Part 23

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.

Talia knocked on the door out of manners, shifting on her feet nervously. Her throat felt dry suddenly, hands clammy—effect of being near an evil stepmother. She guessed.

"Come in"

The moon princess stood at the edge of the door, refusing to step inside. As expected, Hera was surrounded by scholars, papers—lots of them, ink bottles and quills. Shiny boxes on her side also caught her eye. Clio, Artemis and Athea were also included with the group of scholars.

Why was Hera going so overboard for a daughter she resented?

"You called?"

Hera scoffed, shaking her head. "Hello to you too, Talia. Please come in."

"I'm fine. Thank you"

"Anyways, I called you to pick out a scroll design. Hermes is going to deliver them all to our family and friends personally."

She chewed on the inside of her cheek, glaring at the malicious smile on Heras face. If anything seated on her throne, she appeared elated, barely able to hold the excitement.

"After all we have to hurry up with our preparations. The engagement is in few days."

"Why do you need me now?" Talia breathed, fingers gripping at the material of her chiffon. She was a second away from running back to her room and curling in a ball. Only if Zeus didn't ask his children never to raise their voice at Queen Talia would have ripped her a new.

Hera stood up, gliding towards her like a snake with a bright smile. She patted Talia's cheek softly. "Oh, you silly girl! We need your decision on everything. After all, you are the to be wed bride."

***

After meaningless discussion over the letter sizing, fonts, scrolls and the ink colour, they finally moved to party decorations. That's when Talia sneaked out of there, unable to hear more of Heras rambling. Her stepmother could go on forever about the one event she made successfully.

She noticed that Artemis followed her to the open garden behind the main gate.

"Talia, please wait!"

The moon princess turned around only to hear Artemis apologising for the things she said before. Her sister kept on going about her noble intentions behind those words. It did not make sense to her, Artemis erratic change in behaviour, but she nodded along.

"Talia, I hope you have figured out what to do."

"P-Please don't start now."

"How can you be so selfish?" Her sister sighed, palming her forehead. "I need you to be rational, Talia! Do you understand? I need you to be realistic because...."

Talia scrunched her nose, a puzzled look taking over her features. She gnawed at her lips nervously, heart beating loudly as those words echoed around. Why was her sister scaring her?

"No matter what happens, this isn't going to end well. It just can't. I know that, and you know that, too. If by whatever miracle, you both find a way to solve this mess, there is still no way our father would accept someone like him—"

Rage bubbled in the pit of her stomach, Talia flashed her eyes. "Choose your words carefully, Artemis."

Her sister sighed. "I'm only thinking about you. Please tell him to move on. It's the best thing for both of you. Just—tell him to forget you."

"Why do you want me to break his—?"

The moon princess didn't manage to finish her sentence as they heard footsteps in the distance approaching them. Upon closer inspection, Talia found Lukas inching towards them, smiling softly when she met his eyes. What was he doing here at this time?

She smiled back, as much as Talia could given the situation, breath hitching in her throat.

Artemis gaze burned against the side of her face, and Talia's heart started to sink. Just then, Lukas stepped closer; a woollen blanket draped over one arm. Her sister took that as a cue to leave, walking towards the door with a long, grave look in their direction.

Then they're left all alone in the garden. Gentle breeze whooshed by them, making her shiver.

When he's right in front of her, the Prince pulled her in by the shoulders, wrapping the thick blanket around them. Lukas proceeded to dip his head down to touch their foreheads together. Talia could feel his warm breath on her face as he ran the tip of his nose down the bridge of hers.

"Lukas?! What are you doing here?" Pulling away, she asked.

The corners of his mouth twitched. “I came to see you, my love. Did you miss me?"

"Of course" She threw her arms around him, dropping her against his collarbone, inhaling deeply. The warm and musky scent instantly managed to calm her down, eyes rolling back.

"I can't feel my toes", Lukas teasingly chuckled in her hair, arms tightening.

"Let's go in."

"Please", He breathed.

Slipping her fingers in between his, she tilted her head. "How did you manage to enter the Castle at this time?"

"At first, I was worried that the guards would catch me and present me to Zeus. Fortunately, there are a lot of people entering the Castle today. Is there some event happening where I am not invited?"

She looked away. Hera must have summoned those men to get the decorations for the engagement party started. "Nothing that I am aware of"

"Anyways, so I wrapped this blanket-" Lukas chuckled before continuing. "-over my body and sneaked in. It was fun."

"And dangerous", She added.

The Prince rolled his eyes. "It's worth it if I get to see you at the end."

Lukas was so solid in this, confident and sure, about their relationship and for the first time, Talia figured that maybe she didn't particularly deserve him. The Prince should not be worrying about anything other than helping his kingdom and his father or whatever else it is that young, beautiful gods worry about from day to day. He should be meeting other people as beautiful and fortunate as him, not spend his days trying to worry about Talia or stress over their barely held together relationship.

She tried to blink away the sting in her eyes, remembering her sisters words from earlier.

***

They silently walked to her room, with Lukas right on her heels, a hand pressed to the small of her back. A shiver ran through her entire body, the warm heat from his palm and those thick fingers burning through her shirt, heating her skin.

She tried to breathe properly, but her chest was all jumbled, tongue thick and heavy. Turning the corner, feeling Lukas body heat right behind her, and suddenly they're through the door, and it's just like that first time—desperate thrill coursing through both of them.

"I want you so much," The moon princess breathed out harshly, eyes rolling back. The Prince pressed instantly, his body hot and tight and towering over her quickly, almost encompassing her lithe body.

"My love," He groaned against her neck, and she could already feel him, arousal hitting her wave after wave. All she wanted was for Lukas to throw her on the bed, claim her till she could not think about anything else but the marks on her body. To stop processing anything and stop feeling altogether. "It's so difficult to stay away from you."

She could tell. They both didn't handle separation very well, always wanting to be together. Distance managed to make their relationship even more passionate.

"Please," Talia managed to press out through her teeth, and taking it as a hint Lukas bit at the juncture of her neck, lapping over sensitive skin, arms coming around her.

Together, they stumbled farther into her dimly lit room, candles flickering around and cold wind yowling from the windows. She made sure to secure a lock on the door, informing the guards outside to leave, also asking them not to send anyone unannounced.

Talia diverted her attention towards the messy bed, feeling the flush travel down her neck. She was so moody throughout the day and overthinking about that package; she forgot to clean up.

Wrapping an arm around her, Lukas snapped her out of those thoughts. He pulled her closer, his thumb brushing lightly at those plump, swollen lips. "I know what you're thinking, but I don't mind, Talia. You are all that matters."

The tips of her ears turned pink.

"Always the sweet talker" She stood up on her tippy toes, reaching for his face, pulled him in and crushed their parted lips. It's still as perfect and overwhelming and bittersweet as the first time and every time between then and now. Talia, with a choked breath, realised that she could never grow tired of this, could never get enough of the hot slide of Lukas tongue against hers.

Just for one more night, She thought to herself, closing her eyes and succumbing to the sweet pain.

***