The Temple of Persephone by Isabella Kamal

Author:Isabella Kamal [Kamal, Isabella]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Blackstone Publishing

Twenty

Persephone paced around her room, feeling like a bubble on the verge of bursting. Aidon wanted her, she wanted him, and yet an unforgiving combination of excitement and dread had her unable to sit still.

And with Mr. Haskett escorting Christianna home, she and Aidon would be alone.

The kisses they’d shared had been deliciously perfect, so it followed that there was absolutely nothing for her to be worried about. But Persephone, for better or for worse, was a worrier. Put her alone in a room, and she could emerge having thought through no less than a hundred scenarios born entirely out of anxiety.

Whenever she was alone with Aidon, she felt like she was on the precipice of something. She had agreed to this marriage to protect her family, yes, but also because she’d known, deep inside her, that it had the potential to bring her closer to something like happiness—freedom.

And if she hesitated to explore every facet of what this marriage had to offer, it was because a small part of her still insisted that she did not deserve affection, and especially not from such a frustratingly handsome, kindhearted man. How would he react upon seeing her naked body, free of the soft curves men were known to favor? And would he notice the not-so-smooth skin on the backs of her thighs? The freckles that dusted the gap between her breasts? She’d told Aidon that she had never heard anybody wax poetic about her beauty, and that was true. She had good days despite it all, but she also knew that some wounds might simply never go away. They would heal, but a scab would always remain. Some insecurities were hard to shake.

“Maybe I should take a bath,” she mumbled to herself. The warm water would relax her. She called for a maid and asked for a bath to be prepared, hoping desperately her nerves didn’t show. If they did, the elderly woman who appeared to help did not seem to mind. Persephone exchanged awkward small talk with the maid, hoping to distract herself. She was still not used to relying on servants and had a hard time making casual conversation with them.

As was their custom, the maid asked if Persephone required assistance with bathing and was politely declined. She was left alone in the bathing room, steam wafting up from the hot water that filled the deep copper tub. Walking over to the neatly stocked shelves that lined the wall, she selected a glass bottle of lavender oil for her bath. She watched as the oil drops hit the water. Carefully, she removed her clothing and eased herself into the tub, letting a puff of air escape as she adjusted to the temperature of the water. The wet linen felt pleasant against her back, and she reclined, sinking down.

The warm, fragrant bath was meant to distract her, but it was doing a poor job, as Persephone was already thinking about Aidon. She had felt embarrassed before he’d pulled her into that second kiss, thinking she’d mucked up the first one.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.