Page 5 of Toadstools and Vampire Kisses

She smooths a hand over her perfectly coifed hair and smirks. “A Durmont never turns down the opportunity to learn a new trick or two. If he is happy to show me, then I’m all ears.”

“You aren’t sleeping with him, are you?” I finally ask.

“You know better than that. I’m not one to discuss my sex life.” I give her a disbelieving look, and she laughs. “In this case, unfortunately, there is nothing to discuss. My current dry spell is in no danger of ending.” Her eyes twinkle mischievously as she fans herself. “Though I wouldn’t mind taking Adeon for a spin if he weren’t so damn noble. I want a lover to enjoy, not an overbearing knight looking to serve and master me.” She tips her head in consideration. “The serving part could undeniably be fun, however.”

“Oh, gods, no, don’t tell me that!” I chuckle and allow my mother to engulf me in another perfumed hug as she drops down on the bed beside me.

“Sometimes I worry about you,” I admit as I smile, pillowing my head on her shoulder. “You can’t possibly be a normal mother.”

My mother smiles impishly. “Being normal is vastly overrated as you well know. But don’t worry, darling. I am very, very good at taking care of myself.”

“And you don’t think playing with a dragon is flirting with danger? They’re not exactly docile. For that matter neither are vampires, and now we’re overrun with them.”

I can feel and hear her laughter against my cheek and smile despite my worries.

“Five vampires visiting as part of a diplomatic envoy isn’t what I call overrun. You want overrun—I can tell you all about how we had to host an entire coven. Now that was a lot of vampires and few of them as charming as our guests.”

“That’s the point.” I groan. “They’re vampires. Charming is what they do. They’ve literally been charming the pants off women left and right since they revealed their presence to the world. Everything was so much simpler before we knew all of this really shared the world with us. It felt safer.”

“Francesca Durmont, safer is about as boring as normal. Besides, I think that one, Reynard Bell, was a little taken with you.”

Jerking up, I fix my mother with my best forbidding scowl. “Don’t go playing matchmaker, Mother.”

She gives me a wide-eyed look of innocence that I don’t believe for even a moment and presses a hand to her chest. “AmItruly being accused of matchmaking? Fran, I wouldn’t dream of it! You know that I value your autonomy as a witch. It is that which defines our line.” She pauses. “However, if you need a tiny push in the right direction every now and then, that’s me doing my motherly duty.”

I groan, falling back against my pillows. “Please,please, do not push me in the direction of any vampires.”

“Oh, if you insist,” my mother replies with a sigh. “I really don’t know where you get your lack of adventurousness. Certainly not from my side. Must be your father.”

I fix my gaze on the ceiling above me. “Which one?” I ask. “Last I recall, I was conceived at a May Day Festival after you finished propitiating the spirits of the dead to rouse the fertility of summer.”

“Ah, yes, that was a particularly lovely festival.” My mother stares off with a fond smile on her face. Shaking away the memory she pats my leg and stands. “Well, I’m certain it comes from one of them, anyway. But that is okay because you get all of your best qualities from me. A true Durmont through and through.”

“I don’t feel like a true Durmont,” I admit to the ceiling, avoiding my mother’s gaze. I sigh and scrub at my face. “Let’s face it, I’m not Eleanor.”

“Ellie is hardly Eleanor,” my mother observes with a snort. “I always said that her parents push that girl too hard. She doesn’t need the stress of trying to measure up to be some imagined figure, and neither do you.” She bends over, and I feel her hand brush my cheek as she turns my face to look at her. “I know the Witch’s Ball makes you feel frazzled, but I’m so glad that you make the trip despite how you feel about it. It wouldn’t feel the same without you here by my side. Just remember: you are perfect exactly the way you are and deserve all that you desire.”

My lips twist wryly. “Because I’m your daughter.”

“Well, some might say that’s true, but no. It’s because you are something even better. You are you, and there is no other Fran out there like you.” She straightens, and I feel like I’m six again and missing the closeness whenever she left my bedroom at night after my bedtime story. “Goodnight, Fran. Sleep well. I wasn’t joking when I said that there was much for us to do.”

“No, somehow that I believed,” I reply with a tired laugh. “Goodnight, Mother. Try not to get up to anything I wouldn’t do with that dragon of yours.”

“Ah, but I guess that depends on the extent of your imagination,” my mother teases as the door whispers closed behind her.

I lie there for a long moment, grinning. As stressful as the family and coven are to deal with, this is always my favorite part of coming home. I never realize how much I’ve missed my mother until times like these.

As I strip off my clothes and ready myself for bed, I decide that this time I’m going to make the most of the Witch’s Ball. Mother is right—I’ve let the opinions of others suck all the joy and adventure out of me. This is a new year for me, starting with that ball. Afterward, I won’t “hide” in my cabin but enjoy its peace and serenity while fearlessly looking forward to the next adventure around the bend.

And the best place to begin is conquering my anxiety over the vampires. I make a face at the thought but smile secretively to myself as I wiggle down into the bedding. Mother may or may not be fantasizing about dragons tonight, but it is Reynard Bell’s sober and tragically handsome face that fills my mind as I drift off to sleep.

ChapterFive

RYNARD?

The bustle of activity in the Durmont house is shocking. In all my long life, I cannot recall a time where I’ve seen so many witches congregated, nearly half of whom I can tell, by scent if not by visual markers, are related.

“The Durmont family is obviously a prolific one,” I murmur to myself.

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