A Touch of Malice (Hades x Persephone #3)(72)

“Where are we?” she asked, her voice was quiet.

“We are on the island of Lampri,” he answered. “Our island.”

“Our?”

“I’ve had it,” he said. “But I rarely come. After I found you in the club, I did not wish to go to the Underworld. I did not wish to be anywhere but alone. So, I came here.”

There was another long stretch of silence.

“Do you know if Tyche survived?”

It was then Hades hands tightened around her.

“No,” he said. “She did not.”

***

Later, Hades gave Persephone her phone which allowed her to check in with Sybil, Leuce and Zofie. They’d created a group text to tell her they loved her. Her eyes watered at their sweet messages. She let them know she was okay and asked after them.

We’re fine. Zofie made sure we got home safe, said Sybil and she explained what happened upstairs. We knew something was wrong when people came out of the shadows screaming that a god was attacking people. We didn’t know if it was Hermes or…Hades.

But it had been neither.

It has been Aphrodite.

It had been her. Suddenly, she recalled the carnage she’d caused. How many people had she killed?

She sat the phone aside and when Hades entered the bedroom, he paused.

“What’s wrong?”

“How many people did I kill?” she whispered.

Hades paused and then asked, “What do you remember?”

“Hades—”

“Will it help to know?” he asked.

She opened her mouth to speak but did not know how to answer.

“Think on it,” he said. “I say this as a god who knows the answer.”

After, they walked along the beach. It was strange seeing Hades in such a bright place dressed down in nothing, but a cloth wrapped around his waist. His skin was burnished beneath the sun, turning into a golden bronze. She couldn’t look away.

“Why are you staring?” he asked.

“Does it upset you?” she asked, frowning.

“No,” he said, matter of fact. “It makes me want to fuck.”

She grinned.

When they reached the shore, she ran into the ocean squealing with delight as the water rushed upon her, soaking the bottom of her white dress. She turned to find Hades wading toward her.

“How long has it been?” she asked Hades. “Since you have visited the ocean?”

“For fun?” he asked. “I hardly know.”

“Then we will make this memorable,” she said, hoisting herself up his body, fingers digging into his broad, muscled shoulders as she wrapped her legs around his waist. His cock settled against her, and her teeth grazed his bottom lip.

“I love you,” she whispered.

Their mouths and bodies fused together. Her blood pounded, scattering her thoughts. Their hands skated across each other’s skin, enjoying the feel of one another. When Hades fingers tightened on her bottom, grinding into her with a desperate ferocity she wanted to match, they broke from one another, lips throbbing.

“I want to show you something,” he said.

She raised a brow, her lust dwarfing any other thoughts. “Is it your cock?”

He chuckled. “Don’t worry, my darling. I’ll give you what you want but not here.”

They left the water and Hades guided her down the beach toward a grove of tropical plants and trees. Beyond them was a path that became rocky as it neared an open cave. Just inside, was a set of steps that spiraled down into a grotto. The water was the color of hundreds of shimmering sapphires. Above them, the roof had collapsed, allowing for a stream of warm sunlight to filter in, hitting the water. Lush greenery grew within the walls of the cave, spilling down over the roughened surface.

Persephone stared, awed by how beautiful it was.

“Do you like it?” he asked.

“It is beautiful.”

Hades grinned and started down another set of steps that led to the water. He shed the covering at his waist and stood naked, turning to face her. As she approached him, Hades stepped off the edge, sinking into the deep pool. She watched him surface some distance from the shore.

His eyes glistened, dark and reverent.

“Will you join me?”

She pulled the thin dress over her head, discarding it beside her as she dove into the water. Hades caught her around the waist, pressing his lips to hers as they surfaced. Floating in the grotto, he made love to her mouth as she reached between them, guiding his cock between her legs so she could feel him there. Her breath caught as his lips left her mouth, trailing her jaw.

“I will build temples in honor of our love and I will worship you until the end of the world. There is nothing I wouldn’t sacrifice for you,” he drew away to look at her, eyes like shimmering stars. “Do you understand that?”

“Yes,” she said, tightening her hold around him. “I will give you everything you ever wanted, even things you thought you would live without.”

Their mouths collided again, and Hades gripped her, guiding them backward toward a dip in the rock wall where a trickling waterfall kept a larger cave obscured. He lifted her from the water and walked into her, guiding her against the wall of the cavern. One arm stretched up, the other found purchase beside her head. She held his smoldering gaze.