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Chapter Twenty-Nine
ARES
I clench my jaw as I listen to the sound of my wife’s sobs through the bathroom door. She’s trying her
hardest to be quiet, and it kills me. I have no doubt I’m one of the sources of her pain, and I don’t
know how to make it better.
The shower turns off, and I take a step away, making my way to our bed instead. I get in and grab
my phone, unsure how to act. For a moment, I consider texting my sister and asking her to come over,
but then I think better of it. If it’s Sierra she needed, she would’ve just gone there herself, wouldn’t
she?
Raven walks out wearing an oversized t-shirt instead of one of the sexy nightgowns I’ve gotten
used to, yet she somehow looks even more irresistible than usual. She pauses when she sees me
sitting up in bed and averts her gaze instantly, no doubt hoping I won’t notice how red her beautiful
eyes are.
I force myself to look away and pretend to be engrossed in my phone instead. I don’t know how to
face her. I want to be there for her, but I don’t want to push or intrude if that’s not what she needs.
Raven is quiet as she gets into bed with me. I expected her to say something, anything at all, but
she just turns her back to me and curls up in a ball, her breathing still uneven.
I watch her for a moment, taking in the way her small hands are wrapped around the covers, the
sound of her shallow breathing. She sounds as though she could burst into tears at any moment, all
over again, but she’s trying her hardest not to. Tonight, more than ever, I wish I could be the person
she’d rely on. I’d give the world to be the person she turns to when her heart aches, when it’s comfort
she seeks.
I take a deep breath before pulling up the app that controls everything in the house. I’m unsure if I
should dim the lights or turn them off altogether. What is it that she wants? Considering the way she
just hid in the shower, I suspect it’s darkness she wants.
The lights turn off, and I lie down next to her, at a loss. It’s only been a few days since we got
married, yet I’ve seen so many facets of her that I never realized existed. She’s always acted so sweet
and carefree around me, but I’m now seeing both strength and weakness that I didn’t realize she
carries. It only makes her more beautiful. She’s unlike any other woman I know. Those small
shoulders of hers carry dozens of burdens, few of them her own.
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