"Excuse me?" Eliza stared at Ares as if he just confessed being her long-lost brother.

Ares' grin didn't falter. "It makes more sense if we have a single place we use for a base. We don't have a large ship to use, so why not use your apartment? You have space."

Eliza pointed her yolk-covered fork toward the brunette man. Her eyes blazed. "I don't know where you got the idea to just decide this, but you need to step off. There is no way on this rust ball we will ever live together."

"It was just a suggestion, Lizzy."

Her fork shrieked along her plate. It sliced through the white flesh and yellow center of her egg, causing the yolk to ooze all over her plate. Eliza stabbed the piece she cut off and shoved it in her mouth. Ares swore he heard the gnashing of her teeth as if she was right beside him and her mouth was closed. Oops.

Ares ran his fingers through his hair and leaned back in the booth. He made sure to avoid touching her as he stretched his long legs. Booths really weren't too comfortable for him.

"I wouldn't ask if I didn't think it was important, you know. It makes more sense to have the same base of operations."

"Then buy your own apartment."

Eliza was not letting him live with her. She didn't consider him a friend quite yet, plus she couldn't say she trusted him completely. Sure, Ares seemed to care for her when she was obviously struggling the night before, but that didn't mean he could live suddenly with her. She didn't care if it made more sense.

The smile on his face irritated her more. "It's awfully lonely in that apartment of yours, wouldn't you say? I'd stay out of your way."

Yeah right. "I said no. You're not living in my apartment with me. It will not be our base, or whatever. It's my home and will stay mine alone."

"Sharing is caring, Lizzy."

"Stop calling me that."

Ares rested his chin on his hand, his stupid smile still on his face. Eliza's glare intensified. He kept staring.

"No amount of staring at me will get me to change my mind," Eliza said. She took the last few bites of her eggs and moved onto her hash browns and bacon. "There's no way I'm letting a man live with me."

The smile that was on his face quickly disappeared. Ares reached for Eliza's hand, which she pulled out of his reach. He frowned and brought his hand back to his side. "Is this because of last night? You know I'd never do anything to you, right? Never."

Eliza hid her surprise with a hard stare. His quick switches were overwhelming when she was trying to be mad at him. Her voice was softer. "No. This isn't about that."

"Then what is it?" His lips were back in that familiar smiling form again. "There's some reason why you're refusing to accept this idea. Do I need to beg again?"

"No! I just don't trust you!"

People in the diner paused to stare at the two of them. An eerie silence took over the room, waiting for Ares to say something, anything. Eliza looked around at the peering eyes, blushing bright red, but Ares had a different look. Once again, his smile vanished, but his eyes were lit with something between determination and hope.

"Let's make a deal then."

Eliza didn't want to, but she signaled for him to continue. She was stubborn, so the least she could do was listen. She had her refusal waiting on her lips.

"I'm going to prove to you that you can trust me. We'll hunt together and go home separately. The second you start to trust me, your apartment becomes home base."

"And what if I never trust you?"

"Then this partnership is going to never work."

Would it be so bad to take the deal? Eliza only trusted herself, Donovan, and her doctor. Trusting anyone else wasn't a part of her agenda. She was too confident in her abilities to let anyone else in. She was too independent. Eliza never really had the opportunity to try and trust someone before and Ares seemed adamant to prove himself.

"Fine. Prove yourself. Maybe I'll think about your proposition if you are successful."

Ares shot her a toothy grin, "Really?"

Eliza pointed her fork at him again, though in a less aggressive manner from earlier. "And don't get cocky. You won't get anywhere with an ego."

"You'll trust me, and we'll be the most successful bounty hunter duo on Mars, maybe even on Earth."

With a roll of her eyes, Eliza gulped down the rest of her milk. Ares stared at her for a second before finishing his own food. He was far too confident for her taste, meaning that she immediately started to doubt herself. She had a feeling her confidence shrinking was going to have her in a sticky predicament. Maybe she should just move in with Donovan again. He'd never let Ares live there with them. Yeah, that was a better idea.

She glanced at the bright, shining face of her partner. His eyes, a bright gold in the morning sunlight, revealed all his joy to her observant gaze. Eliza knew then that she was screwed.