Happily Ever Crowned Read online

Necros.

  Where he would remain for eternity and watch my rule, unable to interfere, just observe. He didn’t deserve the death planes. No. This fate served him much better.

  “I’m not you,” I told him now. “And I never will be.”

  I’m free.

  I’m finally fucking free.

  A queen.

  Set to rule a new kingdom.

  My kingdom.

  “Valora?” Adrik whispered, stirring.

  “He’s gone.” I didn’t move, my eyes fixated on the sky above.

  “You killed him?”

  “Yes.” I nodded.

  Adrik followed my gaze, his lips curling down. “You didn’t send him to the death planes.”

  “No, I didn’t.” I canted my head, studying the design his ashes made in the sky. A large star. “I want him to suffer. For eternity.”

  And he would with his soul shredded into so many pieces.

  Are you still proud of me? I wondered, smiling. “It’s done.”

  The war was finally over.

  And I now owned the crown.

  A baby.

  Lucifer’s daughter.

  And a kingdom.

  It resembled the foundation of a bad joke. But instead gave birth to a new life as Valora and I walked outside the palace walls. We hadn’t spoken much since she killed Necros, her handiwork brightening the night sky above with millions of twinkling lights.

  “What now?” she asked, surveying the demolished landscapes that once housed Caluçon.

  She’d already dismissed the only remaining guard—Jeremiah—for the night, telling him to rest and report back in the morning. I suspected she would knight him, perhaps put him in charge of refining palace security. Given the bravery I witnessed from him, I approved. But he would have a hard time recruiting new employees.

  Thousands had died today.

  All Necros loyalists with black hearts.

  And I couldn’t mourn a single one.

  “Do you wish to mourn for the kingdom?” I wondered aloud, draping my jacket around her bare shoulders. She didn’t seem to mind being nude, but the lack of a sun had brought on a chilly breeze that trailed goose bumps down her arms.

  “No.” She gazed up at the beautiful display above. “No, I do not. But I would like to rename it.”

  I linked my fingers through hers, pulling her alongside me. “Do you have something in mind?”

  “I do,” she murmured. “Nova Kingdom.”

  An appropriate name, given her display of power today. “I like it.”

  She nodded as if she already knew. And maybe she did. Valora vibrated with more power than ever, her confidence bolstered by having removed the one who’d brought her down all these years. She seemed alive, happy, and so very strong.

  “What do you want to do about your parents?” It seemed so weird to me to think of Lucifer and Lux as her father and mother. I couldn’t even begin to imagine how insane it was to her.

  “Nothing for now.” She paused at the cliffs that overlooked the fields leading to the town below. “I don’t agree with what they’ve done. But I’m also not ready to understand it all yet.”

  An intelligent interpretation. “We may never understand it.”

  “Which, I think, is the point,” she replied, leaning her head against my shoulder. “Lucifer is the Creator of this world. He’s a mastermind of impossibilities. I’m not sure we were created to understand them all.”

  “Something tells me he only explains the ones that matter.” Such as why he and Lux had crafted such an intricate scheme to match me to Valora. It raised the question of fate and if we were ever in control of our own destinies.

  I suspected we were not.

  But I also wasn’t sure I possessed a desire to change mine.

  Yes, I lost my kingdom. However, the primary reason I cared was because of Lux’s insistence that I seek revenge for my family. Not because I ever loved them. I was too young, an infant, to feel the pain of their loss. And then I grew up in a life of riches and opulence. How much did I really suffer? The answer was not at all.

  Valora, however, endured a far worse life. Always being told she was beneath others. Her husband treating her as a common whore. Having her powers ripped away at birth and then squandered upon revival.

  “Do you hate them?” Because I wouldn’t blame her if she did.

  “No.” She faced me, her opposite hand grasping mine to hold both my wrists before her. “I can’t hate them when they brought me you.”

  “I’m pretty sure they made me to be yours.” At least, that was what I gathered from all their cryptic words.

  “Then I am quite pleased with their creation,” she replied, her smile radiant with a touch of seduction. “You are the perfect king.”

  “For a perfect queen,” I replied, lifting her hand to my lips. “I wouldn’t change any of it. Apart from being unconscious during Necros’s destruction.” It sucked to miss that part. I really wanted to hear the bastard scream.

  Mirth shone bright in her icy blue gaze. “I can recount each excruciating detail for you.”

  “Mmm, pillow talk.” I tugged her closer, desiring to feel her warmth against mine. “Are you trying to seduce me, My Queen?”

  “I am now,” she replied, releasing my hands to wrap her arms around my neck. “Do you truly want this, Adrik? Do you want me?”

  I pressed one palm to her lower back, the other going to her nape, holding her closely. “Do I want to live happily ever after with my queen? To rule the Nova Kingdom at her side? To raise our future son or daughter—without all the sick and twisted games?” I smiled. “There’s nowhere else I’d rather be, Valora, than with you. Call it fate. Call it divine intervention on behalf of the Devil himself. Regardless, my heart is true, and it desires you.”

  “Happily ever after?” she repeated, her gaze twinkling. “Does that even exist in this world?”

  “I think we can make it exist.” I lowered my mouth to hers, brushing a soft kiss against her lips. “You’re the Creator of the Underworld’s daughter. If anyone can manufacture a happily ever after, it’s you.”

  “No,” she whispered, her fingers twining in my hair. “It’s us. We can create it. Together.”

  “Sounds like the destiny of our dreams.” I ran my tongue along her bottom lip. “And what of our kingdom, My Queen?”

  “We rule together,” she vowed. “Forever and always.”

  “A life I can adore, like I adore you.”

  She smiled. “Is that a yes, then?”

  “As if I could say no,” I replied, kissing her once more. I love you, my sweet star.

  Her amusement touched my thoughts. Who knew you could be such a romantic? Happily ever afters. Love.

  I swept her into my arms, carrying her as one should on a wedding night. “If you don’t require the romance, then allow me to return us to our rooms.” I paused, glancing down at her. “They are still in one piece, right?”

  She laughed, her arms around my neck. “I didn’t destroy everything. Just…” She paused to glance around. “Well, a lot of it.”

  “We’re going to need a few architects,” I agreed, taking in the destruction. The stone walls were fine. But a hell of a lot of dust had settled from the bodies of those she’d slain.

  “We’ll rebuild it all, except the forbidden areas. Those I want restored. Especially the library.” Her eyes twinkled. “I want to establish an education program for those in need. We will offer classes there.”

  “On self-defense and power manipulation?” I teased, carrying her through the gardens that backed up to her rooms. She’d demolished all the statues to rubble, giving it a rather bleak appeal.

  “Maybe,” she replied. “But only if you’re leading the class. Naked.”

  My eyebrows rose. “You intend to share me with the women of this new kingdom of ours?” I meant it as a taunt, but her nails digging into my scalp said she took it very seriously.

  “Never.” Her irises smoldered.
“You’re mine and only mine.”

  “Now who is being romantic?” I nudged open the door to her quarters and tossed her on the bed.

  She giggled and crawled backward into the pillows, her expression darkening beneath a wave of desire. “I love you, King of Nova Kingdom,” she said, her voice one of a siren calling her partner to bed. “Now fuck me like you own me.”

  “Ah, and they truly did live happily ever after,” I murmured, stripping myself of my clothes before prowling over her in the bed. “In their own little kingdom.” I kissed her soundly. “Of Nova.”

  “The end,” she whispered, smiling.

  “The end,” I agreed.

  Four Months Later…

  This wedding was far different from the first one I witnessed in this palace. For one, the bride was willing. The groom was a significant improvement to the last one. And this room had undergone one hell of a renovation.

  Hell being the operative term there.

  Because wow.

  Valora had outdone herself with the pinks and reds and blues. All the drapes were bright, the windows clean, and the walls a pristine white. The great room practically glowed and not just because of the bride and groom at the altar.

  Or the Devil behind the podium.

  Although, they were part of it, all lit up like the stars shining in the Nova Kingdom night.

  Beautiful.

  Perfect.

  Happiness.

  For everyone in the room, anyway, except me. Happiness no longer existed in my world. Not after…

  I swallowed, pushing the thoughts away as I met Grigory’s knowing gaze across from me. He stood behind Adrik, his eyebrow arched in that arrogant way I despised.

  Of all the Noxia vampires to cure me, it had to be that one.

  The conceited, pompous prick of a prince who couldn’t even get my name right. If he called me Zay one more time, I’d punch him directly in the nose.

  Valora laughed, drawing my attention to her. She repeated the vows Lucifer had created, the words very different from her first wedding. These boasted new principles, ones that left everyone smiling.

  They promised to maintain faith in each other. To respect each other. To adore one another. To lead together. To raise their kingdom with honesty and high regard for others. And to cherish their future daughter always.

  A tear fell from Valora’s eye at the reveal of the gender inside her growing belly.

  A tear that Adrik kissed before taking her lips and completing the vow.

  Such a gorgeous ceremony.

  And yet, being in this place only filled me with dread.

  I can’t move back, I realized, my plans to stay with Valora after the wedding halting in my mind. I can’t live here.

  It was littered with too many bad memories that no amount of decorating could hide. Adrik and Grigory had worked so hard to rid the kingdom and the surrounding areas of black hearts, but it didn’t change my fears. The damage was already done.

  Noxia provided a fresh start, a land without pain or memories. A land I could lose myself in without anyone noticing. That was where I needed to be.

  “We’ll be back soon,” Valora whispered, handing me her bouquet of white flowers—the same color as her beautiful dress. “Adrik is keen on consummating the marriage as quickly as possible.”

  A genuine smile crossed my face at my friend’s enthusiasm for getting to the bedroom this time around. The pair left with a hungry growl from Adrik, his new wife giggling in his arms as he swept her from the great hall.

  No one followed. New kingdom, new rules, and the newlyweds didn’t want to share their private moment with anyone.

  Finally. Some normality, I thought, slipping through the shadows and out into the newly planted gardens. The bramble-like structures had been replaced with greenery and flowers. I set Valora’s bouquet near a particularly beautiful display and sighed as I walked through the maze of bushes, adoring the life protruding from the grounds.

  “Zay?” Grigory’s voice came from behind me, causing me to stiffen.

  “It’s Zaya,” I reminded him for the hundredth time today. The millionth time since we’d met.

  He ignored my correction. “Aren’t you joining the festivities?”

  And watch you hit on everything that moves? No, thank you. “I needed some fresh air.”

  “What you need is to have some fun.” He waved a beer mixed with blood in my face to demonstrate his point.

  I batted it away. “I was having plenty of fun before you came outside.”

  He looked doubtful. “More like wallowing in self-pity.”

  “Says the male who is refusing to speak to his mother over Valora’s birthright,” I countered. But to be honest, I agreed with his feelings on the subject completely. She lied to him, kept too many secrets, and put my best friend through hell. To say I disliked Lux would be an understatement.

  But I knew this topic would make Grigory leave me alone because anything and everything regarding Queen Lux pissed him off right now.

  “Are you trying to piss me off, Zay?” he asked, eyes narrowed. Most would fear a look like that from the esteemed Prince of Noxia, but his blood had linked us. Indefinitely. I could see inside his mind just as he could see into mine.

  Another factor of his acquaintance I hated. Almost as much as his ridiculous nickname for me.

  “Zaya,” I growled through gritted teeth. “I’m going back to my room. I’ll come down again when Valora and Adrik are back.”

  Grigory grabbed my hand and pulled me close to him. “Don’t be—”

  My hand cracked across his cheek, causing him to stumble backward. I jumped at my reaction, brushing my mouth with my fingertips, gazing at him with wide eyes. It’d been an instinctual reaction to someone touching me. A male. Here. On these grounds.

  I’m going inside. “I-I…” I swallowed, the words trapped in my throat.

  “No, I shouldn’t have done that,” he said, his voice softening. He set his beer on a nearby bench, his expression falling into a mask of softness that I hated. It was the look of a man handling a frightened animal, and I didn’t want to be that frightened animal.

  “It’s…” I trailed off, unable to voice it.

  “The grounds.” He took a step forward, his hands before him as if to warn me of his intentions, to show his lack of a threat. “What happened to you here is a nightmare no one should have to live through. But you did. And you’re stronger for it.”

  “Then why are you looking at me as if I might break?” I countered.

  “Because I don’t want to get slapped again.” His lips twitched, his head angling to the side in a more playful manner. “And because you’re going to dance with me.”

  I snorted. This arrogant side of him I could handle so much more than the one that pretended to care. “Go find another bridesmaid to fuck, Grigory.”

  “Oh, I will. But I want to dance with you first.”

  “Foreplay?” I taunted, arching a brow.

  “Everything in life is merely an interlude to pleasure,” he replied, his grin wicked. “Dance with me.”

  “No.” I abhorred male touch. It made my skin crawl. And the knowledge that I had the blood of one coursing through my veins brought bile to my throat. “I don’t want to dance.”

  He sighed. “Living a life in hiding isn’t living at all, sweetheart.”

  “Then maybe you shouldn’t have brought me back,” I said quietly, stepping away from him. It was his interference that forced me to be here. I’d have likely died otherwise. What if that was my true fate and he’d altered it in error?

  “Zaya.” It was the first time he’d called me by my proper name. “You’re better than this, and we both know it. Yes, these lands are shrouded in the darkness that tried to destroy you, but sometimes facing those demons is what we need to heal.”

  A shiver spread down my spine. That would never happen. This was my life now.

  We fell silent, the amicable air between us oddly soothing. />
  I studied the sky, adoring the new stars Valora had created. It served this kingdom so much better than the violet sun ever did.

  “I’m happy for her,” I whispered. “For Adrik, too.” Although I barely knew him, I saw how happy he made my friend. That was what mattered most.

  Fireworks erupted in the night sky as if on cue, causing Grigory to chuckle.

  “Seems Valora is quite thrilled as well,” he said knowingly. “It must be fun being able to produce lights like that when you come. Not to mention the pride Adrik must feel.”

  “You realize she’s your sister, right?” I prompted, laughing at his resulting expression.

  He shuddered. “An image I do not need.”

  “You’re the one talking about Adrik fucking his bride.”

  Another cringe. He picked up his beer and took a long swig. “You’re a spoilsport, Zay.”

  I shook my head. “It’s Zaya.”

  “Isn’t that what I said?” he asked, winking. “Dance with me and maybe I’ll get it right.”

  “That doesn’t sound promising.”

  He smiled. “Trust me, sweetheart. It’s very promising.”

  “You’re incorrigible.”

  “And you love it.”

  Yeah, I supposed I kind of did. Not that I’d ever admit it out loud.

  He held out his hand. “Please?”

  This man was going to be the death of me. Or perhaps, something more. Because every time we touched, a zap of energy warmed my veins. Just like it did now as I finally agreed. “One dance.”

  “To last a lifetime,” he replied, his dimples flashing.

  He led me back inside, to a place I considered my own personal hell. Although, his presence seemed to brighten it just a little, causing my heart to beat faster for an entirely different reason.

  Perhaps there was hope for me yet.

  The End For Now…

  Interested in Grigory and Zaya’s story? Happily Ever Bitten is available for preorder on Amazon.

  Enjoy demons and angels? Check out Lexi’s Dark Provenance series here. Or maybe you want to play with hot vampires? Check out her Blood Alliance series here.