With that, Alpha Prime left us, winding his way through the throngs of those present.
“So when do we meet your grandmother?” Gossamer asked, her voiced laced with excitement.
I laughed. I had almost forgotten that Gossamer was a big fan of Indigo.
“Soon,” I promised. “After she finishes with the receiving line. But in the meantime, there are some other people you guys should probably meet.”
With that, I led Kane, Gossamer, and Li back to where I’d left Vela and Myshtal. A few minutes later, they had all become acquainted and were chatting amiably. (I didn’t need to introduce the newly-arrived trio to Vestibule – who was still present – as they had previously met. The same was true of Avis, who had disappeared without me noticing around the time my friends showed up.)
Unexpectedly, Vela excused herself. Stepping in my direction, she motioned me aside, overtly indicating that she wanted to have a word with me.
“Where’d Avis go?” she asked without preamble.
I shrugged. “I don’t know. She was there one second, gone the next.”
Vela let out a sigh of frustration. “That’s just great.”
My brow wrinkled in confusion. “What’s the problem?”
“I’m supposed to be keeping an eye on her,” Vela stated, looking around. “She’s kind of vulnerable right now.”
“Vulnerable?” I repeated, somewhat shocked. Did Avis have some weakness I didn’t know about?
“Emotionally vulnerable, dingbat,” Vela said playfully. “Her boyfriend recently dumped her.”
“He dumped her? She made it sound mutual.”
“Yeah, well, when you’re ranked as one of the world’s top supers, you don’t have the privilege of moping over failed relationships or lack of closure.”
“So what do you do?”
“In my sister’s case, she tends to rebound – usually quite quickly, but not always with the right kind of guy.”
Nodding, I followed Vela’s lead and began scanning the ranks of nearby guests, saying, “In that case, I think I might know where she…there!”
I inconspicuously pointed to an area on the opposite side of the room, where – unsurprisingly – Avis was engaged in deep conversation with Nobaxlin. Suddenly, she threw her head back, laughing gaily at something the Fleodin had just said.
“Okay, that’s my cue,” Vela declared. “Later, cuz.”
Giving me a short wave goodbye, Vela began making a beeline towards her sister. However, she had barely stepped away before I sensed a sharp flare of excitement and elation coming from my rear. Having been privy to this scenario before, I knew what was about to happen. Therefore, fighting the temptation to turn around, I decided to play along and stayed in the same position. A moment later, someone stepped directly behind me and placed a hand over my eyes.
I felt the person behind me lean in close, then grinned as a soft, feminine voice murmured, “Guess who?” next to my ear.
Chapter 22
It was, of course, my girlfriend, Electra. Smiling, I spun around – and then blinked as I took a good look at her.
She had her hair pinned up in an intricate, luxurious chignon that incorporated braids, layered curls, and waves. (I could tell just by looking at it that adopting this particular hairstyle had taken a significant amount of time and effort.) With respect to attire, she wore a strapless, full-length black dress. It was an exceptionally form-fitting little number, with a beaded, sweetheart neckline and a wide slit on one side that showed an ample – but not excessive – amount of leg. As to makeup, she’d stuck to her habit of using very little, with the most prominent application thereof being an alluring shade of deep red lipstick.
All in all, it was a more suggestive ensemble than she’d ever worn before, and I found it completely bewitching.
“Well?” she said, plainly inviting me to comment on her appearance.
Rather than respond verbally, I leaned in and kissed her.
A few seconds later, she pulled back, beaming, and said, “I’ll take that to mean you approve.”
“What, his drooling wasn’t enough of an indicator?” Kane joked, causing me to note that he, Li, and the others had come closer during the few moments when Electra and I had been…distracted.
Laughing along with everyone else at Kane’s comment, Electra patted me on the cheek and remarked, “Well, my baby only drools for the best.”
This elicited another round of chuckles, but I noticed that as she spoke, my girlfriend had cast a sharp but almost imperceptible glance in Vestibule’s direction. At the same time, I picked up on a pleased and self-satisfied emotional vibe coming from Electra, making it clear to me that her statement was only being made partially in jest. However, the overall message being conveyed was plain enough to anyone paying attention: fashion model or not, Vestibule was out of her league when it came to my affections.
Internally, I let out a sigh of relief. Based on what I’d heard about the last time those two had met (which had involved my girlfriend releasing a ball of electricity over Vestibule’s head), I wasn’t exactly sure they’d avoid locking horns at the party. Thankfully, both seemed to be in relatively affable moods. More importantly, if innuendo and intimation were all I’d have to deal with (especially on Electra’s part), it suggested that everyone would at least be civil to one another.
Sadly, all hopes for comity hit an abrupt speedbump a moment later when Myshtal said, “Hi, Electra. Your dress is lovely.”
*****
Later, when I replayed the scene in my mind, I should have realized there was a reason why Myshtal had been spared getting the same severe look from my girlfriend that Vestibule had received. It was because she wasn’t in the immediate vicinity at the time. (Apparently my betrothed was actually a few feet away from our little group, talking to someone with her back to us.) She had presumably stepped away for a few moments while I was talking to Vela, or around the time Electra had crept up behind me. Regardless, it seemed obvious that Electra had not initially noticed that the Caelesian princess was nearby.
Upon rejoining us, Myshtal had attempted something that
