She huffed. “Fine. What kind of woman do you like?”
Aurea flashed across my mind before I could stop myself: her soft face, rosy blush on her cheeks, flowers woven in her long hair. I pushed away the image too late to stop the ache in my chest.
“No, never mind,” said Emmeline. “Let me guess.”
She shifted again. Her lips grew plumper and pinker, her eyes enlarging as her lashes lengthened. Her hair grew waist-length, turning into perfectly styled ringlets along the way, and her limbs slimmed down as her hands grew small and dainty. The raggedy dress transformed into a sheer, skimpy gown that displayed breasts swollen to momentous size.
I repressed a shudder. While her individual features were all attractive, something about the slipshod way she combined them… She reminded me of a doll that had been sewn together with mismatched parts.
“That is… disconcerting,” I said finally.
She snorted. “You’re the first man to say so.”
“Can you hold that form comfortably?”
“Nah. The breasts make my back hurt, and I can barely walk on these dainty feet.”
She shifted to the redheaded form she’d assumed when I’d caught her robbing Tullus. Her tattered dress didn’t quite fit this taller frame. Her legs were longer, her body more athletic. Catlike eyes of vivid green looked out from a striking face. She looked completely different from how she had in the forest, yet the form suited her.
Most of the Moonlit Court had minor shapeshifting abilities. They used it to hide blemishes and wrinkles, to tuck away extra body-fat and enhance their preferred features. I didn’t know anyone who could affect their clothing with that magic, much less transform their bodies completely as she did.
“How’s this?” she asked.
She seemed accustomed to the body, and she certainly looked attractive enough that no one would question how she’d caught Valen Corvanos’s eye.
“It’s acceptable,” I said, before adding, “Most women in the Court wear their hair longer.”
Her hair grew partway down her back in wild waves. I looked her over and nodded. It would do.
The flight to the city took about fifteen minutes, and then we landed outside the gates of my chateau to avoid the defensive spells over the property. The footman met us immediately, and I dismounted and offered my hand to Emmeline. She hesitatedfor a moment, eyes darting to the watching footman. Then she placed her hand in mine.
Her skin felt warm, and I could almost sense the magic buzzing through it. I helped her down from the pegasus, and she stared at the gray stone chateau in front of us.
Golden light from the building’s windows made the imposing structure seem more welcoming. A dense grove of trees surrounded us, clusters of luminescent flowers growing among them. An owl hooted overhead, and faint voices came from down the street.
Something caught my attention in the trees. An animal? No, my instincts said it was something—or someone—bigger.
I had a security spell around my property much like the one around Tullus’s study. And like that one, someone with the right tools and knowledge could bypass it. No spell was unbeatable.
Was someone in the trees?
I didn’t look in their direction, not wanting to tip them off that I’d noticed them. Instead, I escorted Emmeline inside.
“Sir Valen!” Nin’s voice echoed off the walls in the grand entrance hall. “Welcome back.”
I gave the head servant an amiable smile. She was a stocky older woman who’d dyed her hair pink when it started turning gray. She kept her blue dress and apron as neat as she kept my house.
“Good to be back,” I said. “Throw any wild parties while I was gone?”
At home, I didn’t act quite so much like the charming fop I played at the Court, but I still hid who I was and what I did from the servants. It was safer that way.
“You know I prefer a quiet evening in front of a nice, cozy fire.” Her gaze turned to Emmeline, and she dipped into a quick curtsy. “But pardon me. I didn’t realize you had a guest.”
“This is Emmeline.” I put my arm around her waist and ignored how she stiffened. We’d have to work on that. “She’ll be staying with us for the foreseeable future. Emmeline, meet Ninidia.”
“Call me Nin, and welcome! Are you hungry? I’ll have the cook whip something up.”
“Um, no, thank you.” Emmeline looked startled. “I’m more tired than anything.”
