Page 40 of Kiss of Fire

“Well, don’t worry about me. This is purely a business relationship. He wants the Vulcani to support him.”

Leona tilted her head to one side.

“He came to my people with the same proposal. My father leads the si’lat, and his first instinct was to support Salaq. If I hadn’t petitioned him to change his mind, Shadeed would have lost a valuable faction.”

“So you formed an alliance with Shade?”

“One we cement most nights.”

Raya blushed.

“Okay, I get it. You don’t need to spell it out. I promise you, our partnership is for show only. Nothing likeyouralliance. You keep cementing it all you want. Now can I wash my hair in peace?”

Leona held her gaze for a moment longer, the challenge unmistakeable. As far as she was concerned, Shade washerterritory. Then she rose to her feet gracefully.

“I will see you outside when you are ready.”

Raya didn’t bother replying. She closed her eyes and sank beneath the surface again. Leona had it wrong. She had no interest in a stupid turf war over an arrogant son-of-a-bitch like Shade.

When she finally got out of the bath, her skin was pink and her fingers wrinkled. Her hair had been washed three times and hung down to the small of her back in a damp curtain.

Her clothes had gone. Raya sincerely hoped Leona had burned them. She wrapped a big fluffy towel around herself and sighed happily. It was like being cosied up in a soft cloud.

Leona had laid a selection of clothes on the bed. All of them were long flowing dresses and mentally Raya discarded three of them straight off the bat.

“No way am I wearing anything see-through,” she said firmly. “And while we’re on the subject, can you put something on? Something else, I mean?”

Leona looked at her in surprise.

“One’s body is a beautiful and natural thing. Are you so averse to showing it?”

“To complete strangers, yes.”

“Is such prudery a human trait?”

“Mostly, yes. I like to keep my boobs covered.”

“Boobs?”

“Look, what about this one? The orange. That looks all right.” Raya picked up a garment in a shade of apricot and held it up to herself. It fell to the floor in soft folds. Leona nodded approvingly.

“A good choice. You have unusual colouring. The dress will bring out the warmth of your complexion. Try it on.”

Leona waited expectantly and Raya rolled her eyes.

“Can you at least turn around?”

She glared until the other woman faced away, then let the towel drop. It was only when she pulled on the dress that she realised Leona had a clear line of sight from the mirror in the bathroom.

Dammit. A world away from the psychiatric ward and she was still fighting for privacy. One day, she vowed, she was going to have her own place with her own door that she could lock whenever she liked. From the inside. She pretended not to notice Leona’s smirk.

“What do you think?”

The si’lat walked round her slowly. The sun-toned dress accentuated Raya’s curves, hugging her bustline and leaving her arms bare before falling delicately from the waist to the floor. She nodded approvingly.

“You’re starting to look the part. But you will need a lot of work to resemble a Vulcani.”

“Why? Are they like supermodels or something?”

---