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"Princess..." he barely voiced, probably way too taken aback by the fact that she was no longer sleeping. He had genuinely expected her to only open those magnetizing cerulean eyes of hers sometime in the early hours of the morning . " What do you mean?"

"Why are you so tense?" she lazily inquired, shifting a bit in his embrace -her muscles beyond stiff. She must have slept in the same position for hours, she silently concluded while still waiting for his answer.

" Nothing big, really…. " he paused, searching for the right words, or better said, for a convincing enough explanation. " Just some battles in northern Thrace that don't seem to go exactly as planned…." he dismissively retorted, hoping that she would somehow settle for that randomly picked scenario . He hated having to lie to her, but on the other hand, there was no way in Tartarus he was ever going to bring Amytis up again…..

The Warrior Princess's scrutinizing gaze lingered for a few moments on the overly stern expression on his face, briefly wondering whether a petty battle could actually make him as tense as to nearly squeeze the life out of her.

" What happened ?" she pushed - a hint of disbelief still present in her voice.

" Well….to make a long story short- given that it's still the middle of the night and my Number one Girl needs her rest- my troops there had the city of Kabyle under siege . I gave their commander specific orders not to attack for at least five or six days- they had no supplies, no water , no help coming their way….And, what did they do instead ?" he rhetorically inquired.

" They attacked….."

" Of course ! " he exclaimed, on an almost comic tonality. "There was no noise coming from beyond the walls, so that brainless lunatic assumed they were running away through some secret tunnels they had heard stories about ….."

" …..Which is absolutely ridiculous to begin with …Large plains surround that entire area - they would have been spotted immediately …"

" Try telling that to Antheros …."he sighed, rolling his eyes. " About two hundred soldiers died after quite an unfortunate- and torturous- contact- with molten bitumen and boulders …" he explained, looking less uncomfortable and guilty all of the sudden ….

Maybe it had been only a figment of her imagination after all …..

" So …..what did you do ?"

" The only thing I could do, given the circumstances- order a retreat….I hate retreats ….."

" How many men do you still have in the area?"

" Three – four hundred at most ….." he replied without delay, arching an eyebrow at her. She was on to something….

" Why didn't you go for a surprise attack ? ….Escalade the walls at night- ten men at most- ? They would have only needed axes and ropes. Opening the gates from the inside shouldn't have been a problem, they would have annihilated all immediate threats and then, under the cover of darkness, kill the rest of the enemy troops….Sounds quite simple to me….." she inquired, watching him expectantly, dumbfounded by the fact that he hadn't considered the possibility…Even half asleep as she was, the solution still rushed to her mind in less than a blink- and somehow, he had failed to see it…

" You, my dear, might just be the best investment I have ever made in my entire godly existence " he enthusiastically exploded, admiration gleaming in his eyes . Though the scene he had described was purely fictional, he had to admit it- that was a fabulous idea- one that he himself had surely put into practice, had the situation been real.

" Well, given that you're not precisely the smart type , I'd like to salute your mind-blowing accomplishment " she dismissively bantered , barely stifling a laugh.

" Hey ! What is that supposed to mean, miss Genius ? " he bit back challengingly, his voice anything but offended. The fun, unique way in which she constantly provoked him, as if she were perfectly aware of his each and every soft spot, was an intriguing little detail he had always found particularly attractive about her. Never boring, never excessively demanding, she appeared to always know just when and where to strike - even with words…..Plus, that dark humour of hers in combination with a few drops of irony and the sensuality of her voice –now that was undoubtedly bound to result in a lethal combination for both his heart and his ego.

" Well….you did mention that you ordered your general to retreat …" she emphasized, biting her lower lip in equal amusement….." That's quite lame coming for the God of War himself ….Any of those pathetic soldiers could have come up with a more decent strategy, really …." she made sure to let him know , absently massaging her right shoulder. For some reason- along with most of her back – it hurt her as if she had been run over by a wagon.

" Do allow me to mention in my own defence that I had more important things on my mind ….." he casually replied , smiling widely at her obnoxious remark…Obnoxious, mischievous and as sharp as a tack- he could have easily come up with a full list of her qualities for the rest of the night….

" I bet you did …." she coldly stated, as the painfully fresh memory of a certain read headed Queen suddenly surfaced, once again ready to sabotage her mood. This time though, the naughty War God was adamant about not letting it happen ….

" What's wrong with that shoulder ? Does it hurt ?" he swiftly changed the subject- along with the seemingly unavoidable destination of her destructive string of thoughts….

" My shoulders and my back actually ….I don't know ….My muscles feel so very tight…. I can barely move my neck- she murmured , trying to move her head from left to right , only to moan lowly as a sharp stab of pain went down from the back of her neck through her spine ….

" Lie down on your stomach, Darling…..I might not be the smart type, but I have been told I can work wonders with my hands…" he ordered, helping her do just that, though her mouth had already opened to articulate some sort of protest.

Indeed, her heart rate increased unexpectedly the second she noticed the fire burning in his eyes, and for some reason, her suddenly naked form made her feel more vulnerable than ever. She uselessly tried to remember whether she had gone to bed wearing something or not, but her brain simply refused to participate to such an extensive, tiresome investigation …

….After everything that had happened those past few days, it appeared that she had learned nothing, absolutely nothing when it came to their relationship…..Two jokes , a boyish smile and a simple request , and there she was again, completely undressed in his bed and seconds away from an interaction intimate enough as to make her as taut as a bowstring …..

Unbelievably reckless- she silently chastised herself , but it was a bit too late, for the white floral scent of an expensive Egyptian massaging oil was already spreading into the air, intoxicating her senses along with Ares's firm but incredibly soft hands, roaming up and down her back, making every single connection in her brain vanish for a few priceless moments. Way sooner than she had anticipated, her will started to dissolve into nothingness along with that absolutely addictive, heavenly scent surrounding them, his every single caress amplifying a thousandfold the desire coursing wildly through her- despite that irking jolt of awareness that still insisted on reminding her that she couldn't give in to him just like that…..Not after Amytis….

Despite her best efforts though, the only thing she could focus on were the God's fingers , that were now expertly tracing every bump of her spine , exploring every inch of her skin, every crevice- the remarkable fluidity of his movements making her throat uncomfortably dry the instant she was supposed to answer a simple yes and no question that she nearly failed hearing….

" Does it feel good ?"

His own voice was thick with lust, low, enthralling and possessive just like she had expected it to be…By all Olympus, why did he have to be so damn tempting? Why did their relationship have to be so complicated in the first place?!

" Perfect…." she somehow managed to mumble, her breathing quickening as his skilful fingers began insisting on her sacrum , slowly, teasingly circling his way along the edges at first and then gradually, applying more and more pressure until she could literally feel an unbearable, blazing heat spreading from between her thighs through her belly and all the rest of her body like a lightening bolt, forcing her lips to part uncontrollably in a mute scream that she could barely hold back. Her eyes though, now they were glazed and hungry- tinged with an ounce of self inflicted guilt and shame yes, but definitely longing for more….Obviously, it was the worst situation she could have gotten herself into, and yet, it might have been the perfect opportunity to check whether after that accursed incident with his ex flame, she still held some power over him….and power was vital in her line of work…. No matter what, she could never allow herself to forget that again…

" All better ?" he whispered huskily and hot into her ear, covering her luscious body with his own , cleverly keeping her pinned to that bed . Her breath was still short and ragged and without even looking at her he just knew her face was still faintly glowing after that short but amazing release. She couldn't possibly realise it, but even her aura was radiating with the enslaving need for more, and though not even a sound of ecstasy had split the air a few seconds before, he was still able to read her like an open book. ….Apparently, he had hit all the right buttons…

" Almost …" she playfully announced, making sure to add just a bit of acid to that line, enough as to draw his attention…" I've heard there's better though…." she devilishly purred, her body arching imperceptibly upwards, her incredibly sexy ass now pressed firmly against his crotch, a maddening wave of heat instantly flooding his groin at the contact.

It was all he needed to hear…..

" Ouch!" he replied, a mocking hurt expression on his ultimately seductive visage. " My alpha male ego just got stabbed in the heart ….." and before she actually got the chance to offer a reply-in the most uncivilized manner one could ever imagine- he grabbed a fistful of her hair, savagely pulling her head back until his mouth was but inches away from hers .

"Has anyone ever told you, you're too sexy for your own good, Princess?"

" I don't think so…."

"For some reason, I find that hard to believe …."