Chapter 228

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If Only For One Night.

Elliot

I honestly thought I’d conjured her out of a dream. The candles caught the sheen of her dress, black silk shifting through

shades of midnight, her skin a soft contrast against it. Her hair was swept up just enough to show the delicate curve of her neck, and the faint tremor in her breath when her eyes met mine told me she felt it too, whatever this was between us. I’d spent all day making this happen. I’d conjured the candles one by one, cooked the meal myself because magic couldn’t make food taste like real solid effort, and swept through the half until it gleamed like obsidian glass. All for this. One

perfect moment. The music played low and distant from the corners of the room.

I stepped closer, holding out my hand. “Dance with me p>

Her fingers slid into mine, trembling just enough to undo me, and she nodded. When I drew her in, the world fell away.

Her dress whispered against the floor as we turned, slowly, and our reflections flickered in the marble like moving shadows. The glow from the candles painted everything gold and soft. Her cheekbones, the curve of her shoulders, the delicate shimmer of her lashes when she looked up at me, it was all perfect. I placed my hand at her waist, felt the subtle

rise and fall of her breath, and my entire body went still. Every instinct screamed at me to memorise it, the rhythm of her heartbeat beneath my fingertips, the faint scent of her skin, the way she fit against me like she’d been there a thousand times before. Her eyes caught mine, and the look she gave me nearly crushed me. It was the kind of look that said I see you. The kind of look that could undo lifetimes. The melody built softly around us, the violins trembling through the air. I turned her in a slow circle, her skirt flaring like a ripple of night sky, and when she came back to me, her hand landed over my chest, right over the scar that tethered me to the Veil. Her touch didn’t burn; it soothed, right to the very core of my

soul.

“Mace,” I whispered, my forehead brushing hers, “you have no idea how much this means to me p>

She didn’t answer, but she didn’t pull away either and that was enough. We kept moving long after the music stopped. Just the quiet drag of our feet and the sound of our breathing filling the space. When she finally pulled back, her eyes were

glassy, her lips parted like she wanted to say something she wasn’t ready to.

“Thank you,” she said softly.

I smiled, even though my throat hurt. “Don’t thank me. Just remember it p>

“If I never came back…” she started, voice faltering.

I swallowed the ache that rose in my chest. “Then I’ll still have tonight p>

Her breath caught, and then she rested her forehead against mine. It was barely a touch, the smallest brush of skin, but it was everything I’d ever wanted. We stood there for a long time, in the flickering candlelight, with the world suspended around us. I knew it couldn’t last. But I’d built this moment for that very reason, because when she left, when the mortal

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If Only For One Night.

world swallowed her up again, I needed to know there’d been this.

The music.

The firelight.

Her hand in mine.

My princess of the Underworld.

O

Even if only for one night.

Dinner was easy. The kind of easy that reminded me of before. Before everything got complicated, before the world

decided what we were supposed to be to each other. We ate slowly, talking about things that didn’t matter and things that

mattered too much. Between bites, she teased me about the time I accidentally summoned a river of lava through the old

courtyard.

“I still remember Mum’s face,” she said, laughter bubbling out of her like sunlight breaking through storm clouds. “She

nearly banished from the kitchen p>

“She did,” I said with a mock frown. “Said the smell of sulphur didn’t pair well with breakfast p>

She laughed again, a sound so bright it didn’t belong in a place like this.

“And you,” I said, pointing my fork at her, “were the one who dared me to do it in the first place p>

Her eyes sparkled. “Details p>

We fell into silence then, not the awkward kind, but the kind that wraps around you and feels like home. The soft flicker of

the candles painted her face in shades of gold and bronze, and for a while, I could almost forget the world waiting beyond

these walls.

I watched her play with her fork, her lashes lowering as she smiled faintly. “Do you remember when we used to sneak out

of the packhouse to watch the stars p>

I nodded. “You used to fall asleep halfway through, every single time p>

“You used to carry me back,” she murmured.

I

“I still would,” I said before I could stop myself.

Her eyes lifted to mine, something unspoken flickering there, something that made my heart twist painfully.

The silence stretched. Then she gave a small smile. “You’ve changed, Elliot p>

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If Only For One Night.

Maybe,” I said quietly. “Or maybe 1 just stopped pretending p>

She didn’t ask what I meant. Maybe she didn’t need to.

We finished dinner with quiet laughter, trading small memories like currency, each one a reminder of how many years we’d shared, how many pieces of our childhood still clung to the edges of who we were now. When her plate was empty, I rose and offered her my hand again, not for another dance this time, to lead her toward the waiting portal. The glow of it filled

the room, soft and shifting like moonlight through smoke.

She turned to me, the faintest hesitation in her step. “Elliot p>

I didn’t let her finish. I just smiled, the kind of smile you give when you know you have to let something go.

“Come on, princess,” I said gently. “Time to go home p>

She nodded, and I stepped through with her, the warmth of her hand lingering in mine until the Underworld melted away. We landed in the packhouse hallway, the familiar scent of earth and pine instantly replacing the sulphur and magic of the

underworld.

She looked up at me and whispered, “Thank you… for tonight p>

I reached out, brushing a strand of hair from her face before I could stop myself, and pressed a kiss to her forehead.

“Goodnight, Mace p>

Her breath hitched, so quiet I almost missed it. When I stepped back, I kept my voice light, steady, even as something inside me cracked just a little. “I guess I’ll see you around then p>

And before I could change my mind, before I could reach for her again, I opened another portal and disappeared into the

dark. Because if I stayed, I knew I wouldn’t have the strength to let her go.

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this is beautiful put i just wanted to say im enjoying every bit of this book I haven’t been able to put it down. your writing is wonderful thank you for all that you d… More

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Goddess Of The Underworld

Juliet Zvayi

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