Learning to Love | ✓

Chapter 22

[ZEUS]

I smiled at the sound of Julian sighing beside me. We were lying on the neatly mowed grass at the central park we usually spent time in. The clouds were clear, and the low wide branches of the tree we were beneath shielded us from the burning sunlight.

I let my hand roam slowly up and down his lean waist. He sighed again resting his head on my shoulder. I like the way his breathing and mine are in sync, I love the way he was running his hands beneath my loose chiffon shirt. I let out a little sigh, settling over him, my leg on either side of him.

"Julian," I murmured, lowering my head to give him a soft peck on his forehead. The stimulation I felt across my body heightened at the feel of him bucking under me. This was why I loved this spot. The only viewers were the lone duck at the brim of the pond being overlooked by the tree we were under.

"I'm sore," Julian complained, turning his head away as I tried to plant a kiss on his lips. I chuckled, kissing the side of his cheek instead. He's right, he does look sore. His blonde hair's a tousled mess, his lips swollen from frequent pecks and kisses. I smiled following a not so casual trail of love bites down his partly unbuttoned cotton shirt.

"It's not funny!" Julian complained in a drawled voice as he tried to push me off him. He sighed in frustration, pouting before turning away. A smile crept to my lips. He was such a sore loser.

"It's not fair you're this strong," Julian complained, yawning.

"I'm not strong, you're just tired," I murmured, turning us over so he was onto. I watched as he weakly nodded in agreement. The simple act had my heart fluttering. I reached out and began to run my hand through his hair, I liked watching him doze, I like how innocent and relaxed he looked while he did. I held him closer, taking in his scent, my eyelids fluttering until my eyes shut.

I cherish time like this with Julian. They aren't so many but frequent enough, especially now that Julian was doing home shifts. I smiled sneaking a hand into his back pocket of his jeans.

"Don't..." Julian complained, moving his head from side to side, looking for the hand that had been stuffed in his back pocket a second ago. I laughed softly, hoisting him a bit to kiss his forehead repeatedly.

"Hmm... Do that, I like it better," Julian mumbled. I chuckled, still planting kiss after kiss on his forehead. Ending the play, I thought about the day after tomorrow. Valentine's Day. I creased my brows wondering if I should mention anything about it to Julian.

"Julian," I called and he stirred. His eyes opened slowly like a child that had been forcefully awoken.

"What?" he asked, rubbing his eyes with the back of his right palm.

"What should we do on Valentines' day?" I tried to ask casually but I could feel the heat threatening to burn my cheats. I ignored the feeling and reached out to stroke Julian's hair as a distraction. Julian's brows twitched in confusion as he stared at me.

"What?" he asked, getting off me and settling by my side

"What should we do—?"

"No, I heard you the first time. I wasn't just sure if I heard right," Julian said, looking more at the lake than at me.

"So, what are we going to do?" I asked sitting up on the grass. I let my gaze fall on him steadily, studying him. He looked Uneasy, nervous really.

"Nothing," Julian said. I blinked, confused. Nothing? What does he mean by nothing?

"But—"

"I'm married, Zeus, and the typical thing to do during Valentine's day is to spend it with your spouse," Julian said in a firm tone. The finality of his words made my lower stomach ache with pangs. He covered his face with his left hand like he was trying to shield himself from my gaze. My eyes widened in disbelief as the full weight of his words settled on me. He wasn't serious, was he?