“Oh!” Persephone clasped a hand to her mouth. “They’re beautiful.”

The horses snorted and pawed the ground. Hades chuckled. “They say thank you. Would you like to ride?”

“Yes,” she answered immediately. “But...I’ve never...”

“I’ll teach you,” he said.

Hades guided her toward the horse.

“This is Alastor,” he said.

“Alastor,” she whispered his name, caressing his muzzle. “You are magnificent.”

The other horse neighed.

“Careful, Aethon will be jealous.”

Persephone laughed “Oh, you are both magnificent.”

“Careful,” Hades said. “I might get jealous.”

Hades handed Persephone the reins and instructed her to put her foot in the stirrup and sit on the saddle as gently as possible. He gave more direction—sink your weight, lean back, firm up your legs.

“My steeds will listen if you speak—tell them to stop, they will stop. Tell them to slow down, they will slow down.”

“You taught them?” she asked.

“Yes,” he said while mounting Aethon. “Don’t worry, Alastor knows what he carries. He will take care of you.”

They started at a snail’s pace, but Persephone didn’t mind. They’d often gone on walks, but those were isolated to the gardens and her grove, and there was something refreshing about seeing the Underworld this way. Alastor and Aethon trotted side-by-side, and Hades took her into new territory—through fields of purple and pink lupin, rimmed by dark mountains.

“How often do you...change the Underworld?” she asked.

One corner of Hades’ mouth rose. “I wondered when you’d ask me that question.”

“Well?”

“Whenever I feel like it,” he said.

She laughed.

“Perhaps when my magic isn’t so terrifying, I will try.”

“Darling, there is nothing I’d like more.”

They came to the end of the lupin field and continued down a narrow path between the mountains. On the other side, an emerald forest bloomed. Hades kept close to the rocky wall of the mountain. The sound of running water perked Persephone’s interest. That was when Hades stopped and dismounted.

He approached her and helped her down, his hands lingered on her waist.

“You look beautiful today,” he said. “Have I told you?”

She grinned. “Not yet. Tell me again.”

He smiled and kissed her. “You’re beautiful, my darling.”

He took her hand and led her through a line of trees. On the other side was a waterfall that poured off the mountainous rocks into a shimmering lake. It was a million shades of blue, and clear as crystal.

“Hades,” she whispered. “How gorgeous.”

When she looked at him, his gaze singed, aroused and intense. Awareness shuddered through her and she turned into him.

They didn’t speak, just came together beneath the trees.