Total pages in book: 192
Estimated words: 192810 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 964(@200wpm)___ 771(@250wpm)___ 643(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 192810 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 964(@200wpm)___ 771(@250wpm)___ 643(@300wpm)
And in the room with the band and dancing, a colossal set piece that resembled Aleksei’s dragon sprung up from behind the band, wings spread, like he was about to take flight.
Although the theme was expected, as you could tell, Queen Calisa’s follow-through was outstanding.
Even with the amount of food available to peck at (and there was a lot), there were servers wandering (they wore dragon masks too, just not as elaborate, or hot as Aleksei’s) with trays of hors d’oeuvres, glasses of champagne or the signature cocktail of the evening, the soaring dragon (gin, egg white, lemon juice and violet liqueur in a martini glass rimmed with glittering purple sugar dust).
And fortunately, one of these servers approached us tout de suite, so Aleksei grabbed two soaring dragons for us.
He handed one to me and I took a sip.
I wasn’t one for the taste of flower, but the lemon cut it, the sugar sweetened it, thus, in the end, it was delicious.
I lifted my glass to Aleksei. “Your mom knows her stuff. This is perfection.”
He smiled at me.
Then he smiled beyond me.
I turned and gasped.
Monique’s gown of midnight blue shot through with silver shooting stars tracing stardust was mega.
And Gayle’s body-hugging gown of brass-and-nickel-colored parachute silk stitched in panels, the edges frayed giving a feathery effect, that trailed a train that floated behind her several feet was insane.
But it was Cat’s gown that was the showstopper. It had steel disks on padded shoulders, and encasing her arms and on her body, sheets of steel-colored silk skimming her every curve to end in a fishtail hem, all of this representing an old-fashioned airplane.
And it was a miracle.
As such, I couldn’t help but squeal, hand my drink to my mate and throw my arms toward them.
Gayliliel got to me first and we did the double cheek touch.
“You’re perfect,” I told her.
“No, you’re perfect,” she replied.
Monique came next, with the refrain of perfects, then Catla, and we said it again.
“Oh my gods, Aleksei, that mask is hawt,” Gayle exclaimed as Aleksei returned my drink.
“My thanks,” he replied, his full lips under the mask twitching.
“Where’s Bash?” I asked, craning my neck to see if he got lost in the crush on their way to us.
I didn’t think it was good that my question had Monique and Gayle exchanging a glance behind their masks (Gayle’s, parachute silk, frayed at the edges, wrapped around her eyes like a superhero mask, Monique’s a study of silver glitter, one eye a star with a trail of stardust shooting out the top side).
“Trying to impress Dad. And failing,” Cat told me.
As he would, since undoubtedly, Mr. Truelock had set his sights on a very-soon-to-be king for his daughter.
I looked up at Aleksei. “Maybe we should save him?”
Before Aleksei could reply, all of my gals got tense, closed in, then surged back.
And Anna was there.
Well, one could say she didn’t dally.
Though, I wondered where Timothee was because he wasn’t with her.
“Aleksei,” she buzzed cattily, completely ignoring me and my gals. “In the receiving line, I didn’t get a chance to ask if we could have a brief word in private.”
Um…
Hells no.
I was about to stake my claim, but I would find quickly I didn’t need to, because Aleksei spoke.
“If this word is you sharing you’re fucking my brother, Tim already told me. And if you have concerns this hurts my feelings, rest assured, it does not,” Aleksei replied frankly.
Three collective gasps came from my females at this Timothee/Anna news.
Anna’s head jolted like she’d been slapped.
“Outside of that, Anna,” Aleksei continued, “there isn’t anything we need to discuss in private.”
“There were things left unsaid,” she asserted.
“You mean unscreeched,” Aleksei corrected blandly. “Although I knew going in you would not take my message well, I’m afraid listening to a female shriek at me for an hour, after not listening to a word I said, doing so further proving my point that we were not suited, is an experience a male can stomach once in his life. But only once.”
Her gaze behind the mask darted to the four members of her audience before she said, “Could we discuss this in private?”
“As I said, we have nothing private to discuss,” Aleksei denied. “You’re sleeping with my brother. And I’ve found my mate. With our history, privacy isn’t appropriate.”
“Tim and I are dating. Not courting,” she pointed out.
“And I’ve found my mate,” Aleksei repeated.
“Yes, you have,” she sniped. “And what I would like to know is, if you hadn’t ended things with me, and you found her, would you have left me for her?”
“Quest your own mate, Anna, and you’ll answer your question,” Aleksei returned.
“I think, with our history, this going back to when I was practically a baby, I deserve an answer to that,” she snapped.
“Our history?” Aleksei asked dangerously.
Uh-oh.
I got closer to him.
My females sidled away.