Page 51 of Her Demon Daddy
“This is a special occasion, Siara.”
I frown and look at the ground, wondering what I missed. The Ikoth honor day isn’t until Friday, and the ceremony of honoring the animals isn’t until the end of the month. I know today he prepositioned the court for more housing in the low towns due to complaints of lack of space. I knew it would go well, but I thought it was another day in court for him.
“I’m so sorry,” I say with a frown. “I don’t know what today is. What’s the occasion?”
“We are celebrating life tonight.” He withdraws his hands from mine and puts them in his pockets. “The life we led before each other…” He pulls out a small black box from his right pocket and looks at me with admiration. I feel my heart leap in my chest, and my mouth drops slightly. “The life that brought us together…” He pauses and kneels on the ground, opening the box to reveal a gorgeous blue and green ring with a golden band that has green gemstone leaves holding the stones together. “And our lives together after this moment.”
“Asmodeus…”
He holds up a finger, and I place my hands on my chest, my eyes beginning to water and my throat closing up. My heart is quickening, and my hands begin to sweat as he stares at me again, his face sincere and his tone gentle.
“Siara Drury, you are a woman I never knew existed. You carry with you so much love, peace, and power. You are the most ambitious and intelligent being I have ever encountered. I was told there was a word called love when I was a child. It was nothing more than another line in the mythical books I read until I met you. You saved my life, but more importantly, you showed me that life is worth living and that each day is another opportunity to experience the joys surrounding me. I want nothing more than to present you with this ring as a sign of my gratitude and profound love for everything that you are. So, I kneel before you, a King humbled by your beauty, and ask you, Siara Drury, if you will be my queen.”
“Asmodeus,” I squeak through my clenched throat, and tears stream down my face as I kneel to the floor in front of him. I look at the ring, then back into his eyes as I nod my head and cover my mouth.
He quickly embraces me as we kneel on the dining room floor. I press my head into his chest and sob, overcome with every emotion known to man. I feel an overwhelming love for this man, intense gratitude for the life we’ve built together, the exhilaration from the notion of being his queen, and a feeling that I’ve finally found where I belong.
I fit in his arms better than anywhere else I’ve ever been. His touch is warm and comforting, something a special childhood blanket couldn’t even give me. His heartbeat is as pertinent to my life as mine is, consistently giving me an abundance of life and love.
I pull back from him and look down and sniffle as he slides the ring onto my finger. We lock eyes again, and I see him wipe a tear from his face. I chuckle and place my hand on the side of his face.
“Do demons even cry?” I tease, sniffing after the words leave my mouth.
He laughs heartily before sniffling himself and nodding. “They do now.”
Our faces fall serious, and I kiss him, our lips lightly pressing against each other as my heart lifts in my chest. There are no walls between us now, physical or emotional. I have full faith in him, and he trusts me to be his queen and help him rule over Galmoleth. What matters more is that I accepted a proposal from therealAsmodeus, the demon I always knew beneath the hood and the lies, the demon King that needed no official title to gain my heart. As I taste the love on his lips, I feel honored to hold the title of his Queen, something I will not take lightly.
30
SIARA
Ibreathe out as Drar'ran adjusts the train of my dress. The ballgown figure fans out perfectly at my hips, and the sparkling corset matches the tiara placed strategically along my loose, winding braid. Looking in the mirror, I feel a rush of emotions. Excitement to be pronounced as Asmodeus’ wife, nervous about being crowned as the queen, and doubting I’ll live up to Galmoleth’s expectations.
“Don’t do that, madame,” Drar'ran says gently as he stands up and looks at me in the mirror.
“Do what?”
“You’re overthinking again.”
I smile slightly before my nerves take over again, and I gulp as I look over the necklace resting between my bare collarbones. Drar'ran has come to know me so well, almost too well. He’s been a lifesaver, an emotional support when I needed it most. He walks before me and adjusts my necklace as he grins widely.
“Remember what I told you,” he says kindly.
I nod and close my eyes. “A queen does not know perfection.” He joins me as I continue the sentence. “She strives for the greatness of her people.” I nod again and look at him gratefully, cocking my head slightly as I smile. “Thank you, Drar'ran.”
“Don’t thank me, madame,” he says as he takes my hand. “Thank your King for the world he has blessed us with.”
I exhale through tightly wound lips and look at myself in the mirror again before I hear the procession begin outside. I turn around, step off the podium in front of the mirror, and walk toward the door, stepping carefully so as not to trip on my dress.
Drar'ran opens the door, and I walk outside to see Ya’rell waiting for me with his elbow bent by his side. I wrap my hand around his bicep and sigh as we walk toward the side of the grand staircase. I look at the ground and breathe out again, trying to steady my heart rate. He pats my hand on his arm, and I look at him, grinning widely at me.
“You look beautiful.”
“Thank you,” I respond, trying not to cry as I look into his kind eyes.
He’s the closest thing I have to a father on Galmoleth, and I wouldn’t ask anyone else to give me away to Asmodeus. We round the corner, and I look down the staircase to see Asmodeus waiting outside the castle's front doors, facing away from me. Beyond the steps, hundreds of demons have gathered to witness our wedding and my coronation. My panic only spikes more as I cautiously walk down the stairs, Drar'ran constantly adjusting my train behind me.
I reach the bottom step, and my heels hit the tile floor. Asmodeus turns around at the sound and locks eyes with me. His face falls into a grin of astonishment as I proceed forward, gripping Ya’rell’s arm tightly as I’m escorted out of the front doors. I walk to the other side of the opening and stand facing Asmodeus, watching a tear slide down his face as we meet.