Page 103 of Flowers Near Me

Hades released a low sigh. “She doesn’t. I wanted a ring to be seen on each part so everyone knows she’s taken.” He gave Hephaestus a smirk.

Hephaestus’ jaw ticked. “I can understand that.”

CHAPTER FORTY ONE

A DIVINE PROPOSAL

PERSEPHONE

The primitive imagehot springs cavebrought to mind was nothing like Hades’ palatial residence built into the caverns. Although they had portaled there, it was clear from the forested mountains surrounding the property that they were far from the metropolis. Even on the coldest night, the city of Olympus could never be this quiet.

Equipped with ambient lighting and modern bathrooms, most of the rooms sat along an exterior wall with natural light flooding through large windows. The same style of lush furniture Hades had in his apartment decorated the space.

“Take a bath while I gather a few things,” he said then pointed to a rose-colored silk robe and fluffy towels placed on a sprawling, god-sized bed. He opened a pine wardrobe built within the wall—its edges framed by an overlapping lip of stone—and pulled out a basket filled with oils and soaps.

“This place is gorgeous,” said Persephone. “Why don’t you live here instead of the apartment?”

“Remember how much Cerberus sheds?”

Picturing the dog shaking off, water droplets scattering over a pile of towels, brought a grimace. “Good point.”

“Make yourself at home.” With a hand gesturing to a carved archway between a velvet loveseat and a desk cut from a large, dark stone deposit in the wall, he added, “That hall leads to a spring-fed bath.”

“Thank you.” She scooped up the items from the bed.

Hades left and Persephone walked down the hallway into the bathing chamber. She marveled at the carved ceiling twice Hades’ height with snaking veins of lapis running throughout the light gray stone.

Persephone sunk into the effervescent springs and stretched her arms overhead, relaxing against the submerged curved bench. Faint trickles echoed in the cavern. Would too much bliss melt an immortal body into a puddle? It seemed possible as she closed her eyes.

When her body felt warm and loose, she got out and wrapped herself in a fluffy towel. Using her poppy-scented power, she finished drying her hair and body before heading back to the bedroom.

Inside the wardrobe were sleepwear sets, reverse seam sweaters, and tailored joggers, each in a variety of soft fabrics of silk or silk-like cotton. She pulled out a long-sleeved top and matching pants. Dressing quickly, she kept one eye on the arched doorway.

Using the mirror on the inside of the wardrobe door, she ran one finger over her lids, imagining her eyelashes lengthening and sending magic through her veins. Picturing a dark pink rose, she pressed her lips together, and they turned a deeper shade. Would her mom be proud to see how far she’d come in her power? She hoped so.

An evergreen scent announced Hades’ presence in the hallway. “Sephy, love. Are you done with your bath?”

She called back, “All done,” and he joined her in the bedroom. Despite her advances and protests, Hades refrained from becomingtoointimate. He claimed it was so they could be extra certain that her powers wouldn’t reignite the sickness. But it had been two months since she’d healed. She sensed he was holding out for her to agree to marry him.

“You charmed your face.” Hades ran his hands up and down the sides of her arms.

“How can you tell?”

Tapping the side of his nose, he said, “You get a sense of these things.” With a bright smile, Hades asked, “Ready to eat? Or want to play a game of Sevens?”

She’d lost the last time they’d played and now they were on the date she’d agreed to because of that gamble. It reminded her to ask if he’d swayed the outcome in his favor. Even if he did, she wasn’t upset but she was curious.

“Hades, did you cheat when we played before?” Arms crossed, she let a smirk peek through.

He stiffened and took a breath. “I may have tipped things in my favor.”

“Damn it. When you won after all those losing rounds…” Persephone shook her head.

“Are you upset with me?”

Pressing into him, her face on his chest, she replied, “No. If you hadn’t won, I may have never gotten to see this place.”

He met her eyes when she looked up at him. “The contract’s complete. And I always planned to bring you here as soon as you would let me.”

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