Page 101 of House of Mages and Raven

I had no one to dress me. Even if Barbie hadn’t slumbered, she wouldn’t have been bothered with finding me a suitable gown. She would’ve objected strongly to my going to a party and showing my face in public. Even if she wanted to help, she had no fashion sense. Just look at the mess she’d gotten herself into by picking a servant boy’s uniform, and then she’d had to stay as Little Bob for weeks.

And now, she mostly wore a school uniform. Even when she wasn’t in that boring uniform, she didn’t dress fancy. Her ghost familiar filled her wardrobe with stolen gowns, but she always refused to wear any of the nice clothes highly recommended by that ghost.

Neither Pucker nor the house magic thought of dressing me, as if I didn’t even exist. But nothing could keep me down. I’d learned early in my life: if you need to get anything done, do it yourself.

Ever since I’d come to Mist of Cinder, I’d done a lot of quiet thinking. Barbie had goddess magic, so maybe I had it too. I just needed to believe it. I could start with a small task, like conjuring up a dress. So I’d clamped my eyes shut, picturing the gown I desperately wanted. Magic could create anything out of nothing, and it wasn’t exactly nothing, since everything was connected. My mind was energy, and energy was a different reality in higher dimensions.

As I imagined the dress I wanted to wear on a date with my prince, down to every detail, I’d felt a weight in my hands. When I opened my eyes, I was holding the exact gown I’d wanted.

Joy had brimmed in my heart at my creation. Once again, Barbie hadn’t been awake to witness this miracle of my labor.I had my own magic, after all. I’d been evolving ever since we came to this magical realm, and my transformation had sped up after my mating with Rowan. It was like something had awoken in me, and I’d finally become my own persona.

I was magical, just like Barbie.

Rowan hadn’t been able to take his eyes off me, seeing me in that deep blue dress. It was made of magic with the finest material. I’d gone for a low V-neck that showed off one-third of my breasts, which were bountiful and perky and perfectly round. Two flimsy, triangular shapes covered my waist. Instead of having a long gown down to my ankles, I’d opted for a chic minidress that hugged my every curve. The hem artfully covered my thighs with a high slit on the left, leaving viewers to wonder if I was wearing panties or not. Who didn’t love a bit of mystery?

The pink diamond necklace around my long, slender neck sealed the whole deal. The gift from Rowan was for me to keep, and I wouldn’t surrender it to Barbie. I had to have something that belonged to me as well.

Rowan held his own. He wore a fine tunic that displayed his broad shoulder, cut chest, and six-pack. His leather pants outlined his muscled, powerful legs. My lover carried the vibes of both warrior and scholar, and he was a gorgeous prince.

The bride candidates’ eyes fell on me, some appearing envious and some catty, but I ignored them all. I stalked toward the center of the party, the heels of my dress shoes clicking on the marble floor. My gait was sure and swaggering, my chin lifted, my spine straight and proud, and I swayed my hips, as I knew how to command the attention of a room.

Rowan was pleased, pride brimming in his silver eyes that I didn’t appear the slightest bit timid. All the heirs were predators in nature, and they wanted their females to match them in every way. Pushovers just didn’t make the cut.

Barbie seldom showed her bold side and always downplayed her strength. She loved playing dumb—one of her games—but the heirs acutely sensed her power nevertheless. They might not be able to articulate why they were drawn to her, but they understood instinctively that she was as dominant as them, even more so when she was mentally unbalanced.

My entry into the society was quite different from hers. Barbie had gotten attacked right out of the gate, but these lesser beings gave me a wide berth. It might have to do with Barbie’s humble entrance. She’d joined the pool of the Brides Selection as a fake servant boy, but I had the fae heir to accompany me.

I looked every inch a fae, especially with my lush white hair and pointed ears, yet I wasn’t. But others couldn’t tell.

My predatory golden gaze surveyed the crowd as it automatically parted for us. Rowan wrapped his arm around my waist possessively. I liked how he openly staked a claim on me, and I wrapped an arm around his thigh, even sinking my fingernails into it to warn every female to back off, as I didn’t appreciate their ogling him. He might be man candy, but he wasmyman candy.

Last time when Rowan went to the House of Chaos to see Barbie, a group of females had grabbed his butt to test its firmness. Itwasfirm, as I could testify, but if anyone wanted to test it again in my presence, they’d lose a hand.

So far, I hadn’t growled, and I was proud of myself for my self-restraint. Tonight was my debut, and thus I wanted to leave a different impression than Barbie had.

“Rowan! Rowan!” A shout rang out from the raised platform at the rear, the VIP section.

I swung my gaze and spotted Louis, Cade, and Silas. Killian wasn’t among them. I was both disappointed and relieved. It was best he didn’t come. If he showed up, it’d trigger Barbie. She’dsense him and wake up, and then shit would hit the fan. I wanted this night to be perfect andmine.

I’d felt the heirs’ power pulsing brilliantly as soon as I stepped out of the elevator with Rowan, but I’d been so fixated on my debut and looking fabulous while fending off other females’ unwanted advances that I hadn’t had a chance to charm them. Now, I’d give them my undivided attention and focus on bringing them to their knees.

“Rowan, here!” Louis called again eagerly.

“You’re late, man!” Silas shouted.

Cade waved his wand with his usual cool smile that hid his shadow and curse, beckoning us to join the team.

Rowan hesitated, his arm snaking tighter around me. He wanted to join his friends, but he didn’t want them to be near me. His possessiveness amused and pleased me. I gave him a smile and tugged him along, eager to say hello to the heirs in my own form. I wanted to be seen, and I knew how to handle the heirs, based on Barbie’s experience with them. They werethepower, and Barbie and I needed to gather as many allies as possible to face the coming war that no one realized was coming except us. I was more of a strategist than my other half. I schemed all the time when I was alone within Barbie.

The heirs were sizing me up as I ascended to the top of the stairs to the VIP section overlooking the entire rooftop floor and the Las Vegas skyline.

“Hello, who’s this lovely lady?” Louis purred. He was always a shameless flirt.

None of the heirs rose from their couch, the way a gentleman greeted a lady. It was a power play. Mist of Cinder wasn’t the same as the human world, and the supernaturals played by different rules. They were the heirs anyway, and if I was in one of their courts, I’d be required to bow or curtsy.

Before Rowan could introduce me, I flashed my fangs. “Hello, princelings, I’m Sy,” I said in a sexy, smoky voice.

Human males went impotent when they saw my serrated, sharp fangs, so much so that Barbie had always warned me to keep my big mouth shut during sex. But my fangs were a thing of power and savage beauty, and the supernaturals got it. The heirs didn’t back off from my display of strength and confidence. Instead, I could see that it turned them on.

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