BRAVING THE DARKNESS: One Night With The Demon King
BENEATH HER DARKNESS: The Alpha’s Little Demon Book 2
Chapter 21 – Nyneve
LUCIUS.
I couldn’t wipe out the smile on my face the whole time I was driving her car into her allotted parking space. This morning was just perfect, and with
Patrea not hesitating to show her excitement over my presence in her life, that was the cherry on top.
And as much as I wanted to check her out in the library immediately after I dropped her off, I needed time to check on my kingdom as well.
But I’ll be back.
After checking that there were no humans around and no living souls within my perimeter, I locked Patrea’s car and transported my body back to Kalmerus.
I knew I’d been slacking off for many cycles now, but nothing threatened Kalmerus at the moment, so I didn’t see any problem with staying away from time to time.
[King Lucius,] My right-hand demon, Dorion, greeted me after he appeared on the throne hall a few moments after I did.
[Anything I should be concerned about?] I asked as I made my way to my throne chair.
[We have a request from the King of the Kingdom of Athwart. I told them you will send out a response after they think about it.]
[What do they want?] I asked, my forehead creasing.
The last time I was in the company of Arturos was when he let me have a taste of his mistress, the nearest one he could have for a wife or a queen, as none of the Kings of the Underworld had allowed a woman to rule with them.
[He didn’t specifically mention it, but his right hand had informed me that he wanted one of his offspring to meet you. I believed he has three daughters, and the youngest is just a half-century old.]
[I’m not interested.] I answered in a bored manner. I already had my eyes fixed on someone else.
Dorian was about to reply when the double door of the throne hall opened and one of my demon guards came in with another piece of news.
[King Lucius, the King of Athwart, is waiting by the portal connecting our kingdoms. He was seeking entrance to speak with you.]
I let out a hiss, annoyed at the intrusion. I shouldn’ t have come back. He might have felt my presence. Demons were allowed to travel back and forth throughout the underworld, but the towers were specifically enchanted to allow only the demons of each kingdom, thus he needed permission for entry into my tower.
[Was he alone?] I asked.
[Princess Nyneve is with him.] The demon guard replied.
[I would like to a*s*sume that she is his daughter.] Dorian added.
[Bring them here.] I ordered them.
Dorian’s eyes blazed red before he disappeared together with the demon guard, and it didn’t take long before the door to my throne hall opened again, and King Arturos came in, together with a she -demon that I wouldn’t deny sparked interest in me.
Princess Nyneve was a thing of beauty. Her hair was flamed red and orange, ending up to her a*s*s. She’s wearing a sheer silver gown that gave me a glimpse of her n*ake*d body underneath.
I swallowed hard before taking my eyes off her as I stood up, and I met Arturos’ gaze. The king flashed me a smug smirk, he probably felt my reaction to his daughter.
But I knew Nyneve was using her allure on me. She had a gift like Lucija.
I would not deny that her appearance awakened the prince of lust in me, but my eyes were searching for the amber eyes that were staring at me the whole morning.
And I felt f*uc*king guilty for even looking at her.
Guilty was never part of my vocabulary until today. [King Lucius of Kalmerus,] King Arturos acknowledged as he stopped a few feet away from my throne, standing beside him was Princess
Nyneve. [We have not cordially paid respect to your rise to power. So I decided it was better to pay you a private visit.]
[What do you want?] I went straight to the point. I was not born for pleasantries, and unlike him, I disliked fake facades.
I felt an alluring aura swirl around me before the princess laid her hand directly in front of me. [ Princess Nyneve, Princess of Seduction, is at your service, King Lucius.]
I took her hand and pressed my lips against the back of her palm, letting it go as soon as I was done before shifting my gaze between her and her father. [I didn’t have much time to spare at the moment. Let me know if there is something we should be discussing.]
[I wished to be allowed to stay within your tower, my king. I wanted to get to know you.] The princess answered.
[If you enjoyed your time with, Calapressa, I believed my daughter could provide you tenfold what she did.] Arturos arrogantly added.
My brows hiked up. Calepressa was his female that he let me f*uc*k more than a couple of times.
[That would have been an enchanting offer. However, I would decline as I don’t spend time in Kalmerus as much as I would have wanted.]
[I don’t mind waiting for you, whenever you are around. I’m sure I would have other things to keep myself occupied. The hot baths in this kingdom were incomparable to those in other kingdoms, and I took pleasure in them. So, if you would allow, my king, it will be an honor to be a guest of your kingdom.] Her eyelashes fluttered as her demon tail swirled around her back, caressing her hair.
[I will not be able to stop you if you want to stay in Kalmerus. However, I have to decline a place in the tower. Especially when I’m not around. I’m sure Dorion, my right-hand demon, can find a place for you to stay if you insist on staying. Other than that, I couldn’t offer more.]
The words came out of my mouth even before I could think. Lust was taking charge of my mind, and I had no room to take it back.
A seductive smile curled on Nyneve’s red lips before her eyes blazed red. [That would do for now. I’m sure sooner or later, I would find a way to gain an invitation to your tower, my king.]
A wicked smirk tugged on my mouth at the confidence she was displaying. [We will see that.]
I tilted my head and motioned for Dorion to approach us before looking at the guests in front of me.
[Unfortunately, I had to let Dorion take you out of the tower as I needed to be somewhere at the moment.]
[Shall I expect to see you by the end of the cycle?] Nyneve asked.
[We shall see. I do come and go as I please.]
[Feel free to visit me in the abode your right-hand demon will provide for me then.]
I didn’t reply, as I had no f*uc*king idea what to say. If Patrea was not in my life right now, I would have dropped everything and summoned the princess into my chamber.
But Patrea was expecting me to see her.
I watched as they were guided out of my throne room and transported out of the tower before I let the heat rise inside my body.
I used to enjoy being the prince of lust, but at the moment, I felt like being born with this ability was a curse.
I transported my body away from Kalmerus and ended up in the empty alley just behind the building where the library was.
I shoved the thought of Nyneve at the back of my head. I should not feel guilty. I’m a demon, for f*uc*k’s sake, and the prince of lust. I’m allowed to lust after a female. Or every f*uc*king female around.
I was trying to convince myself that I wasn’t doing anything wrong against Patrea. She knew who I was and what I was made of.
I walked toward the elevator, but before the door closed, I saw a man carrying a bouquet of flowers and meeting a female before they hugged and kissed each other.
I glanced at the camera inside the elevator and, with just my eyes, clouded it with enchantment before I made a bouquet of different colored roses appear in my hand.
I had no idea what flowers or colors she liked, but I heard her say at Lucija’s birthday dinner that she thought the roses Lucija got from Adan were beautiful. So I had almost the same thing appear in my hands, except I chose lighter colors than what Lucija had.
The elevator door pinged when it stopped on the third floor, and I placed the bouquet behind me before I suppressed the smile that was about to tug on my mouth.
I wanted to see her reaction to the flower — if she would like it or not.
“Hi! Is there anything I can help you with?” A tall female with blonde hair and glasses blocked my way, and I almost crashed into hers as my eyes were already roaming around the vast library in front of me.
There were too many aisles and bookshelves. The round counter in the middle of the library where I a*s*sumed she was stationed, was empty of humans.
Where was she?
“Hi! Are you looking for someone or something?” The blonde girl asked again.
“Yes,” I answered as my eyes kept looking around. ” I’m looking for my girlfriend.”
The moment those words left my mouth, I saw a head peeking from one of the shelves on my right, and I saw Patrea’s eyes widen as she shifted her gaze between me and the flowers in my hand.
She must have heard my voice, making her look where the voice was coming from. I raised my hand and waved at her.
“Patrea… Is she your girlfriend?” The blonde girl asked.
I nodded my head without taking my gaze off the female, who brushed her blouse and pencil skirt with her hands as if there were crumbs on them before walking to where I was standing.
“I didn’t know you have a gorgeous, hot-as-hell boyfriend!” The blonde was almost shrieking, but this time her eyes were on Patrea. Her body jolted up as if she was too giddy before she turned around and left me in peace with my female.
“Hello, beautiful,” I tilted my head down and met her smiling face as she gazed up at me.
“What took you so long?” She asked, feigning a pout.
I swallowed as guilt washed over me. I had never felt so guilty in the two centuries that I was alive as I did in the last hour.
“I attended something in the underworld.” Her face dropped, and it bothered me that she might have seen something in my eyes.
“Is everything okay?”
“Yes,” I f*orc*ed a smug grin on my lips before handing her the roses in my hand. “This is for you. I don’t know what flowers you preferred. But if you tell me, then I can get the right one next time.”
Her eyes lit up as she grabbed the bouquet with two hands and smelled it innocently.
All of the anxiety and confusion I had previously experienced vanished. I knew who I wanted, and the happiness flitting in her eyes was something I wanted her to always have.
“They’re beautiful. And I like them very much.” She tilted her face and smiled at me. “I don’t know which flowers I like most, but I think I love these roses already.”
She always knew the right words to say to boost my ego. Could this female be more perfect than she already is?
“But…” She added. Her eyebrows hiked up as her hand clasped mine, and she pulled me to the corner where she had been earlier. “You have to tell me what was happening in Kalmerus.”
f*uc*k.
“Nothing. Nothing you should be aware of as they are just daily demon things.” I said almost immediately.
“Why am I having a hard time believing you?” She placed the bouquet of roses on the ladder that she was probably using to reach the top of the shelves before placing her hands on her hips.
She had a rolling cart with books and a stack of papers with checks and Xs. But looked like only a few books needed more details.
“You need to focus on your work and leave Kalmerus to me.”
“Something is wrong. I might be wrong, but my woman’s instinct is telling me that the king of Kalmerus is hiding something from me.”
I f*orc*ed a chuckle and mirrored her action, hands on hips. “I didn’t know you could read minds.”
“I can’t. But I can read expressions. You never came to me with that expression on your face, even when we had that argument. So confessed now.”
“I thought you didn’t want to hear anything about the demon world.”
“Yes. But it doesn’t mean I don’t want to hear anything about you in the demon world.” She emphasized the word you.
“Patrea…”
“Speak up before I walk out of here.”
“You have work to do.”
I saw her mumble something, and I felt the air still and thickened. She placed an enchantment to conceal our voices. “I can use magic to finish this.”
“I thought you didn’t want to use magic in human territory.”
“Stop diverting the topic. Talk.” Her eyes were squinting. She meant business.
I could tell her many other things, but I knew she might realize the lies. But I had no f*uc*king idea how I would say I felt guilty because I felt another attraction with the other female.
But I knew the attraction was because she was spreading her allure, and royal demons had strong ones, like Lucija, although my sister had never used hers.
“I’m waiting. Please don’t lie.”
The last three words got me, and I knew I could never lie again to her.
I took her hand and placed her palm on my forehead before I closed my eyes, taking her back to the scene in Kalmerus.
It felt like an eternity as I watched the scene unfold in my mind, and I regretted doing this as it gave her a glimpse of my thoughts as well, including the sudden burst of lust that arose in my stomach.
[Feel free to visit me in the abode your right-hand demon will provide for me then.] These were Nyneve’s last words before Patrea took her hand off my forehead and, without a warning, turned around and walked away from me.
And I knew I had blown off everything.