Page 57 of The Queen & the King

Mother takes my arm and practically yanks me out of the house and down the path. “Adonis is waiting, and you have little to work with. We must strike while the iron is hot and get a commitment from him,” my mother practically hisses. “You will give him divine children, and everything will be fine.”

With every word, my stomach churns more, and my heart sinks lower. I always knew this wouldn’t be my choice, but to have it so brutally forced upon me is devastating. Yanking myselffree of her, I make no effort to fix my face into anything other than disgust. I continue down the path, my mother hot on my heels.

I am so lost in my own head that I barely notice the streets. Usually, I distract myself by watching people go about their day. I make up scenarios about where they are going, where they’ve been, and who they’re going home to. But all I can do this evening is face forward, clench my fists, and try to stay calm.

I sense Adonis before I see him, and the feeling of his magic clogs my throat, the deception like a veil over him. The second I turn the corner, his smug, arrogant face comes into view, and my stomach rolls.

“Betrothed,” Adonis greets, his words laced with his over-inflated ego.

I barely look at him, taking the seat opposite him. “Adonis,” I reply eventually.

“I’ve had a visitor.” He pauses, the moment impregnated with his smugness. “The God of Love.”

My body tenses. Eros said he would give me a week.Shit, shit, shit.

“He informed me that his approval of our match is forthcoming.”

Forthcoming doesn’t mean approved. I need to breathe. I finally meet his gaze, his eyes full of conceit and a sick kind of joy.

“Oh?” I lift my menu to hide because I can feel myself pale. I will never give him the satisfaction or ownership of my reactions.

Adonis pours two glasses of wine, the color nearly matching my dress.

“Yes. Drink. This is a celebration.”

I feel the color return to my face, mostly thanks to the simmering rage that is now building within me, but still. I lowerthe menu and look right at him, pulling my lips into a bored smile. “No thanks. There is nothing to celebrate.” I never know where this side of me comes from, but I so enjoy it when she comes out to play.

“It wasn’t a request, Persephone.” Adonis’s voice drops.

I can tell he’s trying to intimidate me, but it only spurs on my inner badass. Oh, how I love her. I quirk a brow, allowing her to take the reins, trusting her completely.

“Wow. It must really bother you, huh?”

Adonis narrows his eyes. “What?”

My lips twitch. “My natural divinity.”

“Why would that bother me?” Adonis asks, trying to keep his voice even, but I can see the way his jaw twitches, and I can hear the snarl he’s pushing down.

“Because of your lack of it.” I smirk. “It’s obvious, you know? I could feel it from a mile off.”

“And yet,” Adonis growls, putting his wine glass down just a little too hard to pass off as being unaffected, “I managed to gain immortality and a divine whore.”

The badass inside me practically cackles at that, and I can feel her invisible claws. I’m under his skin, and I fucking love it. I allow the laugh to slip free and finally pick up my glass. Cradling the precious crystal in my hand, I take a sip before looking him dead in the eye and saying, “But you willneverbe a god.”

Adonis lurches to his feet. My head snaps to the side, the force of the blow sending me to the floor. My ear rings, and my cheek stings from the impact. He moves around the table to stand over me, looking down at me. His face is contorted into a look of such rage, his eyes flashing and dark. “And yet, spring slut, my children will be. I have a whore who will birth me gods, and I will be their god.”

I feel thick, hot ichor slide down my cheek, and I can already feel the laceration from his ring burning on my cheek. The gildedblood trickles down my face and neck as I look up at him. I stand and glare at him, not backing down from his furious stare. The door to the empty restaurant looks so welcoming, beckoning me, and I turn to leave. I want to get as far away from this evil being as quickly as possible.

Adonis has other plans. He grabs my hair and yanks me back. I lose my footing and fall heavily to the ground. I groan at the impact, but he doesn’t release my hair. He tightens his grip and twists, pulling strands free from my scalp.

He drags me across the floor toward the back of the restaurant. I struggle in his hold, reaching back, trying to grab onto him. My scalp aches, and the rough stone floor scrapes the skin on my thighs and calves. He heaves me along carelessly, my heels left behind as I kick and struggle.

“You think a high and mighty bitch can’t be broken?” Adonis snarls. “I’ll have fun showing you how fucking wrong you are.”

I snarl back, still trying to get free. I will fight to the fucking death. He will not take what does not belong to him.

Adonis sneers, dragging me purposely over some broken glass. It pierces my skin through my dress. The pain is unbearable, but I don’t even whimper. He will own none of my sounds.

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