Her aquamarine eyes were unreadable as she studied him. The silence between them stretched out until she finally said, “I have something appropriate, but thank you.”
Dominique disappeared into her room and shut the door behind her.
Unsettled, Ronan stalked away and went in search of his sister. Aisling was the only person in this castle worth visiting. He also needed to tell her about Dominique. Though he couldn’t give her the details because of the listening ears all over the castle, he needed to warn her. He had a feeling his sister would hate Dominique on sight because she was so much like their parents in terms of her attitude.
After that, he would find something to keep himself occupied until it was time to get ready for dinner. Though, how one prepared for torture, he didn’t know.
CHAPTER EIGHT
Dominique was leftto her own devices all day long. Any other time, she would have been angry that she took time off work to be there. But, after meeting Ronan’s parents, she understood now why he’d said what he had in the truck that morning.
He thought she was like his parents. It shouldn’t have hurt, but it did. Dominique recognized that his parents were manipulative, and their behaviors were dictated by their desire for power. She didn’t give a damn about power. She merely wanted to survive her own family. The only way to do that was to shut down.
She couldn’t explain all of that to him, not without revealing too much of herself, so she hadn’t bothered trying.
With all of that on her mind, Dominique wandered through the castle and found herself downstairs near the kitchens. When she stepped inside, everyone stopped dead, looking straight at her. Obviously, news of her arrival had spread through the castle like wildfire.
Uncomfortable, she started to turn and leave, but her stomach growled loudly.
A young fae male came over to her. “Ms. Proxa, let us serve you some lunch. Please come sit.”
He guided her to what appeared to be the staff dining table, pulling her chair out for her. She didn’t bother to say she wasn’t hungry because it would have been an obvious lie.
Dominique watched as everyone moved around the kitchen, each doing separate tasks. The young male was clearly making her lunch, but others were obviously prepping for dinner later. Several of the kitchen staff kept glancing at her, and Dominique knew they wanted to ask her for help. The services of fairy godmothers were often reserved for the upper classes and nobility in Magic, but some fairy godmothers dedicated a small amount of time each month to those who served the wealthy or weren’t rich themselves.
As she watched them and saw the hope in their eyes, Dominique decided she would do what she could to aid them this weekend. It hurt her heart to see so many fae desperate for a partner. For someone to love them.
Often, the lower classes in the fae realm never got the chance to even see a fairy godmother, much less consult with one. Sometimes, they were lucky enough to find their mates, but oftentimes they weren’t.
That was another reason she’d left Magic. She believed all supernaturals deserved to find love, whether they were considered “undesirable” or not. It used to upset her when her mother and sisters dismissed the brownies, house elves, and other lower forms of fae when they asked help. Even if they offered up their hard-earned gold, they were often turned away.
Dominique ate a delicious lunch and let the kitchen staff know that she would be back in the morning to speak to anyone who wished for her help. Judging from their smiles, most of them would be there.
She returned to her room and stretched out on the bed. The Lake room seemed to be named specifically because of the gorgeous mural painted along the wall behind the bed. Itdepicted a peaceful lake at sunset. The light of the fading sun in the painting seemed to glow. The furnishings throughout the room echoed the colors of the mural. Restful blues and greens were accented with lavender, yellow, and warm peach. The illusion of being at a secluded lake was so complete that Dominique could almost feel the breeze on her skin and hear the water lap at the shores of the lake.
Feeling calmer than she had in the past week, Dominique’s eyes grew heavy. Since the day Ronan walked into her office, she hadn’t been sleeping well. A nap seemed like just the thing. Especially since she hadn’t brought her laptop with her. There wasn’t much else to do.
Setting her phone alarm for five p.m., she turned on her side and closed her eyes. As she drifted off, she almost swore she could feel the sun warming her skin.
Her sleep was so deep and restful that when she opened her eyes, she wasn’t even sure if it was day or night. She picked up her phone and released a small shriek. It was nearly five-forty-five.
In a flurry of motion, she jumped off the bed and dashed into the bathroom to turn on the shower. It normally didn’t take her long to get ready for events, but the expectations at fae court were different than in the human realm.
An hour and fifteen minutes later, Dominique was still in her underwear. Her makeup was done, as was her hair, but she couldn’t find the shoes she’d packed to match her dress. The brownies had unpacked for her, and everything was exactly where it should be. Except for her damned shoes.
The wardrobe had a row of shelves for footwear, but none of them contained the ones she needed. With a sigh, she shoved some of her clothes out of the way and noticed a gleam at the bottom of the wardrobe. She leaned down, and sure enough, hershoes must have fallen off the shelves. Leaning over further, she snagged them off the floor and straightened.
Right into a long, hard body just behind her.
Large hands clamped down on her hips, heat seeping into her skin from everywhere he touched her.
“You’re not dressed,” Ronan said. The words were barely more than a rumble.
Dominique couldn’t suppress the shiver that ran through her, even though she fought it hard. Ronan’s hands seemed even hotter as the tips of his fingers dug into her flesh. He stepped even closer, surrounding her with his heat, and she shivered again.
“What are you doing in here?” she asked, trying to ignore the breathy sound of her voice. “And why didn’t you knock?”
His warm breath fanned her bare shoulder when he answered, “I did knock. When you didn’t answer, I thought you made a run for it and came through the connecting door.”
