Page 19 of Twisted
His dark blue eyes latch to my gaze, and my heart flutters inside my chest, much to my chagrin.I hate the way he looks at me as if he can see right through me and is staring at my soul.And I hate it even more that I like feeling naked in front of him.Because for some strange reason, there’s something magnetic about him, like he’s a dark, moonlight trail that cuts through the thick forest.You know you shouldn’t take it, because eventually the moonlight is filtered out by all the trees, but you’re dying to know where it might lead.
“Well, isn’t she the bee's knees,” a female vampire seated at the table says.Sucking in a breath, I look at her.She’s wearing a simple blue sundress and her blonde hair hangs in loose curls around her shoulders.Her skin, pale even before death, has an almost gray tinge to it, but there’s no denying her beauty.“Aren’t you going to introduce us?”Her eyes are bright and she smiles, looking from me to Devon and back again.
“Mable, darling,” the vampire next to her starts.His tone is soft and he puts his hand on top of hers.He’s older, by a century or so.I can tell by the energy he’s giving off.
“Oh, don’t be such a wet blanket, Zeke!”Mable goes on.She has a transatlantic accent I’ve only heard in old-timey movies.“We should get to know our future sister-in-law!”
Silence falls over the room and I blink, waiting for someone to laugh and tell her that’s a funny thing to call me.“Wait a minute…what?I’m not your sister-in-law.”
Mable beams and claps her hands together.“Not yet, silly goose.You’re getting married!”
CHAPTER9
“Please, take your seat.”Devon pulls out a chair for me but I stand there, rooted to the spot.I’m marrying someone?What the fuck?It has to be Devon.After all, the man is supposed to knock me up with the next generation’s future vampire spawn.
But I swear the vampire named Mabel looked at Xavier when she spoke.
“Please,” Devon says again and I see the strain on his face.Swallowing my apprehension—and reminding myself that since I can’t be held spellbound, harsher measures will be taken—I sit next to Devon.We’re on the side of a large table, across from Mabel and the vampire she called Zeke.Like Devon, he has a slight resemblance to Xavier, as does the vampire next to him.They’re both dressed business casual, in dark pants and button up shirts.
“This is Florence,” Devon says and pushes my chair in behind me.Silence still fills the room, and the ticking of a fancy grandfather clock echoes loudly with each empty second.
“Why does she smell different than the others?”Mabel tips her head like a dog does when it hears the word “walk”.
“She’s a witch,” Xavier explains, leaning back.He looks both amused and annoyed and he lets out a heavy sigh, raising his eyebrows in an unspoken threat to Devon.
“Oh, goodness!”Mabel gets up, coming over to me with vampire speed.I hold my ground, not even so much as flinching.“We’re going to have a witch in the family?Will her children be witches, too?Can they come to my tea parties?"
Carefully, she picks up a lock of my hair and smells it.
“No one ever comes to my tea parties,” she says and her voice drops.“I spin and spin and I spin and still no one ever comes and then I’m in the doldrums.”Her voice is haunting, both smooth and soothing yet with an undeniable sadness.
“I can come to your tea party,” I tell her and she lets go of my hair.
“Really?”
“Really.When is the next one?”
“High noon tomorrow!”She claps her hands together.“But in the ballroom, not the garden.That silly garden is full of nasty sunlight at noon.I cannot go out there.No, Mabel cannot.”
There’s something not quite right about her, and I hate that I feel like she’s innocent in some way.She’s a vampire, and she could easily kill me.
But I can easily kill her, too.I can easily kill anyone in this room.The odds are against me, with it being four against one, but I’ve gotten out of worse scenarios.
I, uh, just can’t remember when.
“Who am I marrying?”I ask but then two waiters come in, bringing plates of food for Devon and me.It smells delicious, and there’s no meat in sight.
“I told them you’re a vegetarian,” Devon says quietly.
“Oh, uh, thanks.”I look down at my plate.It’s some sort of Asian fusion food and my stomach grumbles.I haven’t had anything to eat other than the smoothie I got on the way home from shopping with Nina.
“Humans need protein,” the unnamed male vampire states, but it’s almost like he’s asking a question.How long has this dude been dead?
“You can get protein from things other than meat,” I say and Devon shoots me a look.I’m guessing the previous human incubators were seen and not heard.Hah.That is not going to fly with me.“But about this wedding…the fuck?”
Mabel sucks in a breath.“Are we allowed to say naughty words at the table again?Mother never allowed it, but sometimes, I would tell my brother he was a skirt-chaser when Mother was in the kitchen.It’s true, though.”
“You will be signing the papers to become my wife tonight,” Xavier tells me, seemingly unbothered.“Vampire-human marriage recently became legal here in North Carolina and the VC is breathing down my fucking neck about keeping up appearances.”His fist comes down heavy on the table, making Mabel jump.She scurries back to her seat and takes Zeke’s hand.He soothes her like a scared puppy and I wonder if she had these oddities before she got turned into a vampire.
