A warm hand caressing her leg pulled Eliza out of sleep. She blinked her eyes open and stared at the muscled arm in front of her. She couldn't resist sitting up and staring at the man still asleep beside her. Ares was on his back, his hand on her leg and the other on his stomach. The bedsheet laid over his waist while one of his legs stuck out from under it. His hair fanned out on the pillow he used, his head turned away from her.

She touched his shoulder, watching his reaction. When he didn't move, she ran her fingertips across his skin. She went over the swells and dips of his muscles, memorizing everything – scars, muscles, hair. Eliza was in love with his chest hair, playing with it when her fingers felt the change in texture. He had the perfect amount across his chest and down to his stomach. It wasn't thick, but it wasn't patchy. She didn't realize she liked men with hair on their chest. She didn't get a chance to appreciate it with Luke because he didn't let it grow out. She was learning a lot about her preferences being with Ares.

Ares didn't stir until her fingers traced the trail of hair southward. She didn't go under the sheet, too enthralled by the body hair she could see. But it made him suck in a breath and rub his face. His eyes fell on her and he smiled.

"Sorry," she whispered, refusing to remove her hand from his skin.

"I will happily wake up to this any time."

Eliza felt her face warm, but she didn't move her gaze.

"What were you doing?" he asked, stretching.

It was interesting feeling the muscles stretch under her touch. She smiled at him, turning her body around to use her other hand. "I was playing with the hair on your chest. I really like it."

He chuckled and sat up, grabbing the back of her head to kiss her forehead. "I'll make sure to never get rid of it for your viewing pleasure."

She looked down, noticing the sheet fell down to reveal a little more hair below his belly button. Her whole body flushed, and she turned away, pulling her knees up to her chin. She suddenly wanted to cover herself up. Ares made her feel like a teenager in love for the first time. Eliza wasn't sure how she felt about it because she tried so hard to be immovable. She felt like putty under his gaze.

Ares pulled her against him, rewrapping the sheet around them. Then he leaned back with her, putting them back in a laying position. He kissed her head and held her close, running his fingers along her arm and shoulder.

Eliza pressed her cheek against his chest, nuzzling her nose against his skin. If only they could have stayed there all day with little thought of the man they had to face that evening. She rested her leg over his waist, putting the front of her body flush against his side. She didn't care that their skin already stuck together from the light sweat collecting from the close contact. She wanted to stay put until they absolutely had to get up.

"What time is it?" His voice was quiet like he was afraid to ruin the peace.

She turned away from him to check her communicator on her bedside table. "Ten till eight."

Startling her, Ares moved so he could hover over her. He had a sly grin on his face before he leaned in to attach his lips to her throat. She couldn't resist leaning her head back to give him more access when his teeth skimmed over her skin.

"Think we can take a little longer getting out of bed?" His breath was hot against her neck.

Her breath was already short from his one action. "Prob... ably."

"You okay?"

She had enough sense to glare at him. He laughed, deciding to kiss her lips. Eliza knotted her fingers into his hair to keep him attached to her mouth.

They were rudely ripped apart by loud knocks on their front door. Ares stared down at her, a frown on his face. "I guess that's our cue to get up."

"Maybe that isn't Mac." Eliza pulled herself up to give him a few loud kisses. "Go check the peephole."

Ares grinned and crawled off of her to stand. He didn't even bother grabbing a towel or his sweatpants that she left by her bed. Eliza rolled onto her stomach, watching her partner open the door. He came back with a big disappointed sigh. "Our fun comes to an end."

Eliza frowned and let her head fall on her pillow. More knocks sounded, making Ares call out to the cop.

"Get dressed. I'll keep him occupied."

She bent over to grab his sweats and tossed him to him. "You might want to put those on before answering the door."

Ares came over to kiss her and whisper in her ear. "Maybe I want him to know."

"I'll show him how to properly stab a man if you do."

He cackled, standing up straight to put the sweats on. He looked down at them with a grin. "I've never gone commando before. This could be interesting."

Eliza climbed out of bed and walked to her closet. "I'll make sure I don't wear anything too revealing."

More knocks on the door made both of them sigh. Ares shut her door behind him and went to let Mac inside. Eliza listened to them greet each other while she rummaged for comfortable clothes.

She walked out once she was dressed and smiled at Donovan. He visibly paused.

"I haven't seen a smile like that in a long time, Liz."

"It's just been a good morning."

Eliza walked past the two men and into the kitchen. Her eyes shifted to Ares for a second to wink, making him hide the huge smile threatening to appear.

"Well, I'm sorry to be ruining this good morning to discuss the finer details of tonight."

She came back with a bowl of cereal. "I'm a big girl, Mac. I can handle it."

Ares crossed his arms over his bare torso and watched her talk to the cop. He tried not to focus on the milk that dribbled down her chin. He didn't think eating food could be sexy, especially cereal, but Eliza had a way of doing it that made him pinch himself. Ares blamed it on their unfinished business.

"We know the benefit starts at eight tonight," Mac said. "We'll head out before that and I'll drop you two onto the roof. I'll be air support if I have to. You'll both get inside and find Ezra Logan before the benefit begins. When you're ready for a pickup, call me."

Eliza swallowed her spoonful of food. "Will the pickup point be back on the roof or do you want us somewhere else?"

Mac scratched his chin to think. "If you can get there, that'd be great. If not, let me know your location and I'll get as close as I can."

"What will happen to the Scorpions after we get him?"

Ares spoke up instead of Mac. "There will be some who will attempt to continue their legacy and we'll have to stop them in the following days. Most of the members joined because they were desperate for some kind of income or they were forced to join. They won't be a problem although we shouldn't ignore them. Any one of them could change their mind and seek the same power."

"What if one of us gets hurt? What if we both get hurt?"

"Then I'll come in with back up," Mac said. "But you two are going to make it out of there just fine. I'll do my best to keep both of you safe."

Eliza smiled gently. "We appreciate it, Mac, but don't be upset if you can't prevent it. Based on what I've heard, this won't be an easy fight."

"I'll always feel guilty if you get hurt, Liz." Mac pressed the palm of his hand against her cheek and looked at Ares. "Don't let her get hurt, okay? Yeah, I don't want you injured again either, but if any harm comes to Liz, I'll have you hunted down in seconds."

Ares' topaz eyes gazed at Eliza's green ones. "You have my word, Mac."

Blushing, the lady hunter looked at Mac again. "So, how are we getting near the building undetected? You wouldn't tell us last night."

The cop's eyes lit up and he pulled out a round device from his belt. "We're going to get close with this. Let me show you how it works." He started toward Ares' hangar, the two hunters following behind him.

Mac went over to Ares' ship and placed the device on its belly. It popped open and created a floral-looking dish that made the ship disappear in a hazy light.

"It's not completely invisible," Mac started, "but it'll cloak us to get to the roof. It can also jam any radars that could sense the ship."

Ares walked up to the rippling ship and put his finger to it. The cloak moved at the touch. "Incredible. I didn't know we had something this effective yet."

"It's something special us cops get to play around with. Figured tonight would be the perfect time to really test out its abilities."

While Ares and Eliza studied the cloaking device, Mac's eyes looked around the hangar. His eyes zeroed in on a small box that found its place on top of some of Ares' tools. Mac's eyes shot to the bounty hunters, not missing the way they bumped into each other and didn't step away. He knew Eliza was an adult that could make her own choices, but it didn't stop his parental-figure mindset from kicking in.

He cleared his throat, bringing their attention to him. "I'll be back here by five. You two prepare for a fight."

They nodded.

"Can I talk to you for a second, Ares?" Mac said, watching Eliza's face twist in curiosity.

"Uh, sure." Ares looked at Eliza. "Why don't you start getting ready for tonight? I'll be in to help soon."

"Don't take too long," she said, saluting and walking back inside.

Mac turned to Ares, arms crossed and a hard stare. "I will not hesitate to put you on our wanted list if you hurt Eliza."

Ares raised his eyebrows, not sure what the cop meant. "I don't plan on it. I'm not going to let her put herself in danger."

"That's not what I mean." Mac's eyes shifted toward the empty box.

The tall hunter followed his stare and it all made sense. "The last thing I want to do is hurt her, Mac. She's gone through Hell and I refuse to let it happen again. I let her decide what she wanted with me if you're wondering. I'm just here to show her how a man is supposed to love a woman because we both know the shit job Luke did. And if I do make a mistake and break her heart, then let me suffer. Let me feel all the pain she's dealt with since she was young."

The cop studied Ares' serious face. "Do you mean all that?"

"One hundred percent. What I feel for her isn't a way to bide my time or have a little fun. I love that feisty hunter in there with all of her perfections and imperfections. My mom taught me to adore the woman I love and treat her like the most precious thing I can ever dream of. I intend to do that with Lizzy."

"Well, then I hope she loves you back with the same ferocity."

"Even if she doesn't, I still will."

Mac nodded. "Good. Next time though, clean up after yourself. I nearly had a heart attack."

Ares laughed and started back inside. "Sorry. I was a little distracted last night."

"I guess that explains why you didn't answer the door after the first knock."

"We could have been sleeping, you know."

The cop coughed a little. "That I don't believe for a second. I was your age once."

They entered the apartment again to see Eliza stretched out on the couch. Mac left a kiss on her forehead before leaving them alone again. She immediately jumped off the couch and into Ares' arms, warm tears falling from her face. He looked her over, afraid something happened to her while they were talking. Instead of seeing fear in her eyes, he saw adoration.

"What?" he asked, wiping away her tears.

"You love me."

Of course, she heard their conversation. He had a feeling she'd eavesdrop. It didn't mean anything he said was untrue though.

A soft expression fell over his face. "I'd be crazy not to."

She clung to his body, fighting back the harsh sobs wracking her body. "You love me."

Ares ran his fingers through her hair, leaving a long kiss to her head. "And I'm going to continue until you kick me out. Though I don't think I'd stop even then. I'm going to take care of you, Lizzy. You're going to forget every horrible thing that has ever happened in your life. You may not forget Luke, but I'm going to try my best to lessen the hurt he left you with."

"You've already done that."

"Then I won't stop."

After a few minutes, Eliza stepped back and wiped her face. She looked at the hunter and gave him a warm smile. He loved her and she felt like she could take Ezra down with confidence. Luke loved her once but looking back, it didn't leave her floating on air. She never realized how broken they were until Ares showed her the beauty of a wholesome relationship. With a light heart, she apologized to Luke and let him go from her thoughts.

Eliza jumped, wrapping her legs around his waist and dragging him into a heated open-mouth kiss. His large hands held her butt to keep her firmly against him. She pulled away enough to speak against his mouth. "We're alone again."

Ares looked around the apartment. "Well, look at that." Then he brought her to the couch where he placed her gently on the cushions. He climbed on top of her and kissed her cheek. "I guess we'll have to take advantage of it especially now that I've confessed my deeply rooted love for you."

"Please do."

Before he kissed her again he stared into her eyes. "Also, I understand that you still have a few more steps to take before you can speak those words back to me. I'm willing to wait as long as you need because, well, I love you, Lizzy."

She pushed his hair back lovingly. "Thank you for making me feel like myself again."

"Anything for you."

"God, I hope we don't die tonight."

He ran his nose along her jaw. "I'll do everything in my power to prevent it. We'll be okay."

She said a silent prayer to whatever deity that listened when Ares pressed his lips to hers again. She didn't want to die. She didn't want him to die. The only death had to be Ezra Logan.