Page 27 of Rejected Mate

CHAPTER TEN

Aformalball?

A real, honest-to-goodness, Cinderella-your-slipper-is-falling-off ball?!

I stared at the giant ballroom, unable to comprehend what I was seeing. It was like something out of a fairy tale. The polished marble floor sparkled in the light of the crystal chandeliers. Flower garlands draped from every railing, releasing their delicious floral scents. A string quartet played classical music in one corner, while two bartenders in fancy waiter attire occupied the other and stood behind an ice-carved bar. In another corner, a yummy spread was served. Decadent tea cakes, fresh sushi, bacon-wrapped delicacies, and more sat atop golden platters.

My mouth watered and my stomach rumbled, but I had to abstain. If I ate one gram of anything, my very snug dress would rip open, and my bits and bobs would be on display for everyone to see.

It didn’t matter that, across the room, Laurel was trying to burn a hole through my dress with her gaze alone. For one moment, I was transported.

Then I remembered I was about to do battle.

From the looks of it, they’d thought of everything to make this party perfect, but it was like trying to put lipstick on a pig, as my father might say. No matter what the vampires did, I would not forget this was imprisonment, not a grand vacation.

I glanced toward the top of the twin staircases at the far end of the room. The gilded railings curved up to the second level, where the men waited.

They looked stunning. I had to give them that.

Vampires were attractive in general, but the seven bachelors standing above us were gods. The lamplight lit their pale faces, giving them an unnatural glow. Each wore a similar version of a black tuxedo, though I noticed Callan had misplaced his tie and left his black shirt unbuttoned, showing a hint of his impressive chest. He’d also forgotten to comb his hair, though the devil-may-care look suited him. Impish was the best word for him. Mischievous. He was about to cause trouble, and he knew it.

Ares was perfect as always, not a hair out of place. The black tux and flashing cufflinks brought to mind thoughts of red carpet runways where movie stars flaunted their finest. Ares could have walked a red carpet with the best of them. In fact, he would have stolen the spotlight on a bad day.

Today was not a bad day.Moons, why did he have to be so attractive and look so tasty in a suit?

The bachelors gazed down at us from their perch. For a brief moment, I worried about my appearance, but remembered all the work Maurica put in. I looked good enough for the plan to work. That was all that mattered.

Straightening my shoulders, I tried to exude sex as Laurel did, though I only managed to feel out of place. This was not my style, nor my type of game, which became more than apparent when Laurel strode ahead of me, wasting no time. Looking confident, she took a spot in the center of the dance floor. If there had been a spotlight, I was sure she would have found a way to take it from Ares.

Looking up atThe Golden God, she quipped, “Well, Mister Raith, are you going to come down here and dance with me? Or am I going to have to go up there and grab you myself?”

Her flirtatious smile and flick of her hair were choreographed so perfectly that I knew she had to have practiced it in a mirror beforehand.

Ares had asked Laurel to be his date? Great.

He smiled at her, though the gesture didn’t seem to reach his eyes, and began descending the stairs. The other vampires followed, a regal procession in black virgin wool. The cameras watched, eating this all up.

I had to remember this was all a show, and I played a part. One I had to nail.

Lifting my floor-length dress so I didn’t trip and immediately make a fool of myself, I stepped forward delicately. The gown looked incredible in this light. The color reminded me of moonlight sparkling on a silver lake and went well with my blond hair. Better than that, it enhanced all my assets, perhaps revealing a bit too much of them. I’d never been so afraid of my boobs popping loose in my entire life, but hey, it was working because when Callan spotted me, his eyebrows shot into his hair.

I smiled and did my best impersonation of Laurel. Walking up to him, I slipped my arm through his. “I told you I cleaned up pretty well.”

“I’ll say.” His voice was a low purr. “You look good enough to eat.”

I laughed when I would have rather pressed a blade to his throat. “Why, Callan, what a funny thing for a vampire to say.”

Smirking, he pulled me in to smell my hair. “Mmm, you shifters smell so… animalistic. I love it.”

I laughed again, even though I found the suggestion that I was an animal offensive, especially coming from a bloodsucker. “Maybe you could stop sniffing me long enough to offer me a dance?”

He smirked. “Already can’t get enough of me, I see.”

The vampires seemed prepared for the ball. Each male paired up with his female and began twirling her around the dance floor. It wasn’t lost on me that three of our number were not here. I wondered if the missing shifter females were still in the castle or if they too had been discarded like the males that had no use. I had to hope they’d been sent home and not suffered a worse fate.

“Your heart is trying to race out of your ample chest, princess,” Callan said, pressing me to him as he twirled. “Is it my excellent dancing or the fact that my body is this close to yours?” His hand gripped my waist harder, pulling me in.

“Hmm, well, I’ll say it’s not your dancing.”

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