Page 78 of Thanatos' Craving

Mariah possessed a fierce beauty. She stood tall and muscular, radiating strength. Her lean figure was accentuated by a stunning tan complexion. A side braid added an extra touch of fierceness to her appearance.

Contrary to my expectations, Ares was not hot-headed or mean, but rather the complete opposite. He laughed, as he held Mariah’s hand and cracked jokes with Hades before they left, telling everyone not to worry about a thing. He assured everyone that he would take care of everything and asked them not to worry, promising not to do anything inappropriate.

Then he crossed his fingers behind his back.

Ares didn’t act like the brightest crayon in the box. Who would want to cross Hades?

Thanatos gripped his scythe like he was going to kill Ares too, but they still left us with him. They must have some serious trust in Ares.

Uriel grabbed my hand as soon as they all left. Lucifer gave me a glaring eye. He was the last to leave and gave Uriel a stern talking to. The guy was seriously over the top.

“I’ve got a new word to give you later,” I told Uriel as she pulled me inside.

“But I haven’t told you what mates are yet,” she chirped as she pulled me further into the palace.

“Your boy toy glared at me. I think he deserves another nickname.”

Uriel laughed and shook her head. “What are you talking about? Luci is a big sweetheart.”

I cast a perplexed gaze at her, but maintained my brisk pace as we navigated the hallway, eventually arriving in a spacious sitting room. The room emanates a vibrant aura, flooded with lush greens, royal purples, and earthy browns. The walls proudly display an array of family portraits, capturing intimate moments of Hades and Ember cradling their children.

Hades was actually smiling in one.

Kind of creepy.

There were other portraits, chronicling various stages of their lives, gracing the walls, forming a tapestry of memories of the seemingly normal looking family.

Uriel flopped on the overly large couch and spread her brightly colored yellow dress and tucked her legs up under it. “Now, I promised to tell you about mates. Let’s do that now, and you can tell me the new word,” she said excitedly.

My heart fluttered in both excitement and trepidation at what this mate word is. It’s been thrown around since lunch, and now Thanatos had used it. I knew I’d brushed him off about telling me what it is. I think I wanted to find out what a mate is through someone else though–what if my reaction wasn’t what he wanted?

Is a mate like marriage? Was he wanting to marry me? So quickly?

Ares and Mariah sauntered into the room and sit down across from us. Ares man-spread his legs across the couch and pulled Mariah into his lap. She laughed and leaned her head on his shoulder.

“Just pretend we aren’t here.” Ares nuzzled into her neck. “We promised we would monitor you both, and I’m not getting in trouble this time.”

This time?

“Yeah, last time Hades threw him out the window for upsetting Ember and me,” Uriel said sheepishly. “He was giving me the birds and bees talk and it was just really awkward.”

My mouth dropped open and put my hand over to cover it. “He–gave youthe talk? What did Lucifer say?”

Uriel shook her head. "Ares isn't allowed to talk about such things around me anymore or Luci will kick his, you know," she said, leaning forward, "ass."

Cheese and crackers.

“Anyway,” Uriel perked up and became serious. “Mates are special. Mates are short for soul mates and you, Juni, are Thanatos’ soul mate. From the beginning of time, the Fates have decided your soul is to be combined with Thanatos, the God of Death. Each soul is incomplete until they find their other half. Each soul cannot truly feel fulfilled until it merges with its other half, experiencing the fullness of love and passion, or finding true happiness as one.

“Selene, the Moon Goddess, along with Ember, the current Soul Sphere holder, connects souls to form the perfect pair with a golden thread. It is why you feel so connected to Thanatos. The warm fuzzies you feel when you touch him, how you want to be near him, understand him, want him.” Uriel makes flirty eyes at Lucifer’s portrait. “Your soul knows you belong to him and he belongs to you.” Once Uriel’s infomercial was over, I wrinkled my eyebrows together.

It was then I heard Mariah and Ares making a humming noise and we both look over at the couch in front of us.

They’re making out.

“Forget them,” Uriel whispered. “They are getting some time away from their baby, so they want to get all their cuddle time in.”

I nodded and tried to concentrate on what on more important matters.

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