I take a deep breath to steady myself before moving closer to Cerberus. I can feel his muscles tense beneath my touch, and I have to fight the urge to pull away even as he shifts slightly closer.
His body brushes against mine, our eyes meet, and I watch the fire in his gaze roar to life, the flames burning bright blue. Then his hands reach for my hips, pulling even closer to him so that I can feel every inch of him pressed against me.
“Remember what I showed you,” Persephone calls out.
Blinking, I run my hands up his chest, letting one come to rest there as I rise onto the tips of my toes and run my fingers through his hair.
His dark hair is as soft and thick as his fur looked when I first met him. As I reach the back of his head, I grab a handful of it and gently tug to bring his face down to mine.
We’re mere inches apart now, our breaths becoming one, as our eyes meet once more. The fire within him licks at the edges of his eyes as he stares at me, and my breath catches in my throat as he leans forward so that there’s but a hair’s width between our lips.
Then, he bursts into flames.
I cry out in shock and pain as flames lick up around me. Stumbling from his arms, I hurry to pat myself down before collapsing to the ground to catch my breath.
Cerberus’ eyes are wide as he stares down at me in stunned silence.
“Did I hurt you?” he asks as soon as he finds his voice.
I glance down at myself, half-expecting to find that my nightgown caught fire. But other than a few snaking vines of red where the fire touched my skin, I’m unharmed.
If a bit sooty.
“Hazel?” Persephone is at my side before I can answer Cerberus, concern on her brow as her eyes trail over me. “Are you alright?”
I give her a dazed nod but flinch as one of the burn marks starts to smart.
“Here, come with me,” she says, helping me to my feet. “Everyone else, continue practicing! And you, out, now! You are putting her and the rest of us in danger with your very presence.”
Cerberus looks uncertain but then excuses himself as his eyes trail over the burns on my arms. Still, I can’t help but watch his retreat, caught between worry and fear.
“Hazel?” I blink several times before turning back to Persephone. The sweet smell of fresh flowers wafts over me, her expression far softer now that Cerberus has stepped out of the room.
It only takes me a second to realize the opportunity I’ve just been given.
“I need to speak with you,” I whisper.
Persephone glances around at the others before nodding. “This way.”
Wrapping an arm around my waist, she leads me to the back of the room. Under the pretense of tending to me, she settles me onto a lounge made entirely of vines and flowers and bustles about me. Her hands are warm as she wraps large, bright yellow blossoms around my arms.
“To heal the skin,” she tells me.
I smile, working up the courage to tell her what I need to. This is my chance and I would be a fool to let it pass me by.
My mouth opens, but no words come out.
“Now, what is it you wish to tell me?”
As if this was all I needed to hear, my tongue loosens and words begin to spill from me. I tell her everything, no detail too small, about the ball, my plans, and the dinner I just had with Hades.
She watches me, her fingers stiffening on me as I finally tell her about Hades’ kiss. Around us, the temperature in the room begins to dip, and the plants and flowers shrivel as her eyes lift to meet mine.
“It was you.”
“What?” I gasp, flinching at the quiet venom in her voice.
“You are the one he plans to replace me with, and you knew it.”
