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Archdemon Empress Luna

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"You can rely on me, your husband, so that you can relax."

Luna held his hand, which rested on her chest, and spun around to hug her husband.

Heat radiated throughout her heart as if it was growing flowers, giving her a warm fuzzy feeling.

This must be what spring felt like if it were an emotion.

"Thank you, husband, but I can do those things myself." Apollyon's dark skin had a natural musk with a hint of lavender and mint as she inhaled. "I think I can rely on you from time to time, but I don't want to be co-dependent on you but not too much."

'What if we got separated?' Luna thought, but she didn't mention that as she slid her arms around his waist.

Then, she raised her hands to brush against his broad back, her fingers loving the ridges of his spine.

Apollyon wrapped his arms around her in a tight embrace as he combed his fingers in her hair. "I know you can do amazing things. You are intelligent, vigilant, and powerful, but I can be your escape—your safe place when you are tired of looking after yourself." He tucked her head under his chin, and Luna closed her eyes, just basking in her husband's body heat.

She had never felt so safe. "Pregnancy will make a female vulnerable from danger and will require you a lot of your energy." He murmured huskily. "--so you need to focus on that."

Luna could feel the other faeries' eyes looking at them, probably wondering how the Vampire King and his Empress showed their affections for each other so freely compared to the other monarchs—especially in a large celebration such as these.

Apollyon didn't care about what the crowd might think, and she wished she could have the same attitude in life.

He did what he wanted, and Luna aspired to be like that, yet, sometimes, her inhibitions got the best of her.

If Luna tried to be bolder, Apollyon watched her with careful suspicion, accusing her of Lilith.

Luna sighed, not knowing how to act.

She wanted to be as shameless as her husband, requiring her to be more adventurous.

"You don't have to worry about everything." Apollyon's said. "Even if crazy things are happening around us, I will watch over you and protect you."

Luna glanced up to see him wear a cold, unreadable mask—the mask of an immortal who had lived beyond the millennium.

She sucked in a breath as if someone had punched her in the gut.

Apollyon's handsome face had that effect on her.

She was lucky to have him in her life—someone she could rely on and someone who loved her for who she was despite her flaws.

No other man could stand her character and put up with her for real except her mate.

What Luna felt for her husband was strong and powerful that it almost brought tears to her eyes.

Instead of making her husband concerned, Luna gave him a cheeky smile, refusing to back down, "We will protect each other."

"I'll take care of you." Apollyon's blue eyes crinkled at the corners before smacking a quick kiss on the mouth.

He nipped at her lower lip, "Stubborn, cheeky girl."

Pulling back, Luna caressed Apollyon's lower back as she gave him a half-shrug. "--but you love me anyway."

"Like I said, stubborn, cheeky girl." Apollyon let out a husky laugh, and then, his palms caressed her back before it lowered on her hips, peering at her beneath his lashes, "I had never met a female as stubborn as you. I'm glad I am melting your heart like how a mate should."

"I have melted your heart first, Apollyon." Luna reminded him softly—a sort of jest but still carried a grain of truth, "You are a misogynist through and through…"

"That was millennia of mind conditioning of the males from our ancestral bloodline." Apollyon raised a hand to brush his fingers across her cheeks. "This was how the Vampire Realm operated for a long, long time, so you can't entirely blame me for this. I will do my best not to be like my ancestors."

"You haven't told me about the history of the Vampire Realm," Luna said in a cute pout. "You haven't told me about your family and your childhood."

"You didn't tell me much about your past, either, so we are even," Apollyon told her as one hand rested on her ribs just below her breasts. His fingers, on his other hand, were busy playing with her lower lip, "I only knew you were sheltered in the temples when you served the Goddess Artemis as a warrior maiden. That information would be enough for me. Our past isn't important anymore."

"I know you have changed for the better. I am glad to have changed your view on women in general--" Luna trailed off, smiling, "--but not all of them."

"I am learning, my beloved--" Apollyon stroked down the curve of her waist.

Wasn't her husband satisfied with what happened in the narrow alley?

Luna watched her husband coyly, "Hmm?"

Apollyon stared at her for a long, still instant before his lips curved into a secret smile.

Did he want a repeat of that?

Her husband was insatiable.

"You are a worm---"

"Worm?" Her eyes widened, and Luna raised an eyebrow at him, "Did you just call your wife a worm?"

There was heat in Apollyon's eyes as he whispered in his bedroom voice, "You are my silkworm, and I am your cocoon."

Luna clapped her hands as she laughed until her stomach hurt.

"You're getting strange, husband. Your metaphors are hilarious-- " Her pure joy radiated to the depths of her soul that she felt like dancing along with the music with the other couples. "--but sweet."

She had returned to her husband for good.

"Alright." Luna gave her a wide grin. "I will agree to be your worm as long as you will be my cocoon."

Apollyon gripped her chin and kissed her tenderly.

He whispered, "I love you."

The trumpets were blown into a full blast, and Luna and Apollyon flinched, startled by the sound.

The Spring King and Queen had arrived for the Ostara.