Thank You #5
The room nearly exploded as I grabbed her waist hard enough to pull her hard against me again before kissing her hard enough to stop her from laughing at me.
Nina was still smiling when I finally pulled back slightly.
“You look offended.”
“You are weaponizing sacred intimacy.”
“You love it.”
Yes. Yes I did.
Then the teasing finally disappeared beneath something hotter and heavier while the bond wrapped tighter around both of us.
Hands. Mouths. Heat. Everything blurred together afterward into sharp breaths and tangled sheets and Nina dragging me back every single time I tried to pull away long enough to think clearly.
Just both of us ruining each other completely while silver shadows and fire spiraled wildly through the room reacting to every touch between us. The bond shattered through both of us completely while silver fire exploded across the room hard enough to shake the palace windows themselves.
Nina lay sprawled half across my chest afterward breathing hard while silver shadows drifted lazily around the dark ceiling above us.
Her fingers traced absent circles against my skin while I brushed tangled hair back from her face. Then she stared up at me with that same dangerous amused expression she always wore right before causing trouble.
“You’re staring again.”
“You’re still here.”
The teasing faded slightly after that.
“Well yeah,” she murmured. “You’re my husband now. Kind of stuck with me.”
God. This infuriating woman. I kissed her forehead once before lifting both of us from the ruined sheets entirely.
Nina blinked. “Where are we going?”
“You started multiple fires.”
“That sounds fake.”
Silver flames were literally still burning across one wall.
“…Fair.”
The bath chamber filled with silver steam afterward while Nina stayed wrapped around me lazily like she had no intention of existing independently ever again.
She made a soft sound the second I lowered her carefully into the warm water before leaning back against my chest.
“This is nice.”
“That sounded surprised.”
“I expected more demonic drama after supernatural marriage sex.”
My wife definitely needs a filter to her mouth.
Then her eyes drifted half closed while I washed silver ceremonial paint from her skin piece by piece beneath warm water and drifting shadows. And she relaxed against me while the completed bond settled warm and steady through both our souls.
Mine.
The realization still hits hard every single time.
Eventually Nina barely managed to stay awake long enough to mutter one final sleepy sentence against my shoulder:
“If you tell anyone I got emotional tonight, I’ll kill you.”
Interesting threat considering she was already half asleep.
“I’m deeply terrified.”
“You should be.”
Then approximately thirty seconds later, she fell asleep directly against me anyway.
Epilogue I
Eva POV
Six months later, Hell had coffee shops, and not elegant royal cafes for nobles either, but crowded little places with terrible handwritten menus, exhausted employees, and drinks named after palace scandals, which was apparently all my fault.
“The ‘Future Queen Breakdown Latte’ is still disrespectful,” Anderson said while walking beside me through the lower city market.
“I didn’t name it.”
“You inspired it.”
“That feels legally different.”
The market streets glowed beneath silver lanterns while demons crowded between vendor stalls carrying flowers, books, glowing charms, and paper cups full of aggressively caffeinated drinks.
The city sounded different now, louder and warmer than before, with far less fear hiding beneath the noise.
A group of younger demons sprinted past us laughing while one yelled:
“I TOLD YOU NOT TO SUMMON THAT IN THE APARTMENT.”
Nina’s influence had spread like a disease. Ahead of us, music drifted through the market square where the old cult members now ran the most popular shop in the district.
Apparently surviving exile, summoning royalty, and crying publicly for several weeks turned them into local celebrities. One of them noticed me and almost dropped an entire tray of candles.
“Lady Eva!”
I smiled despite myself. “You’re still selling destiny candles?”
The old man looked deeply offended. “Of course. Business doubled after your wedding.”
“That feels unsafe.”
“It feels romantic.”
Honestly, there was no winning this argument anymore. Before I could continue, warmth brushed softly through the bond. Then a hand settled against the small of my back.
My heartbeat betrayed me instantly anyway.
Kaelith stood beside me wearing dark royal robes rolled carelessly at the sleeves like he’d abandoned formality halfway through the day again. Silver markings glowed faintly beneath the collar of his throat where our bond rested hidden beneath skin and soul.
The cult members straightened. Not fearful now. But Respectful. That still surprises me sometimes.
“Your husband banned three council members from entering the palace archives today,” Anderson informed me tiredly.
Kaelith looked unimpressed. “They attempted to remove your Earth novels.”
“That was a cultural misunderstanding,” one council member argued weakly from nearby.
“You called them ‘emotionally dangerous propaganda.’”
“They are.”
They definitely were. But I kept silent.
Kaelith’s thumb brushed once absently against my waist while he glanced toward the crowded cafe across the square.
A new sign hung above the entrance.
THE SUMMONING DISASTER
Extra strong. Questionable life decisions included free.
I laughed hard, my body shaking violently.
Kaelith stared at the sign for a long second. “The kingdom was more dignified before you arrived.”
“That’s not true. Your people used to duel over curtains.”
“That happened once.”
Anderson was exhausted. “It happened four times.”
Across the market, silver fire burst upward from a nearby balcony followed by Nina yelling:
“IF THIS EXPLODES AGAIN I’M DIVORCING YOU.”
Her demon leaned over the balcony railing grinning like the threat improved his mood.
“You already threatened divorce twice this week.”
“YOU SET THE LIbrARY ON FIRE.”
“It was a small fire.”
A section of balcony collapsed behind him. Kaelith didn’t even look surprised anymore. Neither did I.
“That seems serious,” I commented.
“They’re supervised now,” Anderson muttered.
“By who?”
A second explosion echoed across the district.
“…No one is competent apparently.”
The market barely reacted. At this point Hell treated Nina and her demon like a recurring natural disaster.
A tiny hand tugged against the sleeve of my coat. I looked down to find the same little demon girl from the lower district markets staring up at me with flowers tucked into both horns.
“You missed festival day last week,” she accused.
“I was in the human world.”
Her eyes widened. “Again?”
Kaelith lifted her easily into his arms before she could start climbing market stalls like last time.
“You are banned from rooftops,” he informed her calmly.
“You climbed rooftops when you were younger.”
He went still. I turned toward him.
“Oh?”
The child pointed proudly. “Your mother told me.”
That explained several things.
Kaelith closed his eyes briefly. “My family discusses too much.”
“You threatened someone with a sword at twelve,” the girl continued happily.
“That feels important actually,” I said.
“It wasn’t.”
The little girl gasped dramatically. “He also punched a duke.”
I covered my mouth trying not to laugh while Kaelith looked moments away from banning his mother from public storytelling permanently.
Then the girl tilted her head curiously toward me.
“Do you still miss Earth?”
The market noise softened around us after that.
It wasn’t awkward silence, just quiet enough for the question to settle between us properly.
I thought about my apartment rooftop, the coffee shops scattered across Hell, human summers, and my parents visiting often enough that my mother now argued with palace staff like it was a full-time profession.
Then I looked at Kaelith standing beside me beneath silver lanterns while a tiny market menace sat comfortably in his arms like the future king of Hell was simply another safe place to rest.
And I remembered the first night he stood silently in my kitchen pretending not to stare at me over coffee.
Everything after that happened so fast. Portals. Arguments. Hell. Love. But this moment felt simple.
“I think,” I answered, “home stopped being one place a long time ago.”
The little girl seemed satisfied with that answer. Then she pointed dramatically toward the cafe's sign again.
“They made another drink for you.”
I looked over.
NEW SPECIAL
THE FUTURE QUEEN
Sweet at first. Ruins your life permanently.
Kaelith sighed beside me. “I should start ruling through fear again.”
The laugh that escaped me echoed softly through the market square. And instantly, his attention shifted completely back to me.
The same way it always did. Like after all this time, he still couldn’t quite believe I was real either.
Epilogue II
Nina POV
The western palace wing exploded again at breakfast. Nobody reacted. Not even one person.
A servant calmly stepped around falling ceiling debris while carrying tea like this happened professionally every morning now.
Honestly? It did.
I stood in the middle of the ruined balcony holding a smoking spell book while silver fire crackled across shattered marble around me. And across from me, my husband looked entirely too pleased with himself. Which usually meant crimes.
“You said this spell summoned harmless shadows.”
“It did.”
Right on cue, three tiny shadow creatures sprinted past us carrying stolen jewelry and what looked suspiciously like someone’s wig.
I pointed. “THAT does not look harmless.”
Lucien watched them leap dramatically off the balcony railing. “They seem absolutely energetic.”
“You are impossible.”
“You’re obsessed with me.”
He was right. But he didn't need to brag about it .