Page 19 of Scales and Seduction

As we exit his home, Loran grabs my shoulder, whispering into my ear, “The idea of a mate is not so farfetched… I think we both know it’s real. I would be careful if I were you, Gideon.” He claps me on the back. “Your fiancée may not mind you messing around with other women, but there are others who will.”

After leaving Loran’s home, a weight has settled in my stomach. I knew getting home was going to be harder than I thought, but it didn’t make the pain any less real. Quinn asked me to text her, and like a bubble-headed idiot, I forgot. Now it’s almost two days later, and she has no idea where I am. Instead of worrying about her, I’ve been flirting with the naga prince, who’s engaged, and getting off to him. She’d be so disappointed in me, but Vince, I know he would egg me on.

The marketplace buzzes with life around me, vendors calling out, hawking everything from shimmering fabrics to weird trinkets. Instead of the excitement I felt earlier this morning, I’m in a gloomy funk of depression.

Gideon walks quietly beside me, his fingers occasionally grazing mine as he guides me through the bustling stalls. We pause just in front of a large gray stone building. Its large windows show mannequins in women’s clothing, though it’s nothing like I’ve ever seen. The left-hand side has a large minotaur in a crop top, showing off a plane of abs, accented with jean cut-offs. Then, beside it, there’s a feminine-looking shape with lizard features—I’m not sure what they’re called—wearing a cute olive-green dress with a jean jacket.

I don’t quite understand why his world wears similar clothing to ours or why everything is so familiar, but it’s a minor comfort that makes me feel less like an outcast.

Gideon extends a small pouch of coins to me, grinning. “Here,” he says as the supple, warm leather touches my palm. “That shop should have clothing that better suits you than my tunic.”

“You’re trusting me with magic money, on my own?” I tease him, trying to break the tension as our fingers brush, sending another jolt up my arm. His golden eyes meet mine for a moment, and I feel my pulse quicken.

His lips curl into a smirk, the kind that would make anyone’s knees a little weak. “It’s not magic money, and, yes, I trust you…” A gentle chuckle rumbles in his throat, and he adds, “Mostly.”

“Mostly?” I shoot back, faking indignation as I plant a hand on my hip. “You’re lucky I’m not the type to buy an entire store just to make a point.”

Leaning closer, Gideon’s voice dips low, and his breath gusts over my face. “If you do, you’re carrying it all back home yourself.”

A laugh spills out of my mouth quicker than I can stop it, and the gloominess I felt the entire walk here melts away.

“I’m going to grab a few things for dinner, and I’ll meet you back here.” He squeezes my hand one last time, closing my fingers around the coin.

“Don’t take too long. I may need a second opinion!” I call after him, feeling the smile still tugging at my lips as he slithers away from me. Slithers…I still can’t seem to get over the fact that he’s not human, but everything about him feels so natural. Being near Gideon stirs something inside me I can’t name. It’s a magnetic pull that intensifies with each touch.

Every glance, every fleeting brush of his hands and teasing smile, it builds on the last. It’s his eyes that hold me captive more than anything. Those golden irises feel as if they’re reading my thoughts and emotions before I even know them myself. I feel so naked when he’s looking at me—in the best way possible. He’s the sexiest snake-man I’ve ever met. Well, the only one I’ve ever met.

Sure, he has the body of an athlete and a commanding presence that could make anyone’s knees buckle, but there’s more there. He has an unspoken tenderness and a vulnerability hidden beneath his confidence. Being around him is like standing on the edge of something, and I’m unsure if I’ll fly or fall when I’m with him.

I step slowly into the shop, assaulted by the various styles of clothing. In each rack, modern pieces are peppered alongside garments that would be seen at a Renaissance fair or anime convention. As I wander around, I see fabrics shimmering faintly under the warm-toned lamps overhead. My fingers run along a deep hunter-green dress with golden vines swirling along the shoulders. It’s pretty, but I wonder if I’d look weird in something so old-fashioned.

“You looking for something special, hun?” a voice beside me purrs—like literally purring.

Beside me is a short tabby-cat woman who’s currently holding up a sequined gown over her head toward someone else’s chest. My eyes follow the gown, and my breath hitches. The woman the cat-lady is helping is tall, almost as tall as Gideon, and he must be at least seven feet tall. Her upper body is almost entirely human, dressed in a silken black dress that flows over her torso, her breasts showing the rings of her nipple piercings through it. Below her waist, her body is hideously arachnid. She has eight hairy legs and a bulbous round body.

Her hair is shaved on each side, though she has a long rose-toned braid that hangs on her left shoulder. She has full lips, eight eyes with thick, beautiful black lashes, but what surprises me the most are the large burgundy pincers that grow out of the sides of her head.

I can feel the surprise flash across my face, and I can’t mask it. Subtlety has never been my strong suit, and no amount of effort seems to keep my emotions from betraying me. My face has always been an open book, and right now it’s shouting.

Pressing my lips together, I try to disguise the flicker in my expression, instead focusing on the little cat woman beside me. “No, I’m just browsing for now.” Panic prickles at the back of my mind about the magic that hides my humanity from them all. What if they sense I don’t belong? I still don’t know how it works, other than it makes them confused about what sort of creature I am or smell like. It’s like it scrambles their mind.

Just as I turn to pretend I’m looking through the rack again, I smell something familiar. It’s like vanilla and honeysuckle. My stomach twists as I recall the last place I’d smelled the perfume before: inside Burney’s shop.

“Your perfume…it’s so familiar. What’s it called?” I ask, suddenly turning back to glance at the spideress.

The woman hums a moment, bringing one of her human hands with long pink talons to her mouth. “I believe it’s pixie pheromones today. They create the most delicious perfumes. They drive everyone wild. In small doses, they smell pleasant and arouse the senses, but in larger doses, they’re a vicious aphrodisiac.”

“Oh? Well, it’s amazing. If I smelled like you, I wouldn’t be so disappointingly single,” I try to banter back with her. Does that mean the woman in the shop is from this realm too?

Her lips curl into a smile that sends a chill down my spine just by the sharpness of her fangs. “I’m sure you have no troublefinding males. You’re pretty enough. I’ve not seen you around before now, and I know everyone.” She extends her hand down to me to introduce herself. “I’m Avalon.”

The name hits me like a brick. Avalon. Gideon’s fiancée.

“It’s nice to meet you,” I force the words past the knot in my throat. “I’m Ruby.”

Avalon steps closer with fluid, precise movements, careful not to touch the sides of the racks. She reaches out, brushing a strand of hair back from my face. Her touch is feather-light and sends a shiver down my spine. “You have such a curious energy,” she mutters, allowing her hand to fall from my hair.

My pulse is racing, and I feel sweaty under my arms. Does she recognize me as a human?

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