Ella laughed nervously and took a step back from me. I took the opportunity to cross my arms over my chest. Not because I was cowering or hiding, but because I was irritated. I stood tall and refused to let either of them intimidate me.
“Harass you? Ella, does it sound like we’re harassing her?” Kingston asked as he flashed a panty-melting grin in her direction.
I saw her start to soften, so I stepped in and addressed the lead demon. “Maverik, did you come to my room for a reason?”
I forced myself to hold eye contact with him and held my breathing steady. I didn’t want him to know that he affected me in even the slightest way.
“Haven’t seen you in a couple of days,” he drawled. “We just wanted to see if you were still alive. Kash likes this room when he stays here, so we’d like it back.”
“Not dead yet,” I told him with a cold smile. “Better luck next time.”
Maverik shrugged. “We’ll talk later.”
He looked at Kingston and jerked his head to the door before he walked out. Kingston raked his eyes over me one last time before he gave me a mocking wave, stuck his hands in his pockets, and whistled on his way out.
I narrowed my eyes as they disappeared out of the room. I hadn’t forgotten how they kidnapped me and tried to scare me into confessing to crimes I didn’t commit. I think it was past time that I retaliated.
“Go shut the door behind them,” Ella snapped at Stacy. “And lock it this time.”
Stacy rushed to do her bidding, and I felt bad for the poor girl. Ella seemed like she was high maintenance and demanding.
Once we were safely behind locked doors, Ella seemed to relax. “Let’s talk about the wardrobe pieces that you still need,” she said brightly. “I put a small selection of dresses in your closet that would do for family get-togethers, brunch at the country club, and things like that.”
I blinked. Did she consider the massive amount of clothes already in my closet to be a small selection? Just what was she planning on getting for me?
Ella didn’t notice my reaction at all; she just kept going. “We still need to get casual clothes, dresses for official school events and-” she paused dramatically for effect. “Dresses for all the events leading up to your mother’s marriage.”
I squirmed awkwardly. Wasn’t that supposed to be a secret?
Ella glanced at me. “Oh, don’t worry, Stacey and I already signed non-disclosure agreements. Our lips are sealed.”
“About the wedding?” I asked in confusion.
“Of course!” Ella chirped. “I can’t wait for the big reveal!”
I wondered if the happy smile on Ella’s face was due to the huge bill she was going to collect, or if she truly enjoyed shopping that much. Over the next hour, I became pretty sure that she just enjoyed fashion more than every other human being on the planet combined. The good news was that I could rely on her to dress me appropriately for every occasion. The bad news was that I slowly felt my sense of self slipping away. Ella was trying to make me into something that I wasn’t.
Finally, Ella skipped out of the room to find Nina. I was left alone with Stacey and the huge mess of clothing and accessories. Once I was dressed, I started picking things up and putting them back on the cart.
“Oh!” Stacey said in surprise. “You don’t have to do that. I’m sure you have more important things to do.”
“I really don’t,” I said drily. “And Ella seems like a difficult person to work for, I don’t mind helping out.”
Stacey gave me a shy smile. “Yeah, it can be rough sometimes, but I have to get my start somewhere.”
“You want to be a stylist?” I asked curiously as I piled up boxes of shoes.
“Well,” Stacey said hesitantly. “My dream job is to run wardrobe for production companies, not cater to rich housewives.”
I shot her an amused glance.
“No offense,” she said hastily.
“None taken,” I said with a laugh. “Nina can be just as difficult as Ella.”
I carried some of the things I was keeping into my closet. I could organize it all later, but I didn’t want to get Stacey in trouble for lingering too long. We worked in silence for a few minutes.
“Uh, Katya,” Stacey said worriedly. “I wasn’t going to say anything, but you seem pretty cool.”
“What’s wrong?” I asked.
“Those guys,” she said in a hushed voice. “You need to be careful.”
“Maverik and Kingston?” I asked in confusion.
Stacey glanced worriedly at the door and then stepped closer to me. “Their father has enough money to make issues go away,” she explained. “They don’t have to follow the rules like the rest of us.”
“What did they do?”
Stacey shrugged. “I’ve only heard rumors, but I know enough to make sure I stay far away from them.”
“Are we talking murders, or…” my voice trailed off as I tried to picture what could spook Stacey so much.
She bit her lower lip. “Probably not murder. But getting into a fight with them could lead to you disappearing. You don’t want to cross them.”
My eyebrows rose, but Stacey pulled away.
“I’m only warning you because it seemed like you somehow got on their bad side,” she said as she avoided eye contact.
Stacey’s phone rang, and I could hear Ella yelling over the speaker from six feet away.
“I have to go,” Stacey mumbled as she pushed the cart out of my doorway.
I thanked her again and said goodbye, and she gave me a nervous wave in return.
After she was gone, I sat down on my bed to think about what she said. I’d seen enough in New York to
