Chapter 93

93

Aweek later, Slim pulled the limo up to the docks.

“You gonna be all right?” Poseidon asked. They’d spent the week in Metropolis, cementing Persephone’s rule over the Titan’s businesses.

Persephone raised her chin. “Don’t worry about me.” The capos weren’t all happy she’d moved in, but they’d put down the ones most likely to betray her, and placated the rest with a bigger cut of profits.

“That’s the spirit.” He chucked her under the chin. “You let me know if anyone causes you trouble.”

“I will. Thank you, for everything.”

“Don’t thank me yet,” he announced as he got out and went around to open her door. “In a minute you’re gonna want to yell at me.”

“What? Why?”

“This is my limo. Your ride’s over there.” He stepped away and she looked down the pier to a black car idling at the curb. A familiar form waited, hands in pockets, dark head bent.

Hades.

Persephone drew in a sharp breath.

“He’s been calling me like crazy,” Poseidon grumbled. “Demanding proof that you were okay. Me and Slim and Fats all had to report hourly.”

Persephone put a hand to her neck, gaze fixed on the dark form of her husband. “I don’t...we didn’t leave things in a good place. I know he came through at the theater, but I don’t know...”

“He’s here, isn’t he?” Poseidon put out a hand and Persephone automatically took it. When she was out of the car, he gave her a little push. “Go get him, kid.”

She started across the blacktop. Hades looked so sober, leaning against his car. She’d talked to him on the phone over the past week, but only about Charon’s progress after his multiple surgeries. Whenever he tried to turn the conversation to deeper topics, she made excuses and hung up.

There was so much between them. So many lies. So many scars. Could he forgive her?If he really had been with Lucinda, could she forgive him? Had he moved on? Did he even want her?

She wobbled on her heels and stopped.

“Persephone.” He called her name and her head snapped up. His arms opened.

Kicking off her high heels, she ran.

Hades hugged her as soon as she’d jumped into his arms, but she’d turned her head aside when he lowered his mouth for a kiss.

She might have completed her coup in Metropolis, but there was unfinished business between them.

“Thanks for the ride,” Persephone said from her side of the limo. She made no move to bridge the awkward space between them.

Easy. Gently. Give her time, Hades could practically hear Charon coaching him. He missed his friend more than he could say. Charon had been put in a medically induced coma, but the doctor said all indications were positive that he would have a full recovery. But they wouldn’t know for sure until he woke up. It had been days, though, and he still hadn’t opened his eyes.

You better not die, brother. I don’t need you haunting me. Hades could almost hear Charon’s chuckle filling the car.

They’d spent hours talking in the weeks Hades was separated from Persephone and Hades tried to muster all of that advice now.

All right, brother. We’ll try it your way.

“You were magnificent.” Hades drank in his wife’s slim form, barely believing she was real. She looked different. Older. Not hard or jaded, just wiser somehow. “Poseidon and the Shades told me everything. I made them get footage.”

She shrugged, then looked at him anxiously. “How’s Charon?”

“No change. Yet.”

She bit her lip and he had to clench his hand into a fist to keep from brushing his thumb against it until she relaxed.Then she asked, “You really think so? You really think I can do this? Lead the Titans?”

“Don’t believe me. Check it out.” He grabbed the paper on the seat and showed her. “Queen of the Underworld. You’re gonna have to get used to getting dogged by the press.”

“I’m already used to it. I married you, remember.”

“Mmm.” He’d always hated being called King of the Underworld but he’d embrace the term as long as she was by his side as his Queen.

His Queen looked exhausted, though, as she glanced his way. And she was sitting much too far away, almost hugging the opposite door.

“Come here.” He held out his arm.

She sighed. “Hades, just because this is all over…” She shook her head and looked out the window, her expression far away. “It doesn’t mean—” She broke off, hands going to her face.

She’d been as powerful as any general back there demanding her due as head of the Titan Empire but here with him, she was as vulnerable as always.

And he was done allowing her to put distance between them. He went to her and gathered her in his arms. “I almost lost you and I’ll be damned if I spend another minute apart from you.”

She struggled, though, and when she pushed away from him, her eyes flashed fire. “It was easy enough for you to walk away from me three weeks ago. And I saw the picture of you with that woman. Your lover.”

She had to mean Lucinda. Hades had raged when he first saw the picture but now he grinned. “Jealous, kitten?” He could stand anything but her indifference.

If he thought her eyes were fiery before, it was nothing to the fury that sparked at his words.

“Get off of me, you oversized oaf.” She shoved ineffectually at him but he only tightened his arms around her.

“I didn’t touch her. I ran into her outside the Crown and she stumbled into me. Probably on purpose. Come to think of it, it was probably her who’d called the paparazzi. She always was an attention whore. I steadied her and then continued on my way. That was the full extent of our interaction.”

Nice work, Charon said. Now tell her the truth.

Get out of my head, Hades almost muttered aloud before taking his advice. Tilting his head at his beautiful wife, he said, “There’s no replacing you, love. There never could be.”

Her countenance immediately changed. Instead of pushing him away, she gripped the lapels of his suit coat. “I was so scared. When you went down, I was so scared.” Her eyes filled with tears. “And then Charon.”

“We’re heading to New Olympus General now. I knew you’d want to see him, first thing.”

“Good.” Persephone sank against him, her head to his chest. “Is it really over?”

He squeezed her close to him and breathed in the sweet aroma of her hair. “Yes, goddess. It’s over. But the rest of our life is just beginning.”

He felt her nod against his chest. But the next second she was pulling away. “Charon tried to explain. I’m sorry. I’m sorry that I left the Estate like that and headed straight into danger. I had no idea about Chiara.”

Tears spilled down her cheeks and he cupped them, shaking his head. “You couldn’t have known. I just— I just couldn’t—” He looked down and huffed out a frustrated breath.

But then he forced himself to meet her gaze again. “I swore to protect you. No matter what. Even if it meant the safest place for you was away from me. It killed me, being away from you. Worse than the first time. So much worse, because I was afraid it was forever.”

He didn’t want to think about what the past three weeks had been like. He’d thrown himself into his work but not even that could distract him from missing her. Or from wondering, every hour of every day, every minute, if she was okay, what she was doing, if she hated him. If she was moving on. His sleep had been tormented by nightmares of her happy—in the arms of another man, wearing another man’s ring.

Ten times a day, he’d had to wrestle himself back from saying fuck it, and getting in his car and breaking every traffic law known to man to go back to her. All his discipline, all his control, none of it counted when it came to her.

Maybe she saw something of his torment on his face because she lifted a hand to his cheek and whispered, “Never again. From here on out, it’s you and me together. Always. No more secrets. No more lies. No matter if you think it’s for my good or not. We’re partners in everything now. Swear it?”

He met her eyes solemnly. “I vow to you, Persephone Ubeli, never to lie to you again.”

“Not even if you think it’s for my own good? I need you to say it, Hades.”

He smiled at her tenacity. “I will never leave you nor forsake you. I will never lie to you again or keep secrets, even if I think it’s for your own good. Now your turn.”

She clasped his hands and there was no smile on her face. She was taking this dead seriously.

“I, Persephone Ubeli, vow to never leave nor forsake you, and I will never lie to you or keep secrets from you again, even if I think it’s for your own good.”

“Now all that’s left is to seal it with a kiss,” Hades said, moving his head slowly towards hers.

She rose to him and when their lips met, Hades thought he might just die after all at the angel soft touch of her lips.

In his worst moments, he thought he’d never get to experience this again. Even remembering how that felt made him crazy. He couldn’t do gentle, not right now. Not after all they’d been through and their separation.

He crushed her to him and she threw her arms around his neck, apparently just as desperate for him in return. Their mouths met in a hungry tangle. Lips, tongues, teeth. He couldn’t get enough of her. He needed all of her. Now.

But just as he shifted her to straddle him, the SUV came to a stop and the driver’s voice sounded over the speaker. “We’re here.”

Persephone broke from Hades’s mouth, eyes wide. “Charon.”

She barely bothered to rearrange her clothing before shoving open the door. Hades had to run after her; she was halfway to the hospital entrance by the time he got out his own door.

They spent two days’ vigil at Charon’s bedside before he finally opened his eyes.

It was sunset when his large brow finally scrunched and he blinked his eyes open.

“Charon!” Persephone cried, jumping up and grabbing his huge hand in her tiny one. “You’re awake. Hades, he’s awake!”

Hades stood behind Persephone, smiling down at his oldest friend, at his brother. “Thank the Fates,” he breathed out. Charon had been such a steady constant in his life. He couldn’t imagine going on without him. He was family.

Charon looked around, obviously confused.

“Here.” Persephone let go of his hand only long enough to grab a cup of water with a straw in it from the bedside table to hold it up to Charon’s mouth.

He took several swallows before leaning back on his pillows. “What— Happened?”

Persephone took his hand again. “You saved the day. You saved my life.” She squeezed his hand.

“And for that, you have my eternal gratitude, brother,” Hades said.

Charon met his eyes over Persephone’s head and they shared a silent look. Charon nodded and Hades knew he understood. Hades owed him everything. It was a debt Hades could never repay but he’d spend the rest of his life trying anyway.

“My mother would’ve gotten away with all of it if you hadn’t showed up when you did,” Persephone continued. “And then you got shot. So many times,” her voice broke. “I thought you were dead. The doctor says we’re lucky that you’re alive. If one of the bullets had even been half an inch closer to the left.” She broke off, shaking her head, tears falling down her cheeks.

“I’m okay,” Charon croaked, and Persephone immediately held the water back up to his lips.

Then Persephone swung around to look at Hades. “He’s awake. We need to get the doctor. They said to call him when he woke up.”

Hades nodded and pressed the button for the nurse to come in.

The nurse and then the doctor arrived several minutes later. Hades and Persephone were hustled out of the room while the doctor attended to Charon.

As soon as they left the room, Persephone’s shoulders slumped. She was exhausted. No matter how Hades had tried to coax her to go home to get some rest, she’d refused to leave. She’d gotten a few hours sleep on a little cot they’d set up in the room, but not much.

Now that Charon was awake, though, he was insisting. She’d go home and get a full night’s rest.

Her hand slid into his, fingers intertwining.

“I love you, Hades.” She paused in the middle of the hospital hallway and looked up at him. “Thank you for giving me this life. Thank you for everything. You know how much I love you? Can you even fathom it?”

Hades smiled down at her, the woman he loved more than life itself.

He was about to leaned down to kiss her when her eyes suddenly rolled back in her head and she collapsed. He barely had time to catch her before she hit the ground.