whatever he wants.

'Seduction..' Her eyes widened. She stopped her mind from wandering around the dangerous zone, not giving him a hint of her thoughts. She wanted to catch him off guard.

Looking up at him with a sneaky smile, she moved herself closer to him. His body tensed at her unclear intentions. Her hands trailed up his arm, stopping to rest on his cheeks. His hold on her waist tightened, trying to keep her in her place, "What are you doing, Faith?"

"What I should've done a long time ago." With that, she leaned forward and pressed her soft lips to his.

He didn't move away, which encouraged her to go on with her wild idea. She locked her arms behind his head bringing herself impossibly near him. Her soft breasts pushed hard against his strong abs drawing a moan out of her parted lips.

She captured his bottom lip with her mouth sucking softly the plump delicacy. A fire was ignited in the pit of her belly making her lose her senses. Her teeth grazed his lower lip slightly before she bit it, pulling it with her teeth to nibble on it gently. Her hunger only intensifying with every heated touch.

She licked his lips seeking entrance inside his luscious mouth, which he didn't grant. She grunted with frustration. Her hand gripped the back of his hair tugging it lightly to urge him to give in. He didn't.

She pulled back at his unresponsive behaviour, staring at him with a mixture of hurt and embarrassment.

"I'll get out of the pool." She said in a small voice.

Her head hung low as she turned around from his scorching gaze. He gripped her wrist before she could move away,

"Don't regret this, Faith." He said before covering her mouth with his own.

His large hands roamed her body as he pressed his mouth harder to her swollen lips. Her lips parted with surprise at the unexpected kiss. Taking advantage of the situation, he slipped his wet tongue inside her mouth. The warm sensation of his cold tongue massaging her own helped her come out of her intial shock. She started responding after some moments.

Their tongues swirled around each other fighting for control. Saliva dripped down the side of her chin as his tongue overpowered her mouth, marking its territory. The urge to breathe made her push her small fists against his hard chest. He pulled back at her protests, allowing her to gulp great amount of air inside her lungs.

She breathed heavily to fulfill her oxygen demaned as the man holding her continued to kiss down her throat. His hand went inside her shirt, gripping her soft bosom. His fingers played with the hem of her bra, as his tongue kept assaulting her throat. A loud moan escaped her breathless lips when he pinched her hardened nipple from above the wet material.

"Ares..." His name left her lips as a pained whisper.

He tried pulling the collar of her shirt down her shoulder. His movements becoming urgent. Tugging hard, he ended up tearing the white fibre. She gasped as her torn shirt barely hung down her small frame, leaving her black bra exposed to his view.

His fangs lightly grazed her neck as his hand gripped the strap of her bra. He stopped to look into her hazy eyes. "Can I, Faith?"

She scrunched her eyebrows thinking about his question. His touch had left her high. Her mind was unable to comprehend anything at that moment. Looking at her confused look he repeated his question, "Can I undress you?"

That simple question sounded extremely bewitching coming out of his sinful lips.

"Yes." She replied without thinking it through.

With a snap, her bra fell down inside the water. Cold air touched her bare skin making her exceedingly aware of the situation. She tried covering herself up with her hands but he held them behind her back. "Don't. Let me see."

He stared at her naked breasts intently. His hungry look unnerved her. Slowly, He brought his mouth near them and without any warning took one of her nipples inside his cold mouth. His tongue rolled around her areola licking every inch of it. Her back arched it as he started sucking it hard. He held her in place with one hand, while the second hand paid attention to her other breast.

He tugged, licked and sucked her till every part of her sensitive breasts felt tender and swollen. He left butterfly kisses on her skin as his mouth trailed back up to her throat. His hold on her hands loosened as they moved up to grip her face. His scorching gaze locked with her as his eyes filled with a deep burning hunger.

"You can stop me if you want." He told her in his deep hoarse voice.

"Don't stop." Her reply came out as breathless sigh.

He leaned down placing a soft kiss at her throbbing pulse just before his canines plunged deep inside her artery.

Some scarlet drops dripped down his chin, into the cold pool water, tinting its purity. It didn't hurt like last time. In fact, it felt surreal. An electrifying feeling passed through her body as she shared her life force with her other half.

Her knees started feeling weak as her legs gave out beneath her. Her hands found his strong arms for support as his lips latched to her neck continued to assault her. After a fair share had went down his throat, he gave the wound one last lick before backing away.

Her head rested on his shoulder as she gazed up at him with her half closed eyes. "Do you love me, Ares?"

He held her gaze with an unknown expression. She tried desperately to stay awake but the loss of blood wasn't helping her condition much. She saw his lips move but her mind was too far gone to comprehend the meaning. She wanted to tell him to repeat his answer but her tongue didn't comply either. In an instant, she was fast asleep caged in his strong arms.