He kissed her hard and then guided his length to her opening. She lifted her legs, digging her heels into his ass, trying in vain to push him inside harder and faster, but he resisted her urging and slid inside in one slow stroke. When his balls settled against her, he shifted her legs so that they were propped against his shoulders and pumped into her.
He focused on her, how she quaked beneath him, how her breasts bounced with his thrusts, how her eyes held his and then closed in pleasure, her mouth following the same sort of pattern. Her reactions were everything he wanted. She made it hard to focus, harder to maintain this for long.
“You feel so good. So tight, so wet,” he said, increasing his pace from a steady and methodical movement to something far more possessive and carnal. Fuck, he was ready to have her hands on him. “Eleftherose ton!”
He let her legs go and leaned down to take her mouth against his in a messy kiss as her fingers threaded through his hair before she moved down to grip his ass, pulling him against her harder.
“Fuck!”
He broke away and sat back on his heels, bringing her with him. He helped her sit on his cock as she wrapped her legs around him. They held each other tightly as they both moved, grinding together, and he knew he could not hold on for much longer. It was the way she breathed, the way her nipples scraped against his chest, the way she felt around him.
They both tensed and tightened, their fingers pressing hard into their bodies the harder they moved, the more they chased the feeling of ecstasy erupting between them. When she tightened around him in release, he came in a rush that went straight to his head.
He was dizzy as he fell back against the bed with Persephone in his arms, bodies heavy.
Persephone started to laugh.
“I will refrain from thinking you are laughing at my performance, wife,” he said.
She laughed harder and finally stopped to look at him.
“No,” she said, tracing his features. “You were everything.”
He shifted them to their sides so they could face each other.
“You are my everything,” he said. “My first love, my wife, the first and last Queen of the Underworld.”
CHAPTER XLII
HADES
The next morning, Hades rose with Persephone to get ready for the day. It felt strange to do something so routine after the evening they’d had. Hades felt like they should continue to celebrate, and by celebrate, he meant remain in bed. But he knew that was not possible given the circumstances.
He made a drink and waited near the fire while she continued getting ready, preferring to dress the mortal way.
“You’re quiet,” he said, sipping his whiskey.
Persephone paused to look at him as she rolled a pair of thick stockings over her knees.
“I am just thinking of how surreal this is,” she said. “I am your wife.”
He set the drink on the mantle and crossed to her, letting his fingers linger on her cheek.
“It is surreal,” he said.
“What are you thinking?” she asked.
He considered lying, but he answered truthfully. “That I will do anything to keep you.”
“You are thinking Zeus will try to separate us?”
“Yes,” he said, tipping her head back farther. “But you are mine and I intend to keep you forever.”
“Why do you think he let us leave?” she asked.
“Because of who I am,” he said. “Challenging me is not like challenging another god. I am one of the three—our power is equal. He will have to take time deciding how to punish me.”
She swallowed hard, and he hated that he had given her anxiety.
He kissed her forehead. “Do not worry, my darling. All will be well.”
“Eventually,” she said.
“Shall I take you to work?” Hades asked.
“No,” she said, standing and straightening her skirt. “I am going to breakfast with Sybil.”
He paused and then asked, “Will you tell her that we are married?”
“Can I?”
“Sybil is trustworthy,” Hades said. “It is her greatest attribute.”
Persephone smiled. “She will be ecstatic.”
While he did not take her to work, he did see her off to breakfast with her friend, teleporting outside Nevernight where Antoni waited to drive her.
“I shall see you tonight, my wife,” Hades said and drew her in for a kiss. Then he reached for the door and helped her into the cabin.
“I love you,” she whispered.
“I love you,” he said and shut the door.
He watched the car until it was out of sight and then spoke.
“What is it, Ilias?” he asked, already feeling dread at the satyr’s presence.
“I couldn’t tell you until Persephone left,” he said. “But this morning, we found five nymphs on our doorstep, frozen to death.”
“Fuck.”
“She’s out of control,” said Hades, watching video from last night when the five nymphs appeared out of thin air and land on the doorstep of his club.
“Five lives,” said Ilias, his voice quiet and mournful. “And for what? To send a message?”
“No,” he said. “The message has been sent. Now she is just being cruel.”
Demeter had played on Persephone’s sense of responsibility to the world with the snowstorm, but now that it had not worked, she had changed tactics and would hurt her directly.
Hades’s hands fisted and his jaw tightened.
“Do you think Demeter knows?” Ilias asked.
He did not need to be specific. Hades knew he was asking about their marriage.
“No, but she likely knows that Zeus gave us his blessing.”
Fuck.
He had no doubt that despite their quick departure, Zeus had announced the union publicly, heedless of the consequences. It wasn’t that he did not know them; it was that he did not care. Any fallout from Demeter meant that Zeus could blame the Goddess of Harvest when they were forced to part.
Now Hades had to think about how to tell Persephone five of the women she had essentially grown up with were dead because of them, and only hours after they had become husband and wife.
Gods, he hated Demeter.
It was one thing to pummel the world with her magic. It only fed his power. It was another to hurt his wife in such a cruel and cold manner.
It was unforgivable.
It was madness, and he wondered—dreaded—what came next.
“What would you like for me to do?” Ilias asked.
Hades did not know. He could attempt to seek Demeter out again but confronting her would have no impact upon the goddess. She’d made the decision to hurt Persephone because of him. His pleas would go unheard. Besides, the damage was done. When his wife returned home later, she would have to burying five of her friends.
Guilt welled in his chest, rising thickly into the back of his throat.
He should have never ordered those women to find Demeter but the last thing he’d expected was murder.
Fuck.
“I shall have to inform their father,” he said distantly.
Though it was likely Nereus already knew. Gods could feel this sort of thing—the end of life they had given.
“Perhaps I should,” Ilias suggested.
Hades did not accept or deny his offer, his mind racing. He had been so nonchalant about their fear of death because he had not believed they would die—he had not seen in their soul or in their threads. Demeter’s ending of five immortal lives would have great consequences. He wondered if the Fates would take a life or grant one. Would the sacrifice be as dangerous as the resurrection of the Ophiotaurus?
“Prepare them for burial,” Hades said. “I…have no doubt Persephone will wish to see them.”
She will want to say goodbye and then she will rage—whether at him or Demeter was yet to be determined.
Hades was still thinking about the five nymphs an hour later when Ilias returned. He expected the satyr to inform him that the work was finished and to inquire after a visit to Nereus, but his expression communicated something far more concerning.
“Persephone has been revealed as a goddess,” he said.
Hades brows lowered. “What?”
“New Athens News,” he said, unable to verbalize much else. “It’s their top story.”
Fucking Helen.
Hades rose from his seat. Together, they headed downstairs to the main floor of Nevernight and switched on a television. The top headline was about Persephone.
Woman Outed as the Daughter of Demeter
The anchor on television reported, “The woman, Persephone Rossi, who is engaged to Hades, the God of the Dead, assumed an identity as a mortal journalist. She made headlines earlier this year by writing critiques about the Divine.”
“Do you think she’s prepared for this?” Ilias asked.
“To be outed as goddess to the world?” Hades asked. “No.”
Persephone had only started to come to terms with her own divinity. Now, the world would be even more interested in her than they were before when they assumed he’d fallen in love with a mortal woman, even those who were angry at her for her so-called deception. She would face obsession and hate—ultimately all of it was worship which meant her power would only grow in strength…the power she could barely control.
As they watched, the broadcast shifted suddenly, and the anchor announced breaking news.
“We are receiving reports of an avalanche near Sparta and Thebes. The cities are buried under several feet of snow. Rescue workers have been dispatched.”
Fuck.
Fuck. Fuck.
That meant thousands of souls were about to flood the Underworld—but not just mortals, animals, too, and it was all because of Demeter’s fucking snowstorm.
Persephone would be devastated and he wondered what she would do when she discovered the horror her mother had inflicted upon the world.
Though he did not have to wait long to find out because he felt Persephone’s power erupted, far stronger than ever before. It felt anguished and angry and it shook him to the soul.
Fucking Fates.
“I have to go to Persephone,” he said.
He knew her capabilities when she was pushed too far and this time, it get the attention of Olympus.
He let his magic unfurl, seeking the energy of the stones in her ring, and when he latched on to it, he went to her, finding her at the center of eight Olympians. Apollo and Hermes stood slightly in front of Persephone, blocking her from the others.
Hades placed a possessive hand on her stomach and drew her against him.
“Angry, darling?” he asked, his lips near her ear.
“A little,” she replied.
Despite their casual exchange, Hades’s heart was racing. He glared at Zeus, who stood directly across from them with Hera on one side and Poseidon on the other. The rest of the Olympians fell in line.
Demeter was noticeably absent.
“That was quite a display of power, little goddess,” said Zeus.
“Call me little one more time,” Persephone said, her body tensing beneath Hades’s hand.
Zeus chuckled.
“I am not sure why you are laughing,” she said. “I have asked for your respect before. I will not ask again.”
“Are you threatening your king?” Hera asked.
“He is not my king,” Persephone said, her tone vicious.
The lines on Zeus’s face seemed to darken. “I should never have allowed you to leave that temple. That prophecy was not about your children. It was about you.”
“Leave it, Zeus,” Hades said. He held Persephone tighter. “This will not end well for you.”
“Your goddess is a threat to all Olympians,” Zeus said.
“She is a threat to you,” Hades said.
“Step away, Hades,” Zeus ordered. “I will not hesitate to end you too.”
Hades had expected this moment. He had prepared for it, but not so soon, and now his mind raced, wondering if they were ready.
If Persephone was ready.
“If you make war against them, you make war against me,” said Apollo, summoning his golden bow.
“And me,” Hermes said, drawing his blade.
The silence was quiet and heavy. “You would commit treason?” Zeus asked.
“It wouldn’t be the first time,” Apollo said.
“You would protect a goddess whose power might destroy you?” Hera asked.
“With my life,” Hermes said. “Sephy is my friend.”
“And mine,” said Apollo.
“And mine,” said Aphrodite, who broke from the line and crossed to stand beside Apollo, calling Hephaestus’s name. The God of Fire also appeared, filling the space beside her.
“I will not battle,” Hestia said.
“Nor I,” Athena said.
“Cowards,” Ares shot back.
“Battle should serve a purpose beyond bloodshed,” said Athena.
“The oracle has spoken and pinned this goddess as a threat,” Ares argued. “War eliminates threats.”
“So does peace,” said Hestia.
Hades was not surprised by their decision, and the two left. They faced Zeus, Hera, Poseidon, Artemis, and Ares.
When they began, Hades would focus on subduing his brothers. He just hoped he could keep them both engaged in battle and away from Persephone.
“You are sure this is what you want, Apollo?” Artemis asked from across the field.
“Seph gave me a chance when she shouldn’t have. I owe her.”
“Is her chance worth your life?”
“In my case?” Apollo asked. “Yes.”
“You will regret this, little goddess,” Zeus promised, and Hades could feel his magic charging the air. It raised the hair on his arms and the back of his neck.
“I said don’t call me little.”
Her power broke the earth beneath their feet, and the Olympians scrambled back, rising into the air. Hades remained behind Persephone, waiting to see how she would defend herself, needing to know that she could hold her own in this fight.
Zeus’s magic flashed in his hands as he summoned a bolt of lightning and hurled it at her feet, causing the earth to shake. He had done it to scare her, thinking that she would wilt at his powerful display, but Persephone remained firm before him.
“You are as dogged as your mother,” Zeus snarled.
“I believe the word you are looking for is strong willed,” Persephone replied.
Zeus moved to strike again, and Persephone called up a wall of sharp thorns to stop the blow. That was enough.
Hades stepped between them and dropped his glamour, his shadows falling away, barreling toward Zeus. One managed to pass through his body, stealing his breath, but Zeus recovered in time to deflect the other two with the cuffs that braced his arms.
“The rule of women, Hades, is you never give them your heart.” Zeus summoned another lightning bolt.
“I have never taken advice from you, Brother. Why would I start now?” Hades said, calling for his bident.
“Perhaps you should have. Then we would not be here today.”
There was a lot of truth to those words.
“I like it here,” Hades said, glancing around at the other Olympians locked in battle. “Feels like home.”