Page 108 of His Eternal Claim

The answer is sitting heavily in my chest. I don’t know. I genuinely don’t know. The last thing I remember is being near the door. Then I was standing above the sea. The missing moments leave a hollow pit in my stomach. I force a smile.

“Maybe I was sleepwalking.”

“Selene.”

“Look at that boat.” His jaw clenches.

“Don’t change the subject.”

“It’s a very nice boat.”

“Selene.”

“Can we talk about literally anything else?”

His stare lingers for a long time, but eventually he exhales. “You can take your time, but when the time comes, you will answer to me.”

Chapter 37

Forsaken

THE REQUIEM | Past

Wow.” The breath leaves me all at once.

I step out onto the open balcony as the wind catches the hem of my dress and swirls the loose waves of my hair across my face. I brush the strands back, my eyes widening.

From up here, the chaotic world is reduced to a grid of glittering amber streetlights and tiny, ant-like headlights crawling through the veins of the avenues. The horizon stretches out infinitely. It is high… so high that looking straight down over the sleek glass railing gives me that familiar, brief lurch of vertigo in the pit of my stomach, but it doesn’t terrify me.

Not like the window ledge.

“Like it?”

Zagreus’s voice vibrates against the small of my back as he steps up behind me.

I turn my head to look at him over my shoulder, a teasing smile tugging at my lips. “The view is passable. I suppose.” I look back out at the vast rooftop expanse, taking in the private setup… a dimly lit, linen-draped table surrounded by soft candlelight that flickers defiantly against the wind. “Don’t tell me you rented out this entire rooftop just to keep me from asking questions.”

“I didn’t rent it,” he murmurs, his hands sliding into his pockets as he leans against the railing beside me, his grey eyes reflecting the city lights. And the whole of our world.

I blink, shifting my gaze back to him. “Oh? A reservation, then?”

“I own the building, Mrs. Vitale.”

A startled laugh escapes me as I turn fully, leaning my lower back against the glass balustrade, crossing my arms as I look him up and down. “You own the whole building? Just how much money do you actually make, Mr. Vitale? Should I be worried I’m keeping company with a billionaire who has too much free time?”

Zagreus’s mouth twitches into a dangerous smirk. He takes a single step forward, crowding into my personal space until the heat of him blocks out the cool night breeze. “I make enough to ensure you never have to wear anything but lace and silk, if that’s what you’re asking. And as for my free time…”

Before I can retort, his hand shoots out, his fingers wrapping firmly around my waist. He pulls me flush against his chest. My hands instinctively fly to his chest, gripping the fabric of his shirt as my breath hitches.

“I always have time for you,” he growls softly.

My husband doesn’t offer me much time. His hand moves up to cup the back of my neck, his thumb tilting my chin upward, and then his mouth crashes down onto mine.

I smile into the roughness of his kiss as his tongue slides past my lips, tasting me, claiming my mouth with an intensity that makes my knees go weak. I whimper into the kiss, my fingers anchoring into his hair, pulling him closer as the internal shadows of the morning melt away.

With Zagreus, the world narrows down to the taste of him, the hard line of his jaw, and the absolute certainty of his touch.

When he finally pulls back, both of our breaths are uneven. His grey eyes are dark, dilated, full of a heat that makes my pulse race.