Page 28 of Wolf Queen Ruin
Caught in the powerful spark burning in his eyes.
He looked away, and I crashed back down to the planet and tried to settle my heartbeat.
This deception of ours was working almost too well.I had to remind myself that this was all pretense—the touches, the intimate looks, the easy physical harmony we’d developed.None of it was real.
So why did it feel that way?
I pushed the uncomfortable thought aside.
Focus on the mission, Luna, not the unfairly hot vampire in a tux who could ruin your heart.
And your dress, if he really wanted to.
Stop!STOP!
No more thinking ever.
Chapter eight
Damien
Luna’sscentlingered—wildhoneyand a hint of lemongrass—as she walked away with Marcel.The empty space beside me felt wrong somehow, as if a limb had been temporarily removed.
A deeply concerning reaction, given the temporary nature of our arrangement, yet there it was, carving its way into my chest.
“You’ve always had unusual taste in companions,” Vivienne said, her fingers curling possessively around my arm.“But this is exceptional even for you, darling.”
I offered the smile I’d perfected in Louis XIV’s court—pleasant and revealing nothing.“Luna has qualities you’d appreciate if you took the time to know her.”
“I’m sure she does.”Vivienne’s violet eyes glittered behind her mask.“After all, she’s managed something that I couldn’t accomplish in decades, which was getting that ring on her finger.”
My family ring glinted on Luna’s hand across the gallery, catching light as she gestured to Marcel.I’d told myself the ring was merely a prop, a necessary element in our charade.Yet when I’d slipped it onto her finger, something had stirred beneath my skin.
“The world changes, Vivienne,” I replied.“We must adapt.”
“Must we?I find tradition has its merits.”She steered me toward a secluded alcove where several rare vampire artifacts were displayed.“Particularly traditions that benefit houses as old as mine and Elliot’s.”
The alcove was partially hidden from the main gallery by a rippling veil of magic, creating an area private enough for conversation while maintaining the appearance of appreciating Selene’s collection.
A clever choice for what Vivienne clearly intended as an interrogation about Luna.
A crystal decanter of dark liquid sat on a floating tray beside an ancient ceremonial dagger.The vampire equivalent of a private bar.
“Blood wine from Selene’s private stock,” Vivienne explained, lifting the decanter.“Vintage 1788.Pre-Revolution French nobility.Supposedly you can taste the arrogance.”
“How fitting,” I murmured, glancing back toward Luna.
Vivienne laughed, that practiced, musical sound that had once been the envy of Vienna’s social circle.“I’ve missed your particular brand of disdain, Damien.No one else quite manages to insult and charm simultaneously.”
The wine—blood mixed with rare herbs and aged to perfection—glowed ruby-dark in the crystal glasses she filled.She handed me one and took the other for herself.
“To reunions,” she said, raising her glass.
I mirrored the gesture.“To clarity.”
The blood wine was exquisite, and I savored it while watching Vivienne over the rim of my glass, calculating how much information I could extract from her without revealing our true purpose.
“Your little wolf seems quite taken with you,” Vivienne said.“Though I wonder if she knows about our…arrangement.”
