Page 18 of The Pureblood Princess
“They’re lovely.” Nadia cradles the bouquet in one arm and runs her fingers over the silky black petals. “I didn’t knows roses came in black.” Leaning in, she presses her nose to the flowers, and they smell as fresh as if she just plucked them from the garden herself. “Perhaps I wi—”
Something tickles her arm, and when she shifts the bouquet, a gasp catches in her throat.
A shiny black spider creeps up her arm, and when it moves its long jointed legs, a red hourglass becomes visible on its abdomen.
With a jolt, Nadia throws the bouquet to the floor and swipes the black widow from her arm, scarcely holding back a scream.When the flowers hit the floor, more spiders swarm from it, all carrying enough venom to put a grown human into the ground.
“It’s all right.” Theodore’s arms come around her, holding her steady as the spiders skitter down the hall and into the shadows, vanishing almost as quickly as they appeared.
“Th-they...” Nadia still feels its legs on her skin, and a tremble goes down her spine.
“They’re not a danger to us in the way they are to humans,” Theodore says, his voice comforting as he turns Nadia around. “It would take numerous bites to elicit even a slight reaction.”
Even so, he seems to assess her, his eyes sweeping up and down her body before he takes her arm and inspects it for a bite. Finding nothing, he turns his attention to the flowers.
“The Kazamirs,” Nadia whispers as Theodore kneels to study the broken bouquet.
He glances back at her over his shoulder. “What makes you say that?”
“Who else would send such a horrid gift?” Rubbing a hand absently up and down her arm, she shakes her head. “And besides, we’ve told no one else of our engagement. There’s been no wedding announcement.”
Now, looking at the roses lying scattered on the polished floor, she knows without a shred of doubt that these flowers came from the Kazamirs. Honora probably giggled in glee while putting the bouquet together. Vile woman.
“If that’s true, we must confront them at once.”
“No, don’t. We don’t need to tell anyone.”
Green eyes narrowing, Theodore stands and tips his head at her. “Whyever not?”
“They want a reaction from me. If they never intended to kill me, then they intended to scare me, and I’ll not give them the satisfaction.” Her eyes narrow, and she draws herself up.“You’re to be my husband, and I’m to be your wife. That alone is retribution enough. I shan’t fall for their childish schemes.”
Theodore seems to soften then, the tension melting from his shoulders. He reaches out a hand, and when Nadia places hers in it, he presses a kiss to the backs of her fingers. “You, Miss Magdalena, will make a stunning viscountess.”
“Even more stunning than Honora?” she asks, a playful lilt to her voice.
“There is no contest. You were always meant to be mine.” Tugging her hand, he pulls her into an embrace, and his mouth finds hers once more. She melts into him, her eyes closing as his lips touch hers, and only the laughter of small children causes them to part.
Luca and Francesca are peering around the corner, giggling like the mischievous little things they are, and they gasp and vanish as soon as they’ve been caught.
“I suppose that means we should go to dinner,” Nadia says, pulling away from Theodore so that she won’t be tempted to kiss him again.
“If we must,” he says, straightening his crisp waistcoat. “But you should know”—he lowers his voice to a whisper—“you’re all I’m interested in eating tonight.”
Heat blossoms across Nadia’s cheeks, and Theodore gives her that captivating roguish smile as he offers his arm to escort her into the dining room.
After dinner, the women andchildren depart the dining room, leaving the men to drink port and smoke cigars, and Nadia catches her mother gently by the elbow before she can enter the drawing room for after-dinner tea.
“Mama, may I speak with you?”
Lady Gray’s eyes widen with curiosity, and she nods. “Of course, dear.”
Joining arms with her mother, Nadia leads her to the back veranda. She asks a passing maid to bring them their shawls, and once their bare shoulders are draped in warmth, they step outside into the night.
“Oh, it’s beautiful,” Lady Gray whispers as she moves into the darkness and tips her head back to look up at the sky.
Indeed, the night sky, with its swaths of twinkling stars and big brilliant moon, is a sight to behold. On nights when the moon is full or near full, the entire landscape becomes awash in a cold silver glow, the light more than enough for one to see by—even without vampire eyes.
For Nadia, stepping into the night triggers a shift in her vision that yields sharp, perfect clarity. Even if the moon were shrouded this night, she’d have no difficulty seeing into the distant fields and trees or catching sight of a bat as it hunted for bugs in the midnight sky overhead.
