Queen Of Hell & Paradise (Immortal gods: Book 1)

Chapter 31- Mutual Agreement

This chapter is dedicated to my family, including my older sister who challenges me to become a better person every day. Thank you Alexa, you mean the world to me! 💕

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Samantha

Dinner was interesting, to say the least.

Not only was it unexpected, it was also different to other dinners we've had before. The Warrens brought us a bottle of Pinot Grigio as well as a mystery gift for me.

Under normal circumstances, I would have been excited! I've always loved surprises and I've always loved receiving presents, especially when they were from Luke. But there was something different about last night. It felt like something big was about to happen, I could sense it from the moment the Warrens stepped foot on the living room floor.

It could have been the fact that they were unusually happy, if the smiles on their faces said anything. Or it could have been that there was a full moon outside, and that still- the night was unusually dark. I didn't know what it was, I couldn't have pointed it out with my finger if I had to- but during the entire three course meal, I could feel that something was off.

It could have been that my heart just wasn't in it. After the little argument I had with Hades, something in my gut kept twisting and writhing. I felt jittery and nervous, something highly unusual for me. Because of the nature of my position in cheer, I've had to learn how to suppress these kinds of emotions for the sake of my group. If I showed signs of nervousness, the girls wouldn't perform as well as I knew they could.

And yet, I couldn't help the prickling feeling pooling at the base of my spine. It made the little hairs on my neck stand up in awareness. Throughout the entire first half of the meal, I could feel it watching me, assessing me. It didn't make any sense. Was my earlier conversation with Hades bothering me this much? Is that what it was?

Why did it feel like someone was behind me? I could have sworn I felt someone's hot breath over my shoulder.

When I turned around to check, I didn't see anyone besides Corentin bringing us the next part of the course. Slightly rattled, I ignored the paranoia and tried to engage in conversation. In front of me, Luke was trying his best to capture my attention with his repetitive football stories- especially the one from a couple days ago.

"Aw, Samantha- you should have seen me! I was on fire out there!" he said emphatically, pretending to throw a football at me in a perfect spiral.

I frowned.

What had I ever seen in this guy? Is this what he was always like? Is football all he was able to talk about?

Looking back at our time together, I realized that I knew virtually nothing about him. What made him angry besides me finding out about his latest girl? What made him happy besides talking about an egg shaped ball? What was Luke really like?

For a brief moment, I feel envious of the girls he's cheated on me with. Do they know what he's like? Did he show them a part of himself he didn't show me? I was the one stuck having to marry him after high school, and yet, I was the only one who didn't know what he was really like.

"Samantha?" he calls out, concerned- effectively gaining a fraction of my attention. His eyes are assessing me warily, finally taking note of my forced smile and distracted gaze. I feel the burn of stares from the other three adults at the dinner table shift to me. All eyes are trained on my distraught expression.

I blink, trying to snap out of my thoughts. I had an audience watching me.

"Hmm?" I mumble, fighting the fuzziness of my mind. Luke stretches an arm over the table and reaches for one of my hands resting beside my full plate.