Page 64 of Sweet Dominion

And I had to admit that there was this great amount of warmth and respect in their pronunciation.

By the time the introductions were complete, my hand felt sore and my mind was buzzing with names. Each new introduction carried with it a promise of respect and more than a few enthusiastic exclamations ofclearloyalty.

Plus, I realized I was smiling so much my cheeks hurt.

Yet, I'd never felt so appreciated, so important. It was as if I'd stepped into a fairy tale, transformed from an ordinary girl into someone’s truly special queen.

I was Belle from Beauty and the Beast and the Mirage’s staff was damn near singing the lines from the song,Be Our Guest.

And damn it if I wasn’t super happy to be their guest.

When all the introductions were done, Lei took my arm and led me away and they remained there watching us, with those happy smiles on their faces.

I grinned. “Wow.”

Lei kept his view forward.

“This staff is different than the others. They were beyond happy to see me.”

“It’s not the difference in staff. It’s the tea ceremony.”

I widened my eyes. “What?”

He frowned. “From now on, it’s going to be like that everywhere.”

“No?”

“Yes.” He gazed at me. “You’re going to have to get used to it. The East accepts you.”

“Well. . .we don’t know if all of the East does.”

“The Mirage has a tough staff. They are weary of others and while I don’t bring many women here. The few that I have,they have never regarded them with more than a glance.” He stopped us in front of the door. “They weren’t rude. They just didn’t. . .speak to them at all.”

I knew I should have focused on the main part of what he was saying, but a bit of jealousy hit me. “Who else did you bring here?”

“What?”

“The other women.”

He blinked. “Well. . .the harem of course.”

I tried not to roll my eyes. “Of course.”

“And. . .Chanel.”

That stung, but I wouldn’t let it ruin this moment. “She’s been here.”

“Many times.” Lei's posture shifted, his shoulders tensed and his free hand fidgeted with his pocket. “We grew up together so. . .she’s been to many of my properties.”

“Yeah. That makes sense—”

“But they never greeted Chanel in this way. They simply served her like any other guest.”

I looked away.

His words hung in the air, creating a mix of emotions inside me. Jealousy, relief, confusion. Yet, I couldn't deny the overwhelming sense of satisfaction—of victory.

It was stupid, but sometimes I unnecessarily felt like I was competing with a dead woman. Of course I would be winning, since she was dead, but that didn’t stop me from feeling a little bit triumphant.

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