I inspected his tall, lean form. “So, you just live here?”
“For now.”
“Why? It sucks.”
A low laugh escaped him. “Depends on where you came from.”
“You came from hell, I assume?”
“You’ve no idea.” There was something dark in his voice, but when he stopped in front of a large black door and turned to me, his expression was placid. “We have arrived.”
“Thanks.” I drew in a steadying breath and pushed open the door. Before I could wimp out, I stepped inside a tower made almost entirely of glass. Massive windows on all sides revealed views of the city and countryside beyond.
Hades stood in the middle, dressed in the same black leather and heavy fabric armor he’d worn before. Different from what he’d worn when he’d kidnapped me, it looked only slightly more comfortable. A midnight black cloak swept from his shoulders down to the floor, making him look even more imposing.
His house armor.
The only bit of skin that showed on him was his face, and I realized that I’d never even seen his hands. They were covered in thin black leather gloves. He was so buttoned up in his clothing that it made his uncovered face seem almost indecent. With his full lips and dark eyes, he did look indecent.
I met his gaze, shivering at the coldness within.
Right. Don’t be a dumb bunny.
This man—he wasn’t even really a man—represented death incarnate, no matter his beauty. He stood stock still, his gaze on my face, not even bothering to look at the dress that felt suddenly too tight.
Oh, fates, this had been a bad plan.
He was God of the Underworld, possessed of a soul that was so frozen over it probably didn’t even exist anymore. His entire being was ice, from core to surface. And I thought I’d woo him to my side with a skimpy dress?
Yeah, right.
A man like him couldn’t be wooed. He’d strung up people in his town square after removing their skin and felt no compunction about moving my body around like a doll’s.
Heart thundering, I strode inside, leaving Lucifer in the hallway.
How to play this?
“Well?” I said. “I’m here. Now what?”
He gestured toward a table set up near the windows, a frown creasing his brow. He’d told me to come for dinner, but this was clearly not his normal idea of a good evening.
No, he only found comfort and joy on battlefields and in war rooms.
Didn’t he realize that this was a battlefield?
I was here to end him, and he clearly wanted victory over me, in whatever sense he envisioned it.
“Food will arrive soon,” he said.
I sat at the table, and he joined me, sitting as far from me as he could manage. The table was large enough for eight, and I was grateful for the distance. Despite my dress and the gorgeous view, this was most definitely not a date.
It was war.
I stared at him. “What do you want from me?”
“I want to know about you.” His gaze burned right through me.
“Why?”
“You’ve a purpose to play here. A value to me.”
“What? As your wife, like the myths say?” I looked him up and down, aiming for scathing.
“Don’t be absurd.” His tone cut, deeper than my glare.
Ouch. “You look like you wouldn’t know what to do with a wife, anyway.”
His eyes flickered, as if he were thinking about it. There was genuine confusion there.
Or maybe I was imagining it.
“You are going to give me what I want.”
“Not a chance in hell.”
The corner of his mouth quirked up in the first smile I’d seen, and his gaze was so intense that it seemed to strip me bare. “What do you want me for, anyway?”
“That, I do not know yet. I have a goal, and you are necessary for me to achieve it.”
“How do you know that?”
“Fate has foretold it.”
“But how do you know it’s me that you want?”
He looked at me as if my question made no sense. “You are Persephone.”
“I really am not. I have no plant magic.”
“You are terrible with your gift because you have never trained.” Disgust echoed in his voice at the mere idea. “There is a difference.”
“I never trained because my grandmother warned me that my magic would draw you to me.”
“And is that the worst thing, then?”
“I’m trapped here in hell, aren’t I? With you. So yes. It is the worst thing.”
“You used your magic, though, didn’t you? Back in Guild City.”
I had. To help my friends—the rest of the Shadow Guild. I was paying the price now.