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And that’s the last indignity I can suffer.
Not being stripped bare in front of men I don’t plan on performing Rites with. Not being told I’m to be auctioned off like an animal. Not puking so loudly the heirs surely heard me in their rooms.
“Elated? You think anyone wants to be tossed around like a blowup doll for some spoiled demon heirs? You think this is a life goal of mine? To be the holes for four demons to come in?”
The helper bows his head and steps back. “I’m sorry, Miss. I didn’t mean to offend.”
Lumière steps in. “You’ve nothing to apologize to her for, Yanis. If anything, she owes us an apology.”
Fire leaps in my veins as I stare at the dressmaker. “Excuse me?"
“We are on a tight schedule, Ms. Collins. Making us stop so you can throw a tantrum is hardly helpful.” The dressmaker takes a breath and smooths the front of his suit. “Now, if you’ll allow us to continue…” He vanishes the vomit bucket and approaches.
I stand there, stiff and stunned. Numb as the demons work in silence to finish the dress. When Lumière announces itscompletion, he checks behind him, then conjures a full-length mirror.
“Hurry. Before one of them sees.”
I glare at him. None of this is his fault, but I do it all the same before peering at the gown the three demons sewed and spelled into existence in less than a few hours.
It’s full length, all the way to the floor, but for as much fabric as it has, it doesn’t overpower me. The brilliant, deep blue color highlights the cool tones of my skin. The neckline could use a little more fabric. It plunges nearly to my navel and wraps around my neck in a halter style, leaving my back entirely exposed.
“You are simply a vision, Ms. Collins. Now, how about I send Jerico and he’ll take care of your hair and makeup? Oh, and Silas! I can summon him for your nails.”
“Mmm, I don’t think so.”
“I’ll add it all to Mr. Axwell’s bill at the of the night,” he tempts in a sing-song voice.
“Ah, then yes. And you might as well hire Jerico on for the entire night.”
Lumière shakes his head. “I’m sorry? I’m not sure I follow.”
“Well, I’ll need touch-ups throughout the night, after all.”
Lumière claps. “Yes, excellent, Ms. Collins. Now you’re thinking. You must always endeavor to remember your own power in the arrangement.”
Squeezing Axe for the cost of a stylist for the night didn’t seem like much of a power move. He probably wouldn’t even notice. But it did feel nice.
“Remember, Ms. Collins, they are yours as much as you are theirs.”
Silas and Jerico took their time buffing and filing and coloring me, but I have to admit, I’ve never looked better. Even in my natural state, I’ve never been so polished.
“Wow,” Bastian says, emerging from the back hall. “I didn’t imagine you could be any more attractive than standing bare-breasted and proud before us earlier. But just look at you.” He takes my hand and spins me around like Lumière had.
But Lumiere’s touch didn’t send a sizzling inferno down my arm and directly to my crotch.
“Simply stunning, Dove.”
He pulls me in, eyes locked with mine, before bending to trace the barest hint of a kiss on my cheek.
It was chaste, innocent even, and yet my heart still races.
And when he pulls away, Bastian’s cheeks are more flushed than before.
“Thank you, Bash. You look very dapper yourself.”
It’s not a lie. The three-piece suit fits his bulk just right. The style and cut so beautifully tailored, no one would mistake him for the bouncer, even with his build.
“There she is!” Enzo comes hopping down the hall toward me. He, too, wears a suit well, and might have had the most dramatic change. Put together and freshly shaven, he looks sweet and boyish. “You’re a fucking vision, Dove. Shit, if I could rip my heart out right now, I’d hand it to you.”
