She smiles at me again, and then departs.
I give myself another one-over in the mirror, trying not to overthink anything. Then I rise from my seat to go downstairs to Crimson’s office. I shouldn’t keep her waiting.
As I move through the shadowy halls of the mansion, worries start to bubble up.
She wants to see me in heroffice? Why?
Maybe she just…wants to have sex on the desk again?
It couldn’t be a bad thing, right?
What if…what if I wasreallybad at oral sex, and now she’sfiringme?
No, no, I’m sure that’s not it.
But why would sheaskEloise to come get me, if there wasn’t a particular reason?
Ok, Paige, you’re spiraling again! Just be cool.
Before I know it, I’m at her office door. Her name plate shines in hard, cold brass just above my eye level. I smooth down my hair,taking a deep breath to steady myself. I’m sure everything’s fine. I’m sure there’s a perfectly normal reason for her to have asked me to her office, instead of the lounge, or her crypt.
I’m about to knock, but then the door swings open, and she’s standing right there.
“Oh!” I gasp, lowering my fist. “I…how did you know I was here?”
“I can hear your heart beating,” she replies, tilting her head to the side.
This is new information. “You can…hear my heart? Through thedoor?”
“Of course.” She frowns. “You didn’t know that? I have vampiric senses.”
I blink, trying to process what this means. It feels so intimate, knowing that she can hear me that way. It makes me extremely self-conscious. I’m suddenly very aware of how sweaty my palms are, how my heart races in her presence.
“Come in,” she says, gesturing that I should enter.
I follow her into the office. The sink is no longer lying on the floor. I assume it’s back in its proper location in the adjacent bathroom, although the door is closed. Everything else looks the same, except…except there’s a shiny, black box on the desk.
“I have something for you,” Crimson tells me, running a hand through her short hair.
I gaze curiously at the box. What could it possibly be? Lingerie, probably. That’s sweet of her. Blakeneverused to get me anything.
Not that she’s like…mygirlfriendor anything. It’s silly to even compare her to him.
“Oh, you…you didn’t have to do that, my king,” I say. “You’ve done so much for me already.”
“Nonsense,” she replies smoothly. “You’ve served me well, and you deserve to be rewarded.”
That’s how she sees me. Someone to serve her. And I suppose I am. I can’t deny that the thought thrills me, makes me wet and ready for her.
But there’s also a little twinge in my stomach. Is that all I am to her?
“Would you like to see what it is?” she asks, gesturing toward the box.
I nod. I bought lots of lingerie at the mall, but I’m excited that she got me some. It’ll be so special to wear something she bought for me specifically. I go over to the desk, and I open the box.
My heart skips a beat.
It’s not lingerie.
