Liz nodded and cleared our plates. “I’ll see you in a little bit.” She walked out of the dining room, and Simon held his hand out to me.
“Can I escort you to your room?”
I shook my head. “Don’t go all old fashioned on me.” I took his hand and wrapped my fingers with his. “I don’t know how I’m supposed to enjoy tonight with a looming threat.”
“If you don’t, then Samuel wins. We don’t know what he’s planning. Tonight could just be a big mind game. Get you to stay and think of all the things he could do tonight, playing with your brain just for him to not show up.”
I hadn’t really considered it being a mind game. “That’s a good point.”
“I have those sometimes.” He kissed me when we got to my room. “I don’t have to be back to the pack grounds tonight.”
I smiled. “Good, so you can stay all night.”
“Yeah, with you.”
Being wrapped in his arms in bed sounded like the perfect way to end this night. “Wonderful.”
He kissed me again before I went into the room to get dressed. Levi had dropped off a dress late the night before, and it hung in the closet. I pulled it out and laid it on the bed.
The fabric was a soft, deep red. It was strapless and tight at the top but would flare around my waist. Hanging with it was a shawl of the same fabric and color. Luckily for me, Levi had bought sensible shoes for it, flats since I didn’t need the boost in height. I didn’t mind the dress.
It was nice to feel fancy occasionally.
I found myself smiling at the thought of the party tonight, and for a few moments, Samuel didn’t tint my thoughts.
I went and took a shower. I dried off and put my hair up in a towel to deal with once the waves dried. I took my time getting ready before fixing my hair, pulling half up it up, and leaving the other half around my neck.
It was a subtle way of me telling the vampires that my neck was not for tasting.
Samuel flashed in my mind, and I shook the thought off.
When I walked out of my room, Simon was standing there in a suit and tie. His tie matched the color of my dress, and he looked a bit sheepish as he held a flower out for me.
“Levi made me dress up too.”
I took the red rose from him and kissed his cheek. “You look quite handsome. I don’t think we’ve ever been to anything fancy together.”
“Ah, that’s a lie. You and I went to a pack thing that was formal.”
“Oh yeah, that was the night that I ended up in the morgue.”
Simon and I both laughed at the memory. “Hopefully there will be no morgue trips tonight.”
“That would be great. It’s actually been a while since I’ve been to the morgue.”
“Maybe I can plan that for our next date.” He nudged me.
I rolled my eyes as he hooked my arm with his. “Shall we go?”
“Down the hall? Why, yes.” I gave him my best southern bell voice, and he snorted. We walked down the hall together, arm in arm, smiling and talking.
He opened the door, and I stopped at the handful of colorful dresses and suits that dotted the dance floor. The banners in the room had been changed to purple and red, and I didn’t miss that it was a nod to my magic. My breath caught at the look of Levi and Mario on the stage. Two thrones stood there, made of dark wood, carved to perfection.
Levi wore a suit similar to Simon’s, but Mario wore a purple tie instead of red. I swallowed as anxiety tried to take me down. I didn’t know many of the people in the room. A quick sweep of the crowd and I saw Travis, Liz, Detective Mason, and Merick mingling with the others.
Simon squeezed my hand. “Take a deep breath.”
“I wasn’t expecting it to be this formal,” I admitted. “I didn’t even know Levi had a throne.”
“And now you have one too.” Simon walked me over to the stage and kissed my cheek before he handed me off to Mario.
Levi cleared his throat, and the room and music died down. “May I introduce, officially, Abigail Collins, Princess of Vampires.”
There were a few cheers that went through the room.
“I want to wish her the happiest of birthdays and the first of many in our company.”
I tried not to frown at the wording. A closer look at the crowd, and I saw that many of them were vampires. The council members were scattered around as well. At least I knew I was safe.
A waiter brought me up a glass of wine, and I took a small sip of it. The alcohol warmed my throat, and I remembered what Simon said. I needed to relax and enjoy myself.
The music started up again from somewhere in the ballroom. I saw a string quartet on the other side of the room.
I glanced at Levi. “This is so formal. It’s weird.”
Mario laughed. “Welcome to your new life, Princess. Where formal is how it all is. Parties and balls, meetings and bodyguards.” He helped me off the stage. “Isn’t this what every girl dreams of?”
“There’s typically dragons and Prince Charming, and evil spells to break.”
Mario kissed my cheek. “And who says there’s not all that?”
I stepped back and took another drink of my wine. I spotted Simon, and my heart eased a little bit. “Maybe you’re right,” I said. “Now, if you excuse me, I do believe I was told mingling was the name of the game tonight.”
Mario
