Dark Revenge Of An Unwanted Wife: The Twins Are Not Yours!

"Don't go…"

Athena had no choice but to give up the immediate pretense when Ewan tried to deprive her of his comforting warmth.

She has been awake, in charge of her senses, since his voice and words, "I'm here, Athena!", had drifted into her reoccurring nightmare, lifting her from the abyss that was Morgan's yard into the cocoon of his strong arms.

Her sobs, clashing against his persistent efforts at comfort, had quieted down; her fraying nerves were soothed under his humming breath, under the kisses he dropped on her hair intermittently.

Because she didn't want to snuff the life out of the intense moment, because she didn't think she was ready to talk about her nightmares, and because she didn't want to stop his fussing over her, she had pretended to drift off to sleep, thinking that he would hold onto her just for a little while—until she was really asleep…

But alas, the beautiful man wanted to run away, buying into her pretense at first glance.

Her breath caught as she felt him contemplate, as she felt his scrutinizing gaze on her.

Did he think she was still under the influence of sleep?

Athena cussed mentally. Was she being too forward, too obvious with her need for his warmth?

She could easily reach out to Gianna and Chelsea, but she didn't want to burden the duo any more than she already had. Telling them another secret of hers last night hadn't… been palatable.

"Okay."

A word of acceptance. She sighed in relief before she could help it, sighing more when his arms came around her.

How she had missed his strong arms! She thought, pushing her nightmare to the background. Her hand rested gently on his arms; she bit her lips when she felt it flex under her touch.

"I take it that you are fully awake?" Ewan's deep voice broke into her thoughts.

Oh, well. She couldn't deny it now, even though her eyes were still closed. She didn't think she could fool him twice in a row.

"No. I just…" She began.

"It's okay, Athena. I'm pleased to be here with you," He muttered, pulling her closer to him.

Athena wet her lips as she retook the position she was in before he had attempted to leave; one leg over his, her hand on his chest—refusing to think how intimate this position was. He was comforting her as a friend. That's all there is!

Liar! Her mind taunted her, to her chagrin.

Her face scrunched without her realizing, and Ewan, who was taking cognizance of her features, frowned too.

"Are you okay? Do you want to talk about it?" He asked.

Silence greeted him at first.

He sighed. "There's a lot I want to ask you, Athena, and I'm not sure if you would be willing to share the answers with me…"

A small pause.

"But just to put it out there, you can trust me. I will never do anything to hurt you. Rather, I will go to the lengths of the earth—no, scratch that—the entire universe—to make sure you are okay."

A dry chuckle escaped Athena's parched lips. She coughed next, her throat too dry for her liking. She needed water.

As if on cue, Ewan snatched the bottle of water on the nightstand, opened it, and brought the tip to her lips.

"Drink." Athena was amused for a second. Did he think she could drink water from this position? The liquid would rather fall to her red gown, soaking it.

The imagery her mind conjured next, of the consequences of a wet red nightgown, had her trying to sit up.

Ewan followed her movements, sitting up too.

"Sorry… I wasn't thinking…" He muttered, pushing the bottle gently into her hands.

Athena said nothing in response, feeling her cheeks flush. She really had a dirty mind!

It was crazy how Ewan's presence had been enough to make her stop thinking of the nightmare—a rare case. Other times, she would have sobbed more, or just felt depressed when she woke up.

"How do you feel now?" Ewan asked, taking the bottle from her and returning it to the stand.

"Better," Athena replied, not sure what to do next. Tell him to lie down again? It sounded too… She wasn't sure what term to give it.

Fortunately, Ewan saved her from the stress by beckoning her to take refuge in his arms. She didn't hesitate, sliding as if she belonged to the crook of his arm, as he rested his back against the bedstand.

"What about now?" He asked, dropping a kiss on her hair, making her heart beat irregularly.

She clutched the side of her gown and nodded. "More better,"

Ewan chuckled. "Is there an English phrase like that?"

"There is now." Athena muttered, inhaling his masculine scent, wetting her lips. So this was how it was cuddling Ewan Giacometti?

During their cold marriage, they never cuddled—just mind-blowing sex and cold shoulders thereafter.

Now, she was pleased, however, that he gave her the cold shoulders. Cuddling after sex would have been brutal on her mind. She would have missed him more, might not have demanded the divorce even.

Who could, after perceiving this musky scent? She wondered, her nose greedily taking in more of that scent.

No wonder Fiona had almost gone crazy to have him.

"Are you sniffing me, Athena?" There was laughter in Ewan's voice.

Athena cursed mentally, stilling her nose. Her mind must still be under the sleepy hormones. "No, just the room."

Ewan laughed then, the rumbling laughter easing her nerves completely, bringing a smile to her lips.

"Ewan, thank you really, for putting the fire out."

Ewan became serious again after the appreciation. "You're welcome."

A pregnant pause.

"Athena, are you going to tell me about it? Is it the same nightmare you were having during our marriage? Should I order the scents?" Ewan asked.

Athena's brows furrowed. "What scents?"

"Well, even though I was the complete asshole in our marriage… during the nights when you had nightmares, when you weren't exactly conscious, I let out the scents to help you sleep. Something Sandro got for me to help you sleep," Ewan explained.

Athena was dumbfounded. Of course she remembered the scent that her nostrils came to love, only that when she woke up, she couldn't see what could be the source of the scent.

Over time, she had forgotten about it, choosing to accept her lot since it somehow aided her to sleep better.

Yet… she sat upright, away from Ewan's body, needing to think straight.

"Is there something else you did that I should be aware of?" She asked softly.

Ewan met her gaze without flinching. "watched you sleep, on most days,"

Athena's mouth fell open slightly. "You did what?"

Ewan ruffled his hair, his eyes shifting from hers to perch on the wall. "During our marriage, I was not only angry with you because of your father and his stupid attempt at control, but also at you, too. More so, because I was attracted to you. It's like I told you earlier: if your father hadn't played devil's advocate, we might have still ended up married…"

Ewan exhaled softly, taking his lower lip, while Athena watched, mesmerized. "It started with the nightmares. Watching you struggle, I couldn't take it, so I enrolled Sandro's help. I took to watching you while you slept to know if the scent was working well… with time, it became a favorite pastime, only that I would take out my frustration with my tangled feelings on you when you were finally awake…"

They both chuckled then, Athena's tinged with nervousness as she tried to accept Ewan's confession.

So, all his cold treatments, his parading of Fiona—or rather letting Fiona parade him—was… all a cue to kill his own feelings and hurt her too?

She shook her head. What the heck. At least all that was gone.

She was pleased to hear this side of his story, however.

"Is there any other favorite pastime?"

Ewan laughed. "I'll tell you if I remember."

Athena smiled widely, returning to his arms, almost purring when he tightened his hold around her, when his fingers mistakenly grazed her side. It, however, brought to her realization that she was just in a thin gown.

She looked down before she could help it, almost groaning when she saw the shapes formed by her breasts. Maybe he wouldn't notice… she lied to herself, relaxing into his hold.

"So, the nightmare… want to talk about it?" Ewan asked, needing to talk, unless his hand would go wandering. No way could he sit in good silence with Athena's body on his, without doing anything.

She shrugged. If she was going to start singing to a therapist soon, she might as well tell Ewan; after all, he trusted her with his secrets too.

"Yeah. The nightmare I was just having is different from the one I usually have during our marriage…" She said.

"Really? Tell me about both…" Ewan prompted.

Athena paused, and wetted her lips, inhaling deeply. "For the first, I was always in deep black waters, not able to see anything in front of me, yet aware that I was being watched, that I wasn't alone, that there were shadows inside the black deep with me…"

Ewan frowned, trying to decipher the nightmare. "Does it have a source? When did it start?"