Snow Lands on Top (book 2)

Chapter 3: A lie

  Coriolanus stumbled into the penthouse completely exhausted, almost zombie-like. He rubs his tired eyes and glances around before spotting the Sofa...perfect. He slowly stumbles towards the couch, nearly tripping a few times along the way. When he finally reached it, he flopped over. Coriolanus sighed as the plush cushions finally connected with his sore tired body. What a day...he was exhausted. His first day of presidential work did not go as planned in the slightest. He barely got anything done, which was uncharacteristic for a workaholic like him. He never let such simple things bother him. Although this wasn't simple, Mauvais' threat towards Lucy Gray was very concerning. He wasn't sure if he could take losing her again, especially if he had the power to stop it. He was the President! Of course, he had the power to stop it...but at the same time, he couldn't help but worry if he didn't have the power or the ability to stop his fiancée from getting hurt..or worse killed. It was always a fear of his, to see her get hurt and not be able to do anything about it.

 Coriolanus shifted himself on the couch, to bury himself deeper into the cushions. There was no point in worrying about this. He needed action, instead of just thoughts. But what could he do...Fire Mauvais? Poison him? No...that would be too obvious and might make the public weary of him. He had only been the President for a single day and couldn't risk making the public hate him...yet. 

 Suddenly Coriolanus bolted upright as he felt two hands on his shoulders. "what the-" he mumbled and looked back to see a giggling Lucy Gray. Instantly he felt all of his worries fade away as he looked at her warm smile. "What are ya doing?" Lucy Gray asked, her tone soft and warm as if she could sense Coriolanus's worries. Not that it was hard, he practically looked insane with his sweat-drenched hair and scrunched-up brows. "you...don't look too good," she adds, before sliding over the back of the couch to sit beside him. 

"I'm quite fine, thank you," Coriolanus relies quickly, he didn't want her to know he had been a mess all day from a simple threat. Her eyes narrow as she looks him up and down, taking note of his clenched fists and nervous foot-tapping. She takes a deep breath before saying, "Don't lie to me Coriolanus, I thought we agreed to be honest with each other. And you're obviously upset about something."

  He takes a deep breath and finally meets her eyes. He really didn't want to tell her, maybe he could pretend it was just first-day nerves. Coriolanus smiles sadly and leans back on the couch, opening his mouth to start his dramatic display of exhaustion. "I...don't know, I think it's just first-day jitters." He sighs again and meets her gaze with a frown, "Now that I'm finally President it all seems just so..." He takes a pause for dramatic effect and then finishes, "So...Nerve-wracking," Coriolanus waits a moment and examines Lucy Gray's expression. Good, it seemed like she had bought it. 

 Lucy Gray looks at him a moment before smiling again and scooting closer. "Of course you feel like that, It was only your first day after all," She whispers and then wraps her arms around him with another warm smile, One Coriolanus didn't feel like he deserved.