Dragon Blood

Chapter 46

"Oh, come on. If Kincaid does show up, he'll be stopped by the dragonkin, or the shifters, or the vampires long before he makes it here. This is the safest place to be."

"Or," Nolan chuckled. "Because you want to show someone with the title of princess that you know how to class things up."

Atticus's face was blank, but his heart thundered loud enough that mortals could have heard it. "There's a princess here?"

Nolan recognized Rhia's voice and happily turned to explain, but every word died before they reached his tongue. Rhia's dress was formfitting to her hips before flaring out loosely to the floor. The satin was soft silvery grey covered by a near transparent white tulle material adorned with flower embroidery. Her fiery hair was pulled off her bare shoulders in an organized mess of curls and knots. A few strands had been pulled away to frame her face, drawing attention to her eyes. The glamour changed her pupils, but it did nothing to dim the brilliance of the emerald colour.

It wasn't until a knowing smile crossed her lips that he realized his jaw was slack. She knew exactly how beautiful she was. Confidence looked damn good on her. Atticus said something about finding a drink and excused himself. "What do you think? She asked, twirling.

The skirt flared out, sparkling in the dim light of the hall. She was wearing an impressive set of heels that brought her up to six feet. "You are..." he couldn't think of anything appropriate to say. Every word just wasn't enough.

"It's too much, isn't it?"

"No! No, its... you're... You are absolutely stunning."

"Not too bad yourself. Although, I was half expecting you to wear the tailcoat."

She beamed up at him and stepped closer. He eagerly took her in his arms and lowered his head to kiss her softly. "You don't smell like death today." He mused.

She raised her wrists and jiggled a clunky silver bracelet that didn't match the other jewelry she was wearing. "Apparently the herbs work in their raw form without the smell. Not nearly as effective, I am acutely aware of every person with a Y chromosome in this hall... but I'm also not fantasizing about each and every one of them. Except you, of course."

"Ooh, lucky me."

"Yes, indeed." something sparkled in her eyes. "Now, if you want those fantasies to stay the fun kind, then you had better tell me what the absolute fuck Constantine is doing here."

Anger. It was anger that danced behind the glamour. He looked over his shoulder to see Constantine speaking to a group of young women. He was covered, head to toe, in a powerful glamour spell, giving him an almost normal appearance. His skin was pale, but not paper white. The black marks were gone. His hair turned a dusty brown and brushed back into a knot at the back of his head. His tuxedo was almost vintage but fit in perfectly with the gathering.

"You recognized him?" Nolan said, unable to hide how impressed he was.

"I would recognize the smell of Maker's Mark and blood anywhere." She seethed. "What. is. he. doing. here?"

"Rhia," he said carefully.

"Nolan," she hissed warningly, and her eyes flickered dangerously between a circular and more oval.

"He's here to help. I told you there would be vampires among the patrols."

"Then he should be out there with them."

"He is here for the same reason Atticus is. For the same reason Keoni and Juniper are within earshot of this place. It is easier to coordinate from here. Besides," He took her hand to wrap it around his elbow and pulled her gently towards the vampire king. "You're going to be seeing a lot of him in France. You two need to figure out how to live with each other."