Page 51 of Unleashing Chaos

Desi and I jump away from each other, and she hurries to her feet, clearing her throat. “What is it?”

“Sorry to bother you, Your Grace, but your parents asked me to inform you that they are waiting for you and Mr. Wilder. The carriage will be here shortly to take you on the tour of your Circle.”

“Thank you, tell them we’ll be there in just a moment.”

“Yes, Your Grace.”

I stand and run my palms over my face. I can’t let myself get out of control. Not in private. Not when it’s not for show. Because then I have no excuse. And that’s when my heart is in danger. Desideria’s the kind of woman who will walk right through that open door and steal every last piece of me. She’s hard to resist, though. Her face, her laugh, her body, her eyes, her skin . . .

“What’s wrong?” she asks. “Why are you looking at me like that?”

I blink several times and shake my head. “Nothing’s wrong, Desi. I just . . . you look different here. Your hair is redder, and your eyes are greener. And I swear your skin is glowing.”

She doesn’t even look down at herself; it’s like she knows exactly what I’m talking about. “Both angels and demons are more . . . luminous, I guess is the right word, in our home realms. No one has ever had a reason to notice before, though.”

Something about her in that moment seems so vulnerable, so precious, like a rare gem I need to protect. “You’re beautiful. I mean, your skin takes well to your natural environment.” I smack my hand to my forehead. And there you have it everyone, Jace Wilder at his finest, complimenting a woman with what sounds like scientific bullshit.

A grin spreads over her face, and she reaches up, taking my hand off my forehead. “That was quite possibly the most adorable compliment I’ve ever been given.”

Adorable. That’s great. I’m sure that’ll win her mother over. We might as well wrap a bow around my neck and walk me on a leash. I work hard to stay in shape; maybe her mother will appreciate it if I get down on all fours and wiggle my ass for her.

“Adorable is what I aim for,” I say, taking her hand and leading her out of the room.

Her parents are waiting for us inside the carriage, their gazes filled with good-natured accusations as we climb in and sit across from them. Of course they think we were caught up in some heavy make-out session. Little do they know that the man Desi’s passing off as her potential partner hasn’t so much as kissed her.

Although he’s starting to forget all the reasons why . . .

“Mother,” Desi says, giving her a warning stare. “This is Jace. Jace, this is my mother, Athena.”

The queen of Infernis is graceful, with her pointed chin held high and a diamond and ruby crown perched on her head. Her red hair spirals down her back in thick curls, and her skintight silk gown hugs her hourglass figure. If it weren’t for her amber irises flecked with blue, Desi would be the spitting image of her.

I hold out my hand and grasp her delicate fingers. “Athena? As in the goddess of war?”

Her heart-shaped lips lift slightly at the corners as she says, “Not that Athena, but her story is notorious in our realm and her name a popular one.”

“Don’t let my bride fool you, Jace,” Chaos says, bringing Athena’s knuckles to his lips. “She causes wars in her own way. One being the pounding battle cry of my heart when she steps into a room.”

Chaos’s words are admittedly cheesy, but the sentiment behind them is pure truth. Anyone can see that he’s madly in love with Athena, and the affection he showers upon her is the kind of romance Desi reads about in her romance novels. No wonder she has such high expectations for love.

“Ugh,” Desi groans, rolling her eyes. “You two are so nauseating. Sorry you had to witness that, Jace.”

“It’s nice to see two beings so dedicated to each other and in love.”

Athena smiles and leans forward to pat my knee. “You don’t have to look far. The attraction you and my daughter have for one another might rival what Chaos and I share.”

Desi looks at me with wide eyes, but I just lock my fingers with hers and give her mother a bright smile. “I suppose only time will tell.”

“Indeed,” Chaos and Athena say at the same time.

Desi may think I’m oblivious to the wiggled eyebrows and her mother mouthing that I’m really handsome, but I see them gently teasing each other. However, most of my attention is on the passing scenery and the questions I’m asking Chaos about his architectural taste.

When we reach Desi’s Circle, we stroll the grounds, and I listen to a detailed explanation about what it will take to run the Circle she’ll inherit. The landscape is simple—grass for as far as I can see with a sprinkling of leafy trees. And energies everywhere. They glow in pinks, blues, greens, and yellows while relaxing under the sun or soaring in the air on swings hanging from branches. The energies don’t have human forms but there is a humanlike quality to them, a head and limbs, but without facial features or hair. Chaos says they mostly stick together, communicate telepathically, and feed off the energy created by this realm.

“I think these guys need a lazy river that runs around this place,” I say, remembering the waterpark staple I used to frequent as a child.

Athena stops stroking Chaos’s forearm and spares a glance at me. “A lazy river?”

“Yeah. In my realm, they’re found at waterparks or resorts. It’s a river that runs in a circle, and humans sit in flotation devices and just float. I think these energies would enjoy it.”

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