And if they discovered his use of the eye, he knew they would retaliate, but there was only one thing they could take from him that would damage him beyond repair: Persephone. And while the Fates were vengeful, they were not rash. Even if they considered taking Persephone away, they’d weigh all possible futures, and once they perceived how each ended—in death and fire and darkness—they’d leave their threads entangled.
He opened the box.
The eye that stared back had a large, black pupil, and it was misshapen and gelatinous. He stretched his fingers on the table and curled them into a fist—even gods were not immune to curiosity. Zeus was obsessed with the future, with prophecy, constantly using his oracle to determine who was a threat to his throne.
All Hades wanted to know was that Persephone had a place in his future.
But knowledge always came with a price, and Hades wasn’t willing to pay, even for the certainty. He couldn’t.
There was too much at stake right now.
He closed the box, shoved it in his pocket, and left Nevernight to go in search of Persephone.
He wanted to hear about her day.
* * *
Hades found Persephone in her room, standing with her eyes closed. Her head was tilted slightly upward as if she were inviting him to kiss her full lips. As he observed her, she took a breath, shivering, and her shoulders rose with it. She looked…adorable, and he found himself smiling at how much he loved her.
Despite everything that had transpired today, this moment made it all worth it.
He touched her chin and pressed his mouth to hers, and his mind went blank, consumed by her smell and her taste and her touch. Her hands splayed softly across his chest, kindling heat in the core of his stomach. He stepped closer, tangled his hand in her hair, and kissed her harder. He wanted nothing more than to take her home to the Underworld and continue this worship, especially if it meant avoiding the world that existed beyond them.
Yet there was a part of him that did not wish to use Persephone in that way, so he pulled away. Hades pressed his palm to her cheek, searching her gaze. She seemed a little anxious, and while he could feel it tangled between them, he did not know what it stemmed from.
“Troubled, darling?”
Suspicion bled into her gaze. “You followed me today, didn’t you?”
“Why would you think that?” he asked, especially since he hadn’t, but he was curious about her reasoning.
“You insisted Antoni take me to work this morning, most likely because you already knew what the media was reporting.”
“I didn’t want to worry you.” And while he had assumed she would be under the scrutiny of both the media and the public at large, he had to admit that he hadn’t expected the crowd that had gathered today, but it appeared the public did not yet connect their fear of him to Persephone.
“So you let me walk into a mob?”
“Did you walk into that mob?” he asked, knowing better.
“You were there! I thought we agreed. No invisibility.”
“I wasn’t,” he said. “Hermes was.”
Her eyes flashed with a note of frustration and then dread as Hades spoke.
“You could always teleport, or I can provide an aeg—”
“I don’t want an aegis. I’d rather not use magic, not…in the Upperworld.”
“Unless you’re exacting revenge?” He raised a brow, knowing full well she had no trouble turning Adonis’s limbs into vines and Minthe into a mint plant.
“That’s not fair. You know my magic has become more and more unpredictable. And I’m not eager to be exposed as a goddess.”
“Goddess or not, you are my lover.”
He had said it to emphasize his point, that things had changed. Even the attention she had received from writing about him was different from this, but he noted how rigid she became and glowered. “It is only a matter of time before someone with a vendetta against me tries to harm you. I will keep you safe.”
At his words, Persephone hugged herself, and at least he knew some of them had gotten through.
“You really think someone would try to harm me?”
“Darling, I have judged human nature for millennia. Yes.”
“Can’t you, I don’t know, erase people’s memories? Make them forget about all this.”
He frowned at her question. All this, he thought. What she really meant was them.
“It is too late for that. What is so terrible about being known as my lover?”
“Nothing,” she said instantly. “It’s just that word.”
“What’s wrong with ‘lover’?”
“It sounds so fleeting. Like I am nothing but your sex slave.”
One corner of his lips curled. “What am I to call you, then? You have forbidden the use of ‘my queen’ and ‘my lady.’”
“Titles make me uncomfortable,” she said and hesitated. “It’s not that I don’t want to be known as your lover…but there has to be a better word.”
“‘Girlfriend’?” Hades supplied. He had to admit, it was an odd choice given the circumstances of their fate, but it was modern enough.
She laughed and Hades glowered.
“What’s wrong with ‘girlfriend’?”
“Nothing. It just seems so…insignificant,” she explained, growing flustered, and Hades felt less defensive as her cheeks reddened.
He touched her chin once more, holding her gaze as he stepped even closer. Their faces were inches apart, his lips hovering near hers, ready to take her mouth against his once more as he whispered, “Nothing is ever insignificant when it comes to you.”
They stared at each other, and a sweet tension built between them at the faint brush of his lips against hers.
A knock sounded at the door, and Lexa shouted from the other side. “Persephone! I’m ordering pizza. Any requests?”
The sudden interruption had caused Persephone’s heart to race. He could hear the steady thrum vibrating against his own skin, and there was a part of him that wanted to maintain that beat as they descended into a frenzied passion.
Neither one of them moved, and Hades was unwilling to lose this moment, kissing down the column of her neck as she cleared her throat and spoke, flustered. “N-no. Whatever you order is fine.”
“So pineapple and anchovies. Got it.”
Persephone’s reply was lost as Hades’s hand came up behind her head and he sucked her skin into his mouth, his teeth gently grazing, sending shivers through her body.
“Are you okay?” Lexa asked, clearly not satisfied with Persephone’s lack of response.
Hades chuckled and released her skin and continued his exploration. All the while, Persephone clung to him, her fingers digging into his upper arms. He liked it, liked knowing that the more pressure he felt there, the more tension he was building inside her.
“Yes,” she hissed.
Lexa paused and then asked, “Did you even hear what I’m going to order?”
“Just get cheese, Lexa!” Persephone snapped.
“Okay, okay, I’m on it.”
Lexa left after that, clearly amused, though her interruption seemed to have succeeded in distracting Persephone enough because she pushed against his chest to create distance between them.
“You shouldn’t laugh.”
He was confused by her comment—did she feel insecure about her reaction to him? If it was any consolation, he rarely had the ability to think beyond her when they were together.
“Why not? I can hear your heart beating. Are you afraid to be caught with your boyfriend?”
Persephone rolled her eyes. “I think I preferred lover.”
He laughed, and he liked the way she looked at him when he did…like she wanted to make him laugh forever. “You are not easy to please.”
“I would give you the chance, but I’m afraid I don’t have time.”
“I don’t need long,” he said, gripping the fabric of her dress. “I could make you come in seconds. You won’t even have to get undressed.”
The way she looked at him made his cock harder. It was sensual, almost a dare, yet she denied him.
“I’m afraid seconds will not do. I’m owed pleasure—hours of it.”
He could not argue with that, but he could bargain. “Allow me to give you a preview, then.”
He pulled her tight against him, and the bulge of his cock settled against her stomach, but she pushed against him.
“Perhaps later,” she said, and he wasn’t that surprised. She had been adamant about spending time with Lexa, and he knew that was important to her.
He could be patient.
“I’ll take that as a promise,” he said and vanished before he decided against waiting.
Chapter VI
The Past is a Shadow
When Hades returned to his room in the Underworld, he was exhausted but wired, his whole body alive with a need to come. He poured himself a glass of whiskey only to down it immediately. It slid down his throat like fire, and he gritted his teeth against the sensation. It did nothing to relieve the ache.
He raked his fingers through his hair, pulling it free from its tie before pouring a second glass. When that did not work, he discarded his clothing, lay down in his bed, and took his cock into his hand.
“Fuck.” The word left his lips in a low growl. He was engorged and hot, and the first pumps of his own fist made his head feel light. There was nothing compared to being inside Persephone, but at least he would sleep after this.
He stroked himself, rubbing his thumb over the head of his cock. He smoothed the come that had already beaded there down his shaft, but it wasn’t enough, so he spit into his hand and gripped himself again, stroking roughly, closing his eyes so he could better imagine what it was like instead to have Persephone’s body beneath his, fully sheathed in her warmth. He groaned at the thought and thrust harder into his hand, hips driving forward as if he really were inside her. Pressure built in his balls, and it rose higher and higher, and just as he thought he might come, he stopped.
His breath came harshly and he was so erect, his cock practically pointed at the ceiling, but he liked this high—the rush to an end that never came because it meant he could build it again and again. It is what he would have done if Persephone were here—draw out pleasure until he could not stand the tightness in his arousal and the heaviness in his balls.
When his breathing had returned to normal, he took himself again and closed his eyes, imagining that Persephone was straddling him. He sought the friction that this position usually offered. He thrust upward into his hand and stroked himself almost violently while his other hand tugged at his balls, heavy with a release threatening to come.
Once more, he felt the familiar stirring of an orgasm rippling from the pit of his stomach, tightening in his thighs and ass. This time, he came as a guttural sound tore from his throat, and in the aftermath, he continued to pump his fist along his cock, expending every last drop of come.
He lay there for a moment, feeling weightless, before rising to clean up and pour another glass of whiskey. This one he sipped, and when he was finished, he lay down to sleep.
Hades had only slept deeply a handful of times in his entire life, and most of those had occurred over the past few months with Persephone by his side. Usually he wavered somewhere between wakefulness and sleep, too on edge to let himself fully rest, which was why, when he felt something touch his face, he reacted quickly, his hand clamping down on the intruder’s only to open his eyes and realize it was Persephone.
“Fuck!” He jackknifed into a sitting position and drew her to him, pressing kisses to the wrist he had snatched. “Did I hurt you?”
When she did not answer, he met her gaze and found she was staring at him, her eyes wide and her lips slightly parted. She looked flushed and sleepy, her wild curls falling haphazardly around her face.
“Persephone?” he said again, hoping to catch her attention.
She seemed to come to then, and she smiled, brushing a piece of hair from his face. “I’m fine, Hades. You only scared me.”
He felt a wave of relief at her words and kissed her palm, only to draw her against him and lie down. Her weight was a calming presence, and he reveled in the feel of her draped atop him.
“I did not think you would come to me tonight.”
“I can’t sleep without you.” She whispered the words against his skin, and his chest tightened at her admission.
He should say the same, but instead, he ran his hands down her back to her ass, grinding her middle into his growing erection and responded, “That is because I keep you up so late.”
Persephone lifted her head and rolled her eyes, sliding into a seated position, her thighs hugging his waist, her fingers threaded through his.
“Not everything is about sex, Hades.”
“No one said anything about sex, Persephone.”