Page 306 of The Spider Queen
I sauntered to the small table by the fire and poured two glasses of wine from the pewter jug and held out a goblet to him. He grasped it with a smile and nod before drinking two hearty swallows.
“Who’s taking care of Cerberus,” I asked, I held my glass of wine and put a grape into my mouth as I waited for him to answer.
“I have servants who take care of him when I’m occupied.”
“Occupied?” I smirked. “Like causing trouble and wreaking havoc in the mortal realm?”
He inclined his head. “Among other things.”
I slowly raised the goblet of wine to my lips. “We can’t stay up here, can we?”
“And shut out the world? No, we can’t.”
What was I supposed to do here? I was now Lucifer’s consort. His mistress. His bed partner.
He grasped my hand and threaded his fingers through mine. “You can do all the things here you did in New York. Nothing has to change,” he said, nearly reading my mind.
My mouth pressed into an acrimonious line. “Except I’m a prisoner.”
He brought our linked fingers to his mouth. His breath was warm and made me shiver. “Having second thoughts about sleeping with me?”
“No, actually. That’s not even what crossed my mind,” I answered truthfully. “But would you like it if you were a prisoner? If you couldn’t leave and you were beholden to someone else?”
His jaw clenched.
How did he do it? Look sexy and riled while also completely nude.
“Fair point. But I am not welcome in Heaven. There are places evenIcan’t go.”
I shook my head and turned my back on him, facing the firelight. Golden flames licked along the stone fireplace. “You can’t think it’s the same. You’re kept out. I’m kept in. And I don’t have a choice about being kept.”
“I don’t have a choice either.”
“You did,” I countered. “Once upon a time. At the dawning of the world, you had a choice. You could’ve been happy with your place. You didn’t have to demand more.”
“Better to rule in Hell than serve in Heaven,” he spat. “And if you think I had a choice, then you’re wrong. I am my nature.”
I whirled and glared. “You stole my life. Just because you could.”
It was his turn to scowl. “I am Lucifer. I am the Prince of Darkness. You don’t get something for nothing.”
I looked away from him to stare at the bed. It was mussed; the sheets were creased, and yet with the wave of his hand, the bed could be newly dressed.
I closed my eyes, unable to face him but really unable to face myself. I’d never given into my own desires before. Until now. I’d taken what I wanted. I’d let yearning decide my path.
Did I regret the days we’d spent together in bed? No. My body remembered him moving inside of me not even an hour ago. And yet, how would I feel if I hadn’t given in? If I’d withstood the temptation?
“You want to make snow globes? Go for it. You want to ease the burdens of the demons and creatures that live here? Fine. I’m not stopping you from living your life. It doesn’t have to stop because you are bound to me.”
“Just because you can’t see chains doesn’t mean they’re not there.”
There was a flutter of air behind me and I turned, but he was already gone.
He didn’t come back. I felt bereft, cold. I got dressed and took a seat by the fire. There was no reason for my feelings of betrayal and abandonment. His nature had asserted itself and to think he could be anything than what he was—an opportunist—then I was delusional.
Just because he’d been tender with me did not mean he truly cared for me. He could’ve let me go. At a great cost to himself. But I was nothing more than a prize to be won, a commodity to be lorded over my parents. A token jewel kept in a treasured box.
Now that I was alone, I had time to process. My life had been a whirlwind as of late. Taken by Lucifer, only to learn that the memories I carried were lies. When he removed the last trace of the magical concealing spell, I’d remembered my parents. They’d given me my freedom at a great cost to themselves. Now I realized how foolish I’d been. How childish.
