Page 5 of A Sacrifice in the Smoke
My mouth snaps shut as realization whips through me.I want this too much. That’s the problem. Noah isn’t… good. Especially not good for me.
Suddenly I want to run.
Noah drops his hands from my face and steps back. “That’s okay. I can wait—I know our first kiss won’t be the last. It’s only a matter of time before you succumb to your desire for me.”
The certainty in his voice makes me want to stay there and argue. That, and slap the arrogance out of him. With some distance between us, I can finally think straight. “We should talk about the masquerade.”
“Subtle topic shift.” He leans against the opposite wall. “And here I thought you royals were supposed to be adept at playing games.”
I shoot him a look. “Can you focus, just once?”
“Easy, baby vampire. I’m all for the work hard, play hard mentality. So, let’s get the work out of the way. I think you’ll very much enjoy my ideas for the play.”
“You… are insufferable,” I snap. “I suddenly have even more respect for Sylvia.”
Noah pouts. “Mean.”
I don’t bother responding as we walk out of the alley and onto the sidewalk together. Noah escorts me back to the hotel, and neither of us attempts to start another round of insults or arguments. Overhead, the sky is a blend of blue and pink. Night and day clashing, fighting each other, even though we all know how it ends. How it always ends, no matter how hard she fights him.
“So what’s the plan for getting into this masquerade, exactly?” I ask as a traffic light changes, and the roar of traffic fills the air. “Waltz through the front door? Ask the traitor to announce themselves?”
Noah grins. There’s something about his smile, a mischievous darkness to those lips, that makes me suppress a shiver.
“Actually, I was thinking more of a tango,” he says.
Chapter Two
Once again, I meet Noah in the lobby.
I spot him standing at the front desk. His profile is familiar, but that’s the only reason I recognize him. As Noah says something to the blushing human, I struggle to hold onto an indifferent expression.
Noah Forrest is wearing a suit.
Hearing my heels click against the tile, he turns. With his dark hair and pale skin, Noah is stark, frightening, and lovely. I immediately feel a sense of inadequacy—my dress is something I’d wear to Crimson—but I quash it down and remind myself that I have nothing to be ashamed of. Nothing.
“Car is waiting out front,” Noah says by way of greeting, his dark gaze blatantly traveling the length of me. A pulse of heat goes through my lower stomach. Ignoring it, I walk toward the doors and try not to glance at the Feeding Suite. The smell drifts to me, though, a plethora of cleaning products and blood types. Even though I fed from Deacon before I went to sleep, my fangs begin to slide out, poking at my bottom lip like mischievous children.Will you never be sated?I ask the monster, glaring at my own reflection as I approach the glass doors.
Never,she whispers back.
A limousine idles by the curb. The back door is open, like a beckoning hand, and a lavender-eyed driver stands next to it. Seeing him causes a pang of longing, and I wonder if Alexei is still driving Valerie around, or if they’ve given him new responsibilities. Are they being kind to him? Has he found someone to teach his carving to?
“I may be immortal, halfling, but you’re not,” a familiar, arrogant voice says from behind. I realize I’ve been staring at the driver, who stares back at me with a bewildered expression. My cheeks feel hot as I throw a glare at Noah over my shoulder, then get into the limo. The bounty hunter does the same, filling the confined space with his scent and his presence. The driver closes the door behind us.
“Did you bring the contacts?” I ask instantly, shamefully eager to cover the true color of my eyes. Once he’s seated, Noah takes a small case out of his pocket and hands it to me without comment. Luckily, I’ve put contacts in before, for Halloween costumes and theme nights at Crimson. I dig a compact mirror from my clutch and go about putting the green contacts in.
It’s disorienting, when I gaze at my reflection a minute later. Staring back at me is the person I thought I would be. The person I dreamed of being.
But if I’d Awoken with green eyes, I never would have known the suffering of a Lavender. Never would have known the Vampire King’s true nature. Never would have met Drew. Never would have known the truth about the rebellion. Princess Charlotte would have stayed in her pretty gardens, believing the dismissive lies her daddy told her.
If I had the choice now, would I still want that comfortable life? Would I still prefer the blissful naiveté?
I close the compact mirror on my frowning reflection.
Silence—broken only by the soft exhale of heat coming from the vents—surrounds us while Noah tugs at the ends of his sleeves. I tear my gaze away from him, trying not to think of our kiss for the thousandth time. An impossible feat, considering we’re in a dark, confined space together.
The car takes a sharp turn, then, and a garment hanging near the door sways. I touch the plastic and give Noah a questioning look. “Sylvia loaned you one of her gowns,” he says distractedly, frowning at his phone.
“You couldn’t tell me that before we left the hotel?” I mutter as I unzip it. Despite my annoyance with Noah, whose smirk is made more prominent by the glow of his screen, I can’t pretend not to feel a rush of relief—facing my family will be so much easier if they have no idea I’m there. But… there isn’t exactly a bathroom to change in.
