They walked into the dining hall, arms still linked, both of their faces still bright red. She’d never been into this room, but was pleased to see it was an open air dining area. Black pillars held a ceiling up, and vines tangled around the pillars. A large table stood in the middle of the pavilion with chairs ringing it. Each chair was filled with at least a vaguely familiar face, although she was upset to see Minthe and her nymph friend were seated at the end.
A cold sweat broke out over her body, and she didn’t know what to say. How to act.
All of a sudden, she didn’t want to pretend to be a nymph anymore. She didn’t want to look like those women. Minthe was the lover Hades didn’t want, and she wanted to be something different from what he’d already cast aside.
Her shoulders curved in slightly, relaxing as she settled back into herself. Kore let the tension ride in the small of her back so no one would know she was nervous, or even upset at the sight of Minthe.
Hades guided her to the head of the table and helped her sit in her chair. He placed her directly beside Hecate, who watched her with a narrowed gaze.
As Hades seated himself beside Thanatos, the goddess of witchcraft leaned close. “Are you all right?”
Kore reached for the nearest loaf of bread and pulled it apart. Setting each shredded piece on her plate, she arched a brow. “Why wouldn’t I be all right?”
Hecate pointedly looked to the end of the table where the two nymphs were already whispering behind their hands. “I wonder why?”
Her people shouldn’t wonder if she was upset because there was a woman sitting at her table who didn’t like her. Demeter always said goddesses weren’t made for everyone, that was why mortals worshipped whoever they chose.
Clearly, Minthe wouldn’t be worshipping Kore any time soon.
And that was just fine with her.
Hades interrupted them, leaning close to Kore and whispering in her ear, “Did you mean what you said in your bedroom?”
Was he still thinking about that? She could get used to making his mind wander during important business meetings.
Kore grinned and whispered back, “Yes. Of course, I did. Do you really believe I would say such a thing without meaning it?”
She didn’t have to watch his eyes to know where he looked. Minthe. The nymph who stared at them as though a mere glance could burn Kore to a crisp. If the nymph wanted her dead, well, she’d have to try better than just glaring.
An angry flare of jealousy warped Kore’s mind. She wanted to make the nymph feel all the things she had felt when she overheard the nasty words Minthe and her friend had said.
Throwing all caution or discomfort to the wind, Kore placed her hand on top of Hades’. She squeezed his fingers, then carefully removed his hand from the table and placed it on her thigh.
His fingers flexed against her skin, indenting the flesh through the fabric of her clothing. The warmth seeped through and she knew her face was red with a blush. When she glanced over at him, she could see Hades face was red as well.
“Careful, wife,” he murmured, pitched low so no one could hear. “I’m not sure you know what you’re doing.”
She really had no idea what she was doing at all. But she could see that Minthe had turned a lovely violet in anger and was whispering even louder with her friend. They huddled together, casting hateful glances at Kore while pretending to not watch the king and queen.
Victory made her brave. She met Hades gaze with a sly smile and narrowed eyes. “I don’t know what I’m doing, husband. But perhaps you’d care to show me?”
His hand clenched down so hard on her leg it was almost painful. “You don’t want to do this here, not in public.”
“Maybe that’s exactly what I want. I’m so tired of everyone telling me what to do and who I am.” She held his fingers in her own and carefully slid his hand higher up her leg. “I want to discover what I like, and what I don’t. I thought you would be willing to help me.”
A muscle in his jaw jumped like a heartbeat. As she watched, he wrestled with himself. All the while, his fingers moved. Subtle. Soft and gentle, shifting back and forth over her thigh.
Just like the oceanids had claimed, a heat bloomed between her