Page 43 of Queen of the Wicked
“Did you get your answer?”
Flicking her eyes to his, she nodded sadly before fixing his shirt back into place and slumping against the pillows. That nightmare was a memory of his past, andgod,it was sickening. The questions it provoked wereendless, but right now, she wasn’t sure if she could handle the answers.
The only thing shewascertain of was that being here with him felt right.
“What was your childhood like?” she found herself asking.
“My childhood?”
“Yeah, I mean… What was your life like before this? How did you…” She trailed off, unsure how to broach the question that had lingered in the back of her mind since she met him. He couldn’t have been selected to be the Lord of Hell without committing at leastsomeheinous crime, right?
She expected him to dodge the question, but his face softened a fraction, turning him into that boyish version of himself. She wondered just how many people had seen this version of the lord. “My childhood has always been spotty. Now and then, I’ll get a glimpse of something I presume might have been a memory, but it’s vague.” At the concern on her face, he added, “It’s normal. At least, that’s what I’m told. As the years go by, the earlier memories fade to create room for new ones.”
“That sounds awful,” Alessia whispered. Judging by the sorrow pooling in his eyes, he seemed to feel the same. Perhaps it bothered him more than he cared to admit.
“What wasyourchildhood like?” he volleyed back.
She smiled softly as memories of dancing in the kitchen and racing through cornfields trickled into her mind. “It was the perfect childhood. I never left the farmhouse, so my time was mainly spent in thecornfields creating my own mazes, enduring lessons with my mom, or training with my mother. It may not have been the standard one most have, but it was filled with love and happiness. That’s all that matters, right?”
“I suppose,” he hummed. “Is that why you chose to bury your mom beneath the willow tree? Because it was in front of the corn fields?”
It wasn’t an intricate detail to remember, but it still had Alessia’s stomach flutter in response. “Yeah. She’d spend hours with me out there. Picnics, playing tag, hide and seek…” Tears welled in her eyes as the images played on a constant loop. “The corn fields felt like home.”
He smiled, a real, genuine one that took up the entirety of his face. “That sounds nice. I’m happy you have fond memories of it.” A beat, and then, “What kind of training did you have?”
“Self-defense. I was told it would become useful to have the years of practice under my belt when the time came and I received my powers. Although I’m failing miserably as Izara’s student, so I don’t know if it helped.”
She hadn’t realized it, but Erebos had lain down beside her, their thighs stuck to each other like glue, and with the moon’s red hue dancing across his face, he was pure temptation wrapped up in a pretty bow. His ebony unruly curls goaded her to run her fingers through them, and his large body sprawled across her sheets had her picturing just how beautiful he’d look without clothing to conceal it. “To be fair, she hasn’t tested you in hand to hand combat. That’s more Eryx’s territory than hers.”
“Mm. And what is your territory?”
Erebos dipped his chin to look at her. “What do you mean?”
“Are you not trained in hand to hand combat?”
A sly, devious grin formed on his lips. “I am trained ineverything, Alessia. Combat is only scratching the surface of where my talents lie.”
“Then maybeyoushould go against me in hand to hand combat. I’d love to see who would win.” She didn’t think the lord could surprise her anymore than he already had, but Alessia was floored when he tipped his head back andlaughed.
It was a full, belly-gut laugh that had her grinning from ear to ear. The sound was so foreign that she made it her mission to store it in her memory in case she never had the privilege of hearing it again.
“I have been alive longer than you could imagine. There is no question as to who would win.”
“Oh?” She sat up on the bed with newfound determination. “There’s a reason I run every morning, you know. I’ve maintained a strict routine since I was old enough to start training. I’m stronger than you think.”
“I never said you weren’t strong, Alessia, but you aren’t stronger thanme.”
Her brows flicked up, knowing full and well she rode on a thin line with a man feared by everyone in the realm. She couldn’t help herself, though. Couldn’t stop teasing him by saying, “Prove it, then.”
In one swift motion, faster than she could blink, Erebos had her pinned to the mattress. He held her wrists above her head with only one of his hands, a knee wedged between her legs to keep her immobile.
“I…meant in the training ring,” she whispered between labored breaths. Alessia scanned his ravenous eyes roving across her face before dipping to her lips. That damn scent surrounded them shortly after, and it only heightened when Erebos glanced between their bodies, to her nipples beneath the silk nightgown and his knee that was close to brushing against her center.
“You may carry my powers,” he muttered, dipping his head until his lips settled against the column of her neck. Alessia couldn’t help herself when she bucked her hips, only to be met with air. He had moved his knee, as if he knew where her thoughts had led. She supposed he had, given the whole projection thing, and it had her experiencing a level of torture she didn’t realize existed.
Erebos smiled against her skin, nipping gently at her earlobe before adding, “But I still retain the ability to destroy you in all the ways that matter.”
He rose from the bed, leaving her a hormonal mess on the comforter. Then again, Alessia didn’t know why she anticipated anything different. Erebos had pleasured her solely to benefit himself, and wasn’t that the reason she partook in that public display on his throne? It was to protect herself, and to do that, she had to protect him too.
