Page 74 of A Touch of Chaos

He hummed, a sound she could feel vibrating his chest before he answered. “It’s better now.”

It was a Hades answer, meaning it was not an answer at all. Still, she smiled.

“I interrupted your dance,” he said.

“It’s all right,” she said. “So long as you dance with me.”

He held her close, and she rested her head on his chest. They stayed like that until she grew sleepy in his arms.

“Are you ready for bed?” he asked. His voice was warm but sent a shiver down her spine.

She pulled away. “I think my mind is too busy for sleep.”

“Is it?” he asked, raising a brow. He leaned closer, and she took a shuddering breath as his lips brushed her ear. “I can take your mind off things.”

She turned her head, and their lips touched.

“Bold of you, God of the Dead, to assume Iwantto take my mind off things.”

His lips quirked.

“Forgive me, Lady of my Fate,” he said, his fingers threading through her hair. “Please advise how I might be of service.”

She smiled and started to lean in when she caught movement from the corner of her eye. She turned her head and saw a cat sitting a few feet away. She was fluffy and black, and her eyes were green and bright, almost unnatural in their luminosity.

“No,” she said as a sudden and deep cold overtook her body.

“What’s wrong?” Hades asked.

She turned back to him, meeting his dark gaze. Concern etched his handsome face. Her heart ached when she looked at him.

Don’t leave me, she wanted to beg.

“Kiss me,” she said instead.

His brows lowered, but she pushed forward and slammed her lips against his, wrapping her arms around his neck. She needed him to anchor her here so she would never be lost again, but while he kissed her back, he seemed to sense something was wrong. He placed his hands on her shoulders and pulled away.

“Persephone,” he said, but she wasn’t looking at him. She was looking at the cat who was still sitting quietly in the grass, staring.

She turned to face it fully, angry.

“No!” she said, her eyes welling with tears.

The cat continued to stare.

“I’m not leaving,” she said and pointed to the ground. “This is how everything was supposed to be!”

“Persephone,” Hades said again. He reached for her, but she slipped from his grasp. The shock of his absence made her chest feel like it was split in two, but she couldn’t let him touch her again, or she would really stay.

His eyes were wide, and she thought that in this moment, she’d have rather died than watch his heart break with each step she put between them.

“Tell me what’s wrong,” he begged.

She shook her head, tears streaming down her face.

“I can’t,” she said, her voice breaking. “I just…haveto go.”

She held his gaze a moment longer, his eyes so deep and ancient. They were Hades’s eyes to be sure, but they were not the eyes of the Hades she loved, and she knew that in her soul.

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