At her voice, he turned around and took a step forward. His features were striking, sharp even where they shouldn't have been but his smile was a mask, lips full and curved up at the edges. It wasn't a genuine smile, like the ones Lukas always gave when he saw her; instead, his teeth concealed behind his mouth.
Ajaxson's strides were lengthy, purposeful, and elegant. The way his footfalls were silent like a predator reminded Talia of a wolf in plain sight. His shoulders were simultaneously neat and muscular beneath the chiton, and his hands were carefully grasping a glass of water which he then rested on the nearest table. She couldn't help but stare at his hair, caramel brown. It swooped gently over his forehead.
Despite the notably unmodern hairdo, he was almost overwhelmingly handsome.
&
"Yeah," Talia nodded quietly, teeth sinking into her plush bottom lip.Lucky? She scoffed under her breath while trying to remain composed. The moon princess wanted to run away from the castle and never come back. When she looked up, the princess found Jaxson still staring softly at her, the corners of his mouth tilted upward.As she directly met his eyes, his lips formed into a full grin, and the skin under his eyes crinkled delicately. Suddenly overwhelmingly aware of the silence around the table, she broke the gaze and looked away. Talia knew her stepmother and father had watched every bit of the short exchange with hawk eyes and were presumably laughing on the inside.Exhaling hotly, Talia found a bitter anger building in her gut. It infuriated her how Jaxson behaved: oh so attractive and charming he
"Lukas?""Hi," He breathed with an upward quirk to his lip, looking every bit at the handsome man she came to adore. The Sun Prince was quick to step in through the tiny window, closing it behind him. Her eyes trailed across him, that impish twist to his mouth sticking; meanwhile, the moon princess forced herself to focus.Talia quickly slipped on the nearby robe, stepping out of her bathtub, cheeks flushed. "What are you doing here?""I came to see you", He replied and tied his hands behind his back, glancing down at his posh shoes."Now?"Lukas shrugged in response.&
As she laid next to him, the moon princess could see every tiny freckle on his face. Her fingers slid up towards his jaw, tracing the sharp cut skin tenderly, blinking up at him. Lukas lazily smiled at her, his eyes fondly taking her in."I did really miss you, Lukas", She shyly murmured, tucking her face in the crook of his neck.He tightened his hold on her. "Then why did you leave? I was going out of my mind, replaying the way you said goodbye. As if it's our last time. Tell me I'm overthinking."The moon princess stuttered. How could she deny his claim when it's true? Talia had no intention of seeing him again and following her father's demands. Seeing him outside her window changed every bit of resolution."What's going on, my love?"That's her cue to break down in tears. She was unable to stop herself, blurting out the events that took place in his a
Talia held her breath, astound at Lukas intensity and boldness. Why would he blurt out like that? Someone could have easily heard him. Apart from that, she's happy that the truth was out in open.Her betrothed turned towards her, his voice merely a confused murmur. "What is he saying, Talia? Is it true?"At least Ajaxson hadn't lost his calm. That's something. She sucked a sharp breath before softly smiling at Lukas. "Yes""Oh"That single word hung in the air for several seconds, neither of them saying anything. She kept squirming on the spot, nervously eyeing Ajaxson and Lukas. The Prince was by her side, his hand rubbing her back."How long has this been going on?"She felt like being interrogated by Ajaxson all over again. Something she had to go through with her father. Talia didn't mind answering his questions at all.&nbs
Ajaxson hummed softly, leaning against the nearest surface. A thoughtful look crossed his face. She held her breath, waiting for him to say yes so that Talia could continue her relationship with Lukas. If her betrothed rejects her, then Zeus will let her decide something for a change."Okay"The moon princess almost wanted to scream at his answer, but he quickly continued. "But on one condition."A frown took over her features at that. What did he want now? Talia chewed on her lips, hesitant on listening to him. Here she thought that her betrothed would agree, and they could get it over with. Then again, her life had never been easy."What is your condi
Tecmessa, Ajaxsons mother, was the first one to greet them with a bright smile. Her eyes warmly appraised them, and Talia shifted under her feet. She remembered her plan and quickly approached them with faux enthusiasm."Tecmessa," The moon princess started as she rounded the seating area, clearly noticing her parents stare following her. "It's a pleasure to see you again. Thank you for letting us visit.""Oh, dear!" Her future mother in law sighed, shaking her head. "It's our pleasure to host your family."She internally cringed at that. Talia, for one second, wasn't convinced with their act. Everyone behaved in the same manner with Zeus around. They all wanted some favour from God of Lightning.&nbs
Talia was numb to the celebration of their announcement, her parents cheering and congratulating them. The moon princess had so many hopes that they would postpone the date and eventually be forced to cancel it. She could not see that happening anytime soon with her parent's blatant display of emotions paired with Ajxasons silence.Why did he not say anything? She stopped counting the times the question played in her head in the past hour, eyes set stoically on the table.Some maids rushed to set up the food, smiles on their faces. The array of food ranging from bacon, chicken, black pudding, steaming tea, wine, fruits, cheese, bread and cream were placed on the grand dining table. It was making hers nauseous just staring at them. Her fingers were continuously digging into the skin of her knees as she tried to
Talia refused to leave her room, still upset about the conversation she had with Artemis. Also, that package sent by Ajaxson with a letter and set of books staring back at her didn't help at all. In the afternoon, nymphs had a message for her that Hera urgently wanted to meet.Zeus daughter dragged her tired body out of the bed; mouth pressed in a thin line. Hera must have thought of a new way to make her life miserable.Walking to the Queen's quarter of the Castle, Talia couldn't help but twist her lips. Every wall was made from shiny expensive crystal, the mirror effect causing her boots to clink a bit louder. Hera had a particular type of mirrors installed in her room to stare at the events unfolding in the hallways.
imp a/n at the end! "Is he in there?" The guard trembled under her stare before nodding his head. "Yes, your highness." The two doors of the room split open, and Talia stood in the darkness of the doorway, smiling at the two servants who held the doors open for her. She took a step into the room, and they shut the doors behind her a moment later. Her mate, the Demon King, stayed sitting, watching her approach towards his throne. She wasn't scared of crossing the bridge anymore, effortlessly gliding across the place Talia ruled alongside her husband. She hadn't seen him in hours, waiting for her husband to get ready for their special dinner in the evening. Lukas had a lot of pending cases to deal with, which was why he left quickly afte
"Well, what do you need help with?" Gia asked, sitting by her side with her sisters in tow. Fortunately, Dean was awake or made to get up by Lukas breaking all the spells cast around the cottage. He bought the fairies to this side. Talia turned towards her with a tired sigh, lifting her shirt to expose her very round belly. "Is my baby okay in there? I know it's not a heavy fall, but I still want to be sure that everything is alright." "I'll check. Stay put" With that, Gia muttered something under her breath before roaming her hands all over Talia's body. What was she doing? Checking for residues of magic casted by Li Changying, maybe. Finally, she halted on the roundness of the moon princess belly. Her hands were cold, unlike Lukas, and Talia immediately flinched.&
The door to the cottage was pushed open abruptly, startling the both of them. Talia looked over her shoulder only to see Lukas walking in, confused lines marring his face. He had an arrangement of flowers gripped in his fist, eyes widening the moment he saw Li Changying. The Demon King took in the destruction she caused to their little cottage, his loyal guard lying on the floor, helpless.A menacing growl ripped his throat. "I told you to stay away."Li Changying flustered, quickly chanting some spell under her breath and making Ajaxson appear in front of them. The female demon pointed towards him. "Fight him if you can!""Oh, I will", Lukas cracked his knuckles as his eyes turned black, not returning to their normal sta
Li Changying grinned to herself when she saw Ajaxson through the crystal ball on the side of her chair. Her long nails tapped against her as she thought about what a perfect opportunity it indeed was. Besides, she has been waiting for a long time for something like this to happen.Initially, the demon was planning on taking help from the Queen of Olympus—Hera. However, she backed away at the last moment, cutting off all the ties with her after Zeus found out about their charade. Hera was resting somewhere far away, refusing to speak to anyone now that her husband stopped entertaining his wife.That’s why Li Changying was all alone in her plan until she came across Ajaxson’s story. It fascinated her to the extent she kept tabs on him. Seeing the Greek God so defencel
/Ajaxson POV/"Where is Lukas?" That's the first thing the Greek God asked entering the room, which was quiet and empty, smelling like wet sand. It's an odd scent that made his nose twitch.Shame coloured their features, head bowing down. He froze. It was enough for him to realised that his guards recklessly lost the Sun Prince in captive. Anger coursed in his belly, fingers curling into fists, a scream ripping his throat. Two buff guards were explicitly asked to stand outside the room where Lukas was rotting. How could he escape?"You all are useless!" Ajaxson spat, his hand reaching out to grip the neck of the nearest guard. The Greek God watched as his eyes rolled back, colour drainin
Talia soaked it all in, the exasperated sigh of Dean, his laughing lines and the fake frown he carried. Strangely being caged in Olympus made her miss all of it. Even Hell. The place she used to hate so much in the beginning that the thought of being trapped there forever made her nauseous. Now she couldn't wait to go back and meet everyone. Especially Kira and Lauren. They must be waiting for her.Sitting in the strange little cottage that didn't even belong to them, the moon princess felt lost. She had no idea when or how the situation will be controlled with Ajaxson. Her father did promise to take care of it, but she doubted he would be able to stop that obsessive Greek God. They have to find another way.Suddenly she was aware that, Talia wasn't alone anymore
Zeus was standing in the hallway. Of course, things couldn't go her way for once in life. The pregnant woman should have expected it to happen. Later than sooner. She immediately pulled herself away, jumping at the voice that boomed throughout the room."F-Father?!" Talia's voice was merely a whisper, air caught in her throat. She couldn't scream even if she wanted to, eyes wide as the moon princess noticed her father stalking towards them. He had a murderous glint in his eyes; hands curled into fists."How dare you show your face again?" The echo of his voice made the hair on the back of her neck stand. She clutched the sleeves of Lukas shirt, breathing coming out in short gasps. Her mate patted the back of her hand.
/Lukas POV/The King of Hell muttered a familiar verse under his breath before creating a portal to the Underworld. He was directed to Hades immediately as if his arrival was anticipated. Lukas kept a straight face, walking in the hallway, dimly lit by the fire torches before he was inside a room.Hades was perched on a huge couch but what caught his sight was the Hellhound by his side. Fang. What was he doing there? Lukas brow shot up at the scene, mouth opening and closing. The creature let out a yawn and stretches languidly, blinking up at the Demon King with tired, accusing eyes."Don't look at me like that," Lukas let out a sigh, soaking up the comfort of the familiarity that came from talking to Fang. "Come on."
/Talia's POV/The moon princess wallowed in her room some more as Clio and Artemis left to their respective homes. Her sister, Clio, was now married to a King with two young children while Artemis still went on missions for her dear father. Nothing changed drastically. Only Hera was missing from the Castle.Something the pregnant woman was very much happy about. Talia didn't want to stress even more than she already was.The very next morning, the daughter of Zeus was joined by her sister and her husband at the beach just before noon. She didn't have much going on, so their presence served as a good distraction. Talia quietly listened to their peaceful chatter as they all decided to sit in the sand, toes curling in. In her bathi