Chapter Two
Kronos
The suffocating trepidation that had once bloomed as he watched Kristina’s inert form shifted into something subtler in his stomach.
She was breathing again. She was alive, and Kronos knew why.
Sealing his mouth over her lips, he had pushed the air back into her, yet even though he could see the rise and fall of her chest, she still hadn’t been brought back to life.
Not properly.
Her cheeks had pinked up, and gazing down at her, he noticed the way her fingers fidgeted, yet her wonderful blue orbs that he had so easily fallen into remained closed.
For one dreadful moment, he was seized by the terror of paranoid what-ifs. What if he’d got to her too late? What if she’d been there unconscious on the marble for longer than he realized and her brain had been denied oxygen for too long?
He could bring her back to physical consciousness, but she might never be the woman he’d learned to adore. What would he do then? Even his magic couldn’t bring her back from that boundless brink.
Steadying his scrambling emotions, he skimmed his palm over her skin, smoothing her golden stray hair from her face.
Her flesh was warm and inviting, reassuring him that all was well, as did the calm and regular heartbeat he sensed pounding in her chest. While Kronos was no medic, he had been around mortals for many lifetimes, and he knew what their bodies required.
His magic ensured that she had everything she needed, and the physical signs of her improvement were good.
Glancing up to the wall of glass, he scowled. Somehow, she’d got past his protective charms and opened the door to the cloud garden—matters that would need to be addressed when she was in better health—but doing so had meant she’d run out of air and lost consciousness.
“Kristina!” His voice was terser that time, his concern and irritation mingling with exasperation. “I know you’re awake.”
He didn’t know anything of the sort for certain, but he was willing to wager that, if all was well, the one thing that might coax her back to reality was the risk of his consequences. The mortal he’d met had both loved and loathed them.
Leaning closer, his voice deepened as he whispered the next three words over her face. “Open. Your. Eyes.”
She swallowed at the warning, a scarcely noticeable signal of her awareness, but so focused on her well-being was Kronos, that he immediately acknowledged the deed.
Lips curling at the gesture, he was more and more certain that her unconsciousness was all for show.
At the very least, it appeared she understood what he was telling her.
“Or, perhaps you’re not opening them on purpose.” He paused, aware vaguely of the smirk that painted his expression as he went on. “Maybe you know how much trouble you’re in and you don’t want to face your master.”
Her lids flickered at his suggestion, a crease appearing on her otherwise flawless brow.
Kronos shook his head at the sight, though, in truth, it was relief that emanated at the gesture.
A furrowed brow indicated that she was indeed awake and able to decipher his meaning.
She was only choosing not to directly respond.
“Master?”
Her voice trembled as, slowly, she finally complied and opened her eyes. The windows to her soul were filled with questions, the surest sign yet that she was still the woman he remembered.
“Kristina.” He’d never been happier to see anyone awake. “What have you been up to, naughty girl?”
“I…” She attempted to lift her head, but then stilled, moaning in protest. “What happened? I have a headache.”
Settling her head back gently on the ground, he sighed. He didn’t like that she was in pain. The only hurt he was willing to accept being inflicted on the sweet blonde was the sort he intended to deliver personally.
“I was hoping you’d tell me, little one.
” His relief was morphing into a far more familiar feeling.
Looking at her incited the usual mix of vexation at the way she defied his command and the unyielding desire she inspired.
“I returned to find you out of bed, and when I found you by the open door, you weren’t breathing. ”
He placed emphasis on the fact that the door had been opened, watching her reactions carefully. One of her hands rose to her temple and rubbed her forehead as she replied.
“I wasn’t breathing?”
Her heart rate sped up at the news.
“Hmmm.” He didn’t like to dwell on that bleak moment for longer than he had to. “Someone had to breathe the life back into you.”
Arching an eyebrow at her, he was increasingly confident that she would emerge from her latest adventure unscathed.
That was, until he decided what penalty to bestow to reiterate why mortals should never play with his magic.
More perplexing than how to punish her, though, was the riddle of how his little one had known what word to utter to insist the glass vanish in the first place.
He had no idea she knew any Greek, but he’d need to be more careful in the future.
“You did that?” Disbelief reverberated in her voice.
“Excuse me?” he prompted, ensuring the same brow flexed in her direction.
She’d been through a lot, but one thing he wasn’t prepared to relent on was the way she addressed him. He had rules for a reason, and her obedience was not negotiable. He had to quell her desire to flee, whether that be via their passion or her fear of his consequences.
One way or another, she would come to heel.
“Master.” She pressed her lips together as she spoke, as though she was tasting the word. “Did you save me?”
He smiled at the way she made that sound. He had saved her, and though he hoped it would never be necessary, he would do it all over again if required.
“Yes.”
He’d intended for the reply to be firmer, to reinforce the need for his honorific, but in the end, he couldn’t find the will to be so stern.
His little one seemed unharmed, and even an old devil like Kronos couldn’t believe how lucky that made him.
Oxygen deprivation was no joke on the human body, and even though the air in the room was entirely contrived by his magic, she still needed it to survive.
Managing to bring her back with no tangible consequences was nothing short of a miracle.
“Chest compressions and the kiss of life seemed to do it.” He cast an eye over her, thanking whichever cosmic power was responsible for how well she’d fared.
Once upon a time, he’d cursed its influence, sneering at anything that might hold dominion over him, but with Kristina’s life, that power had blessed him.
“You might be a little sore where I pushed on your sternum, but I didn’t break any ribs. ”
Her eyes widened at the news, the hand that rubbed at her head lowering to graze between her breasts. She was still largely covered by the robe he’d adorned her in for Shelley’s ritual, but she was just as stunning as he recalled; the living epitome of temptation.
“Well… thank you, Master.”
“My pleasure.” Commanding his power with one stroke of his index finger, he ordered the surrounding energy to cradle her and elevate her from the ground. “Though I was not intending to have to save you again.”
He’d rescued her once from thugs on the street and had wrongly assumed that was the last danger she’d need to overcome. Evidently, where Kristina was concerned, he needed to be more prudent.
“What happened to me, Master?” Glancing around her as she rose, he noted how labored her breathing had become; not ideal for a mortal who’d only recently been deprived of breath.
“You must remain calm,” he warned. “You’ll need time to recover.”
He brought her slowly into an upright position, rotating her body so she’d slip easily into his waiting arms. She responded at once, hiking her dress up her thighs and wrapping her legs around his middle before closing her delicate arms around his neck in an attempt to cling on.
Not that she needed to worry. Kronos would never let her fall.
“But I don’t know what happened, Master.” Her breath was warm on his collarbone.
“You opened the door to my cloud garden.” He worked hard to avoid the recriminations in his voice, but he heard them there, loitering in the undertone. “I’m sure I once told you that you would regret trying to leave, little one. It was no idle threat, I assure you.”
He dreaded to consider what would have happened if he hadn’t returned when he had.
Kronos would never have forgiven himself for that, but holding her in his arms, what she’d been trying to achieve when she’d strode out of the door occurred to him all over again.
Even though he’d looked after her, he’d fed and pleasured her, and even though he’d offered her understanding about the claustrophobia she’d experienced, she’d still tried to leave him.
He gazed down at the diminutive woman in his embrace, pushing down the surge of disappointment that swelled with the verdict.
After everything they’d been through, why had she chosen to flee? He thought their shared desire had helped them reach a collective accord, but apparently, he’d been wrong. Did he need to keep her permanently bound to ensure she stayed where he left her?
His attention slid instinctively in the direction of the bed he’d conjured.
The sleep charm he’d cast before he left should have kept her dozing for most of the day.
How in the gods had she been able to diminish its power so effectively that she’d been up and able to explore before he’d even arrived back in his realm?
The concern knotted in his chest, ricocheting until he frowned.
It wasn’t the first time the tiny mortal had appeared partially inoculated to his magic, yet still, he couldn’t understand how or why she was able to offer such resistance.
How was a woman of science with no discernible magical qualities so capable of countering his intentions?
“I thought you meant that you’d punish me, Master.” She buried her face against his shoulder. “Nothing more.”
“Oh, I will,” he assured her. He’d already decided to take her back to his parlor and think through everything that had transpired.
As he remembered, Kristina already had a litany of offences that required his focus.
Her lack of obedience was fast becoming a problem.
She hadn’t complied when he’d asked her to kneel beside Shelley for the ritual and, more disconcertingly, she hadn’t seen fit to tell him how she’d been panicky and claustrophobic in her cell until he needed to leave with Shelley.
Reticence to her new situation, he could understand, but blatant omissions of the truth amounted to the breaking of yet another of his rules.
That required penalty, even before he’d addressed the matter of her attempting to escape.
As soon as his little one was healthy enough to tolerate his attention, she would get a reminder about what happened when she ignored his regulations.
“It wasn’t supposed to be a challenge, though, Kristina.” His words were a sigh from his lips. “It’s dangerous for you beyond my realm.”
“I see that now.” Her head rose, watery eyes meeting his. “Are those actual clouds out there, Master?” She motioned hesitantly toward the windows. “I never got outside to find out.”
“I imagine you didn’t.” He glowered, imagining the scene when the door had opened and her air had run out.
All the years he’d kept mortals, training and worshipping them with no real problems, then along came Kristina, with her curiosity and her questions, and everything changed. She’d overcome his charm and managed to find her way into genuine trouble.
Tightening his arms around her, he blew out a breath.
Even though she seemed no worse for her intrepid exploit, the thought of losing her plagued him.
There had never been anyone like her before, and having searched for eons, he couldn’t believe there was another one out there who could replace her.
Whatever happened, he had to keep her safe. Had to help her to understand how important she’d become to him.
“Master?” Her voice was tiny as she prompted. “The clouds?”
“We shall talk about such things,” he replied, hoping to delay the conversation until she was healed. “But not now. First, you must tell me how you feel.” His stare drilled into her. “Are you dizzy? Does your head ache? How’s your memory?”
Her eyes flitted closed for a moment as she considered his queries. “I feel a little better now, Master.” She managed a small smile. “Just thirsty.”
He opened his right hand and, seconds later, a glass of water appeared in his palm. “Here.” He thrust the vessel at her. “Drink it all for me.”
One trembling hand reached for the glass, and pressing it to her lips, she took a sip, her eyes never leaving his.
Her gaze spoke of her continued stunned disbelief that she still couldn’t fathom how he was achieving the end, but that didn’t matter.
He would deal with her questions, but only when she was back where she needed to be; healthy, naked, and at his feet.
“And your memory?” he prompted. “What do you recall of how you ended up not breathing on my floor?”
Taking another drink from the glass, she pulled in a shaky breath. “I remember waking up in bed to find you weren’t here.”
The look she shot him was almost an accusation, but there was little potency in the expression. He teetered on the edge of reprimanding her, but the truth was, he wanted to hear what she had to say. “You said you’d be back, Master, but you weren’t.”
“Yes.” He recalled making the vow, yet he still had no explanation for how she’d stirred before he’d returned. “You seem to have some immunity to my sleep spells, little one. I do not yet know how you have achieved the feat.”
“Me neither.” Her gaze lowered. “I only know that bad things seem to happen whenever you’re not with me.”
Inclined to agree, he guided the glass back to her lips. They would need to be together in order for him to keep her safe.
“Then there is only one way forward, little one.” With one final glance at the clouds, he carried her away from the oblivion that she had tried to flee to. “From now on, you shall not leave my side.”