body was so smooth and supple, curves in all the right places. He let his hands roam to his two favorite curves and cupped them in his palms, squeezing them. He didn’t know if this was what she was after—if she decked him, he wouldn’t even count it.
But she leaned into his hands as her own fingers started to undo the buttons of his shirt one at a time. When she broke her lips away from his, she whispered to him. “I know how you can cheer me up…”
Nero truly must have died and gone to the Elysian Fields. There was no other excuse for a woman quite like her. He groaned and squeezed her harder. “Your wish is my command.”
20
“You may now kiss the bride.”
Hope could barely hear over the roar of the crowd. She had been shocked at how many people had come to attend their wedding. Nero had claimed not to have friends or fans—but the shouting of those in attendance proved him wrong.
Nero made good on the instruction from the high priest. She had to push him away before he made the kiss too deep or passionate. There was no way in the name of the gods she was going to let him touch her in front of close to four hundred people.
He chuckled and kissed her forehead. He took her hand and led her away. It was time for photos, for the newspapers to have their opportunity to talk to them, then on to the reception. She had been warned she would not likely be allowed to eat much at all. But she hardly expected it to be such a whirlwind.
It wasn’t until hours later that she finally felt like she had half a second to breathe and think. They had shared their first dance. She had been introduced to an endless stream of people. And by the time she could finally get a second, her feet ached. She stood on the balcony of the building that was hosting the wedding—a huge colosseum that had been built at the rise of the Dominion—and pulled off the lace heels she had worn.
“You too, huh?” Nero said from a chair nearby. “Fates.” She heard his shoes hit the ground. “I’m not even drunk. Being the one getting married isn’t fun. I thought I’d be plastered by now.”
She laughed. “We’ll drink plenty on our honeymoon.”
“You better believe it.”
She heard someone approaching—or at least, some thing. She couldn’t figure out what it was. But whatever it was, was gigantic. It clomped as if it were wearing boots of steel. It nearly drowned out the sound of other people accompanying it.
Clonk, clonk, clonk.
“Hello!” came a voice Hope swore should have come out of a radio. It was crackling and strange. But it was talking to them. “What a wonderful party. Hello, Mr. Nero. Nice to see you again.”
Nero chuckled. “You too, Bub.”
“And you must be Ms. Hope. Mrs. Hope? Mrs. Finch? What is it?” the radio voice said as it walked up to her. The voice came from considerably higher than a human should. She took a step back until she was pressed to the railing. “Oh. Um. Right. Um. Blind. Sorry, um…Ms…Mrs…Oh, I’m mucking this all up. Dag-nabbit!”
Nero was laughing. That was at least one good sign that she wasn’t about to die from whatever the gigantic, metal-footed, radio-sounding thing in front of her was. “It’s all right, Hope. He’s one of Viktor’s robots.”
“I…” She paused. “I thought they were all mindless.”
“Not this one,” Rose said. She must have been one of the other people who walked up. She heard the tap of a cane. The East Wind had also arrived. “I fixed him, and well, I bungled the job.”
“You didn’t bungle it. You made me better,” Bub chimed happily.
A giant sentient robot. Oh. Goodness. At least she didn’t have to contend with that—she just had Nero’s two giant idiot dogs.
“It’s Mrs. Finch, I suppose, but you can call me Hope,” she finally managed to get out. She reached her hand out to the giant robot. “It’s nice to meet you, Bub.”
A huge metal hand took hers with a shocking amount of gentleness. He shook her hand. “You’re very beautiful. I’m honestly shocked Nero convinced anyone to marry him. I figured he was too evil for—”
“Bub,” Rose scolded.
“Sorry. Right. Saying the quiet part loud again.”
Nero sighed from where he sat. “Sure, pick on the groom, that’s fine.”
Viktor interjected from nearby. His voice was as level and cold as she