“My lord, will you dance?”
Hades eyes were alight and his lips twitched. He stood, a towering and commanding figure, and took her hand, leading her to the floor. The souls made room, packing in against the walls to give them space and to watch. Hades drew her against him, his hand firm on her back, the other laced between her fingers.
She had been closer to him than this, but there was something about the way he held her now before all of his subjects that made her skin burn. The air grew thick and charged between them. They didn’t speak for a long moment, just looked at one another.
“Are you displease?” she asked after some time.
“Am I displeased that you have danced with Charon and Hermes?” he asked.
Is that what she was asking? She started at him and he leaned forward, pressing his lips against her ear. “I am displeased that I am not inside you.”
She tried not to smile. “My lord, why didn’t you say so?”
His eyes darkened.
“Careful, Goddess, I have no qualms taking you before my whole realm.”
“You wouldn’t.”
His look challenged, “Dare me.”
She didn’t.
They glided across the floor in silence for a little while longer before Hades pulled her off the floor and up the stairs. Behind them, the crowd clapped and whistled.
“Where are we going?” she asked.
“To remedy my displeasure,” he replied.
Once out of the ballroom, he led her outside onto a balcony at the end of the hall. It was a large space—and Persephone became distracted by the view it offered but when she started to walk ahead of Hades, he pulled her back to him.
His eyes were dark, communicating his need.
“Why did you ask me to drop my glamour?” she asked.
Hades brushed a stray piece of hair behind her ear.
“I told you—you will not hide here. You needed to understand what it is to be a god.”
“I am not like you,” she said.
His hands trailed up her arms and he smiled. “No, we have only two things in common.”
She raised a brow. “And those are?”
“We are both Divine,” he said, inching closer. “And the space we share.”
He lifted her into his arms. Her back met the wall. Hades hands were almost desperate, drawing up her dress and parting robes, he sank deep inside her without warning and they both groaned. His forehead rested against hers, she inhaled a shaky breath. “Is this what it is like to be a god?” she asked.
Hades pulled back to meet her gaze. “This is what it is like to have my favor,” he answered, and moved, sliding in and out, invading her in the most delicious way. Their gazes held and their breaths became heavier, faster. Persephone’s head fell back, the stone bit into her scalp and back, but she didn’t care. Each thrust touched something deep inside her, building sensation after sensation.
“You are perfect,” he said, fingers twisting into her hair. He cupped the back of her head, his thrusts taunted as he slowed, moving at a pace that ensured she could feel every part of him.
“You are beautiful. I have never wanted like I want with you.”
His admission came with a kiss, and then Hades pumped in and out of her harder than ever and her body devoured him. They came together, their cries smothered by their clasped lips.
Hades withdrew carefully, holding her against him until her legs stopped shaking. Then sky ignited behind them, and Hades drew her to the edge of the balcony.
“Watch,” he said.
On the dark horizon, fire shot into the sky, disappearing into a trail of glimmering sparks.
“The souls are returning to the mortal world,” Hades said. “This is reincarnation.”
Persephone watched in awe as more and more souls rose into the sky, leaving trails of fire in their wake.
“It is beautiful,” she said.
It was magic.
Below, the residents of the Underworld had gathered in the stone courtyard, and when the final souls rose into the air, they broke into applause, music began again, and the merriment continued. Persephone found herself smiling, and when she looked at Hades, he was staring.
“What?” she asked.
“Let me worship you,” he said.
She remembered the words she had whispered to him in the back of the limo after La Rose. You will worship me and I won’t even have to order you. His request felt sinful and devious and she reveled in it.
She answered, “Yes.”
CHAPTER XXIII – A TOUCH OF NORMAL
Persephone was looking forward to a date with Hades. It had been a few weeks since the Ascension Ball, and she had spent a lot of time with Hades. He’d started seeking her out while she was in the Underworld and asking her to go for walks or play a game of her choosing. She’d begun making requests of him, too. As a result, he’d played with the children in the Underworld, added a new play area for them, and hosted a few dinners for the souls and his staff.