Page 72 of Becoming D'Vaire
“Gentlemen, Grigori has a big announcement to make,” his mother said from behind him.
“I do. Next Saturday, Del and I are going to have our mating ceremony,” he replied grandly.
There were no words in response to his statement; Grigori was greeted by bone-crushing hugs instead. When he could finally breathe again, there were tears in his mother’s eyes.
“Mom, seriously. It’s going to be okay.”
She smacked his arm lightly. “I’m not crying because I’m scared or worried. My baby boy’s in love. How else could I react but with joy? These are tears of happiness.”
“Why didn’t you bring Del here with you to celebrate?” his father asked.
Grigori sighed and went with honesty. “Because I was expecting you guys to react with some level of concern, and he’s already jumpy. I want him to actually show up on Saturday.”
“I can still be thrilled for you while I’m concerned,” his mother responded in a hurt voice.
“Okay, I’m sorry. I should’ve brought him.”
“Yes, you should have. Now, tell us everything. Where’s it going to be? D’Vaire?” Irina asked.
“Yeah. I’d like to use your athame. Is that okay?” Grigori asked.
Irina tugged him into her arms again. “Oh, sweetheart. Of course that’s okay. It means a lot to me that you’d want to. Thank you. The moment I mixed my blood with your father’s was one of the best of my life. The only other times that compare to it are when my sons were born, and I got to add Keyton and Charlie to our family.”
“I was hoping you’d be okay with it. Tigglesworth and Charlie used it. So I figured after two incredible matebonds with it, the dagger would bring us the same kind of luck.”
“It was an honor for Charles and me to be allowed to use something so dear to the family, my lord,” Tigglesworth said.
“If you mean that like you’re not a part of this family, I’m going to get very angry with you, Keyton,” Irina retorted.
“Wow. Key, you’re in big trouble. She didn’t call you Tigglesworth,” Charlie commented. His brown eyes were full of humor.
“Yes, thank you, Pet. I figured that out. I don’t wish to confuse our role as trusted servants and take advantage of the Volkov family, Vampyress,” Tigglesworth responded.
“You’re testing my patience, Keyton.”
“Before your mother explodes at Tigglesworth—who’s a Volkov, whether he likes it or not—I’d like to ask if you’ve thought about collars,” his father interjected.
“I’ve already had them made. I’ll show you,” Grigori said. He dashed down the hall toward his bedroom and grabbed the boxes he’d kept out to show his family before he packed them for D’Vaire. When he returned to the kitchen, his mother was still eyeballing Tigglesworth, who was calmly pouring glasses of champagne for everyone. He set his treasures on the counter and opened the first one. “These are the ones for our ceremony. I took the Volkov design and added a D. Delsaurus and I are going to be Volkov-D’Vaires.”
“Did I mention how adorable I find that nickname you’ve given him?” his mother asked. “I like the hyphenated names. These are lovely. What’s in the other two boxes? I was only expecting one more collar for Del when you begin feeding from him.”
“Well, I didn’t want to leave Greggory out of things. So I had a little chain made for him,” he told his family as he revealed the small collar he’d commissioned for Delaney’s familiar. “I thought you could hold him during the ceremony. Charlie and Tigglesworth could help you attach his collar at the right time.”
“I can’t even stand how cute that is,” his mother crowed.
“Now show us the exciting one,” Nikolai encouraged.
“I just want to warn you. It’s different. He’s Delaney the Dark—I couldn’t give him something all red,” Grigori prepared them as he lifted the lid. Inside was what he thought was the most perfect collar on the planet. It was thick, black, over half an inch wide, and the texture made it appear as if it morphed from dragon scales to velvet depending on which direction it caught your eye.
At the front was the gold rectangle that hid the blood lock with a V and a D interlaced in fancy script. On either side was a square ruby with a rose etched onto the top and surrounded by black diamonds. Unlike other nonvampire mates, it would lie flat against his skin, so it didn’t interfere if he wore a collared shirt.
“Oh Grigori, this is a work of art,” Irina said reverently as she traced a finger over it. “It even feels like scales and velvet.”
“It’ll look fantastic on him,” Nikolai assured him.
“It’s really going to bring out his eyes, isn’t it, Key?” Charlie asked.
“Yes, Pet. I’m sure he’ll somehow be even more remarkable to look at in this masterpiece. Excellent job, my lord,” Tigglesworth responded.
