Chapter 8
“Do not feel upset, Evangeline. He is a typical male,” said Hera later on that evening. The goddess had taken a strange approach to Elle’s jealousy. She immediately escorted her from the crowd of people, citing that when a woman was under duress it was always best to let emotions loose in confinement rather than public. That way, no one would ever know how broken the woman felt. The next step the goddess took was an almost motherly approach. She provided Elle with a drink and then began to give a strange type of pep talk.
Elle said nothing as she slowly sipped at her pumpkin- and cinnamon-flavored cider. It was utterly irrational that she was sad regarding Jack being with Voluptas, but she was. Elle couldn’t help but feel hurt over the way Jack held her close.
“You will come to find that there are many traits of men you must overlook in order to successfully run a kingdom,” said Hera, pouring her some more pumpkin cider. “Drink, dear; it calms the nerves.”
Elle nodded as she slowly drank. The beverage was tasty. “Why do you speak as if you know what I’m feeling?”
Hera raised a delicate eyebrow. “I believe you have no doubt heard of the many stories mortals have cast down involving my husband and me?”
Elle felt nearly afraid to answer her. It was no secret that Zeus had many affairs in Greek mythology. Some of the most popular affairs resulted in the births of Apollo and Hermes. Hera grinned as Elle slowly nodded. “My beloved husband has a very strong sexual appetite, which was the reason why I never desired to marry him. Did you know I never wanted to be Queen of the Gods?” Elle gently shook her head. Hera smiled wistfully. “’Tis true. I did not want a philandering husband who looked at nearly every woman who passed him with lust. I refused to be queen and in no sparing of words told Zeus where he could shove his marriage proposal.” She laughed airily, tossing her long mane of golden blonde hair to the side.
Elle frowned. “So why did you accept his proposal?”
“Simple,” Hera sighed. “I fell in love with the idiot after Zeus tricked me. One day, I held pity for a canary with a broken wing. I brought the creature close to my chest to hug, and Zeus revealed his true form. He kissed me, and from there our love blossomed.” She nodded, a small smile playing on her lips. She recovered from her loving memory, clearing her throat. “The moral of this short tale is to reveal that even though you may feel hurt and broken over your future husband’s many philandering moments, you are still the queen he will come home to, so do not worry.”
Elle blinked. That was the moral of her story? Elle should simply remember she was queen while the women Jack had as his mistresses weren’t? That wasn’t a marriage. That was simply settling because one desired to remain queen. Hera then leaned in to embrace Elle, gently patting her back. “I am so grateful I was the one to share ‘The Talk’ with you.” She smiled warmly in a motherly manner. The look was quite odd for someone who looked only in her early twenties to be wearing.
“So your helpful advice is I should be fine that my fiancé has a girlfriend because I’ll be his wife?” said Elle slowly, certain her face held the expression of utmost confusion.
“See, you are learning already.” Hera smiled with sincerity. “I understand it may at first feel unfair that you are not allowed to have outside romances while your husband can, but I assure you once you slip on the crown of Winter’s throne, you will understand all that matters is how you run your kingdom.”
“Oh wow, you’re actually serious,” said Elle, her eyes widening.
“Indeed.” Hera smiled happily. “You could also spend your free time finding glorious ways to punish your husbands’ mistresses and bastard offspring.” She nodded, standing before her, smoothing out the wrinkles that taking a seat caused on her gown.
Elle was speechless as the goddess made her way toward the large doors to exit the bedroom. “Are you quite certain you would not enjoy a return to the festivities?” said Hera. “Amphitrite and I have lovely evening planned on casting calls of the best and worst dress of the evening!”
“Er…I’m very sure, thank you, Hera,” said Elle, silently feeling Hermes had a point in believing his stepmother was a very spiteful and somewhat crazy individual.
Still, Hera was one of the only people who spared her kindness in this strange land; Elle couldn’t complain about her unorthodox and unhelpful advice.
The goddess gave a happy nod before vanishing. Elle felt she needed a strong dose of fresh air to clear her mind. Just thinking of the word jealousy caused her to flush with embarrassment. Or would perhaps the better word be envious? Elle shook her head, choosing to ignore the little green monster that had taken up residence inside of her.
She went over and unlocked the doors leading to the balcony. Outside, the night sky was dazzling with an enormous golden moon while the sky twinkled brightly with a strong variety of stars. The sparkling, crystallized city was far below the mountain the palace of Boreas sat upon. Elle gently listened to the wind, focusing on such a simple thing to avoid thinking about Jack. She found herself disappointed she never tried venturing onto the balcony at night before. Although chilly, it was very beautiful outside. Elle took a few steps closer to the balcony before something from behind her halted her movement. Her dress was stuck, no doubt catching on something, given how long it was.
“Stupid dress,” muttered Elle, only to find the dress wasn’t snagged on anything to not flow with her; someone was simply standing on it. Jack Frost had arrived. He was now fully clothed in his outfit she had first seen him in earlier. His grey eyes locked with Elle’s brown ones as she looked at him.
“You really shouldn’t wear dresses like that,” he noted quietly. “It makes it difficult to run away.”
Elle glanced down at her glorious diamond-studded tight number before transferring her gaze to the floor. He made a point.
“What’s this? No snappy comeback to put me in my place?” said Jack, tilting his head to watch her. Elle didn’t say a word as she watched the floor. Her memory burned of him and Voluptas caught in a compromising position.
“Is there something you want?” said Elle, not able to look Jack in the face.
“I want to know why you were searching for me,” Jack said, nearly just as quiet. “What’s the matter? Did draping yourself over Lord Lightbulb become dull?”
Elle’s brows eyes snapped up to meet his gaze. “What?”
“I suppose it did after a while,” said Jack, ignoring her question. “Apollo is one who cannot help but start boring a girl with poetry or astronomy,” he said, stifling a snort.
His rudeness caused Elle to frown. “Is there a reason you’re being such a jerk?”
Jack feigned total innocence. “Name calling? Tsk, tsk, Letter. If you want to chase after a man who has a couple dozen children already, no need to go on the attack about it. I only want to know why you were looking for me.”
“Really? It just seems like you’re invested in being mean to me for no reason,” Elle shot back, attempting to swallow her hurt.
Jack’s grey eyes held strong coldness as his lip curled. “What did you want?”
“Why do you care?”
“I don’t.”
Elle rubbed her forehead wearily. “Then go.”
“Interesting moment,” said Jack, slowly stepping closer to Elle after his booted foot released her gown. “As I was looking for you, I overheard Hera grumbling how she was now dis-inviting me to her summer gala for how I disrespected your feelings. Now truly I couldn’t care less, given I despise large gatherings, but what piqued my interest was how upset she was on your behalf.”
Elle’s eyes widened before she winced. She inwardly prayed Hera had not revealed that she was jealous. Elle’s heart must have been beating faster once more, for Jack’s eyes momentarily glanced at her chest before returning to look her in the eye. “So, I disrespected your feelings, yes?”
“No.”
He grumbled under his breath realizing Elle was not invested in answering. “Wh
at was Hera talking about?”
“I don’t know.”
“You are quite stubborn,” Jack noted, his eyes narrowing. “However, it is unfortunate for you that so am I. You will tell me what I want to know, otherwise I won’t leave your room.”
“And that threat is supposed to inspire me to talk?” said Elle.
Jack merely rolled his shoulders as he proceeded to lean against a nearby wall. Unfortunately, it was one that was directly across from Elle’s bed. “Certainly. Unless you believe you can sleep knowing someone is watching you all night. Maybe I shall find a couple hundred deities to keep you company and converse with one another as loud as they can simply so you cannot fall asleep.”
Elle scowled. She had no doubt Jack would do such a thing. “Hera thought I was upset because I found you with Voluptas,” she explained in a mumbled tone.
Jack was uncharacteristically quiet for the longest moment. “Was she right?”
Elle shook her head gently. Jack appeared before her. He used a pale finger to force Elle’s chin up to look at him. She didn’t struggle under his cold touch. Jack seemed deeply agitated she was refusing to vocally answer him.
“Was she right?” said the immortal again, this time in a rougher voice as he kept Elle looking at him.
“Let go of me.”
“That’s not an answer.”
“I don’t owe you one!” snapped Elle, slapping his hand away. “I went looking for you and you were busy. Hera asked where I was, I said I found you with your girlfriend, and she assumed I was jealous. That’s it.”
“What aren’t you telling me?”
“Nothing!”
“Then why do you look and sound as though you are resisting tears?”
“Oh my gosh…” Elle near laughed, shaking her head. “Do you have an off button? There’s nothing wrong. I’m not sad,” she muttered, turning to walk away only for Jack to appear directly in front of her, blocking her path.
“Are you sad?” said Jack, his brows furrowing as he took in Elle’s flushed expression. She gently bit her full bottom lip, trying not to display emotion. Her cheeks flushed.
“Yes,” she finally admitted, staring up at him in disgust as she thought carefully of what to say. “I’m sad that I was kidnapped. I’m sad I’m stuck here with a lot of people who hate me and a jerk fiancé who has a very hard time understanding what personal space is!”
“Not quite what I was asking,” said Jack, his expression softening. “Did seeing me with Voluptas upset you?”
“Why would it?”
Jack didn’t blink before he answered. “Because you cannot look at me without those chocolate-brown eyeballs of yours misting. You didn’t like me with Voluptas, did you?”
“Are you accusing me of caring that you were with the goddess of nothing important?”
Jack tilted his frosted head to eye Elle. He seemed genuinely confused in this given moment. “Why is it you care what I do when you’re pressing yourself against Lord Sunbeam on the dance floor?” he fired back, his eyes narrowing.
“What are you talking about?”
“Are you going to deny that you pressed your scantily clad body against Apollo while dancing?”
Elle flushed. “I’m not scantily clad! This was the dress Hera picked out!”
“It barely reaches your mid-thigh,” scoffed Jack with an eye roll. “Back in my time of living among humans, your outfit would have been considered the clothing of a harlot.”
“Oh really, old-man winter?” Elle shot back. “Well, back in your day, ‘scantily clad’ was showing off your ankles!”
“It appears tonight you are showing off much more than your ankles, my betrothed,” said Jack, returning Elle’s harsh glare.
A sudden realization dawned on Elle that caused her eyes to widen. It was his bitter tone that caught her off-guard. “Is that why you were with Voluptas? You thought I was throwing myself at Apollo?”
“Do not play dumb,” retorted Jack. “It’s not a good look on you. I saw the way Apollo looked at you and you at him. I heard what he said…how he wanted to keep you.”
Elle slowly realized that Jack’s reasoning for going off with the goddess of hair extensions was relatively simple. “You were jealous,” she accused, a light smile slipping onto her lips.
This was the wrong thing to accuse him of. Jack immediately transferred their positions from standing to him pressing Elle against a nearby wall. It happened so quickly there was no time to gasp as he gently held her shoulders. She trembled with nervous fear as Jack towered over her, his grey eyes holding a very cold look behind them. “Did you just accuse me of being jealous over a lowly mortal such as yourself?”
Butterflies erupted in Elle’s stomach as she watched him with wide eyes. She contemplated what he said before nodding slowly. Jack’s jaw clenched as he watched her with that all-too-familiar blank stare of his. His grey eyes held a certain cruelty behind them as he glared at Elle almost as if she disgusted him.
“Yeah, I did,” said Elle in a small voice. As she diverted her brown eyes to the floor, she could feel Jack’s gaze watching her deeply.
“We’re going to play a little game,” said Jack, his grey eyes narrowing as he watched Elle with a peculiar expression. “I’m going to ask a question, and you have to answer truthfully. If you answer without lying, I shall leave you alone. If you do not, something bad will happen.”
Elle’s eyes widened. That probably wasn’t a good thing that he did not elaborate what he meant by bad. Her scared thoughts drifted to how easily he broke Apollo’s legs with the flick of his hands. Without even blinking, Jack had shoved a sharpened icicle through his older brother’s skull. Maybe her first thoughts about Jack Frost were accurate; he was insane. Elle found she fluttered between feeling nervous around him and yet feeling delighted he wanted to be close to her by being only a foot away. Going against her better judgment, she nodded her head.
“Did you go in search of me because you’ve been wondering why I was short with you?”
Elle slowly nodded. “Why were you—”
“You do not ask the questions during this game, kitten,” said Jack, sparing her his crooked grin. It slipped off his pale lips quickly. “When you found me with Voluptas, were you upset?”
Elle diverted her eyes to the ground once more, causing Jack’s nimble fingers to gently tilt her head up to look at him. “I don’t believe my answer is going to be on the floor,” he said quietly.
“Yes,” admitted Elle in a small voice, fighting the urge to cover her face with both hands. The warm blush creeping onto her cheeks was rather annoying. Using a chilled finger, Jack gently stroked her warm cheek, obviously noticing the blush as well.
“Why were you upset?” said Jack quietly, his gaze unbreakable.
“I was sad,” Elle finally admitted, wincing as she desperately wanted to hide away from this horribly revealing moment. “I was sad realizing the moment we shared meant nothing to you,” she mumbled, all the while feeling rather pathetic.
Too long of a silence went by, causing Elle to wonder what he was thinking. “Final question,” said Jack, his expression unreadable. “If I asked for permission to kiss you again, would you allow me to?”
Elle’s eyes widened in surprise as he looked down at her with a rather composed expression. Would she let him? A very strong part of her wanted to scream yes as she threw herself at him. But her pride was on the back burner, slowly dominating her thoughts.
“No, not after you were with her,” said Elle, frowning.
Jack nodded. “I didn’t kiss her,” he offered quietly.
The memory of him with Voluptas still burned bright in her memory. “No, you just did more than kissing with her,” she said, wanting to look anywhere but at his face.
“I saw Apollo’s hand rubbing your waist and how he said he wished to keep you. I saw the way you looked at him with those deep brown eyes. When Voluptas took my hand to lead me to another room, I didn’t stop her. I didn’t
stop her when she started removing my clothes and when she started kissing me—”
“I really don’t want to hear this,” Elle scolded, nearly wanting to cover her ears in an immature fashion.
“I think you need to,” said Jack, his eyes narrowing. “Things did not progress further than what you witnessed. Do you want to know why it went as far as it did?”
Elle froze with silent fear, not quite knowing whether she really wanted to know the answer to that. Jack went on to answer anyway.
“I despised you near the sun god,” Jack breathed. “I didn’t like seeing it, not one little bit. Seeing him touching you while you’re dressed so revealing…” He trailed off, his eyes raking over Elle’s entire form, from her face all the way down to her toes.
“I wanted to rip Apollo’s intestines out and strangle him with them,” admitted Jack, looking utterly unapologetic over saying something so violent. He ran a cool finger to brush against her cheek gently. Elle was certain her expression held utter horror, causing him to smile wickedly. “He wouldn’t have died, so I’d have gotten away with it. But you wouldn’t have liked that,” he said, frowning as he watched Elle.
Elle’s mystified expression caused Jack chuckle dryly. “I’ve been avoiding you purposely, Elle Darrow. I’ve been fighting the urge for a while to pin you against a wall and deal with the strange feeling I have when I see you. I want to feel your warm lips press against mine as I work to get you to murmur my name over and over again in euphoria…” he admitted with a devious glint to his eyes.
He leaned forward, this time his mouth and nose brushing the top of Elle’s scalp. She shivered gently; Jack radiated too much cold, almost as if he had no blood flowing throughout his body.
“Don’t move,” said Jack quietly. His chilled lips felt like an ice cube leaving a soft caress against her skin. He moved his mouth from her forehead to gently brush against her temple.
Betrothed To Jack Frost Box Set Page 25
