I was relieved to find that Sienna had the foresight to provide a pair of undergarments to wear with the dress.
A few minutes later, I walked out from behind the screen and over to the dressing table where Sienna waited.
I took a seat in front of the mirror and table.
“Your hair is beautiful,” Sienna murmured, gathering my hair in her hands.
When I was younger, I liked to tell people my hair was auburn when in reality it had always been much closer to brown. Its reddish tint could only be detected under direct sunlight. Something I didn’t get a lot of anymore.
Now it was a rich brown that looked luxurious against skin that was less pale than it had been a few months ago.
It turned out a regular supply of fresh blood was exactly what I’d needed to not look like a pasty ghost.
“Yours is too,” I offered.
“Thank you,” Sienna murmured with a mysterious little smile.
Quiet fell as I studied myself in the mirror, taking in the grayish blue of my eyes and the toned muscles of my arms. The athletic build I’d been blessed with had been enhanced in recent months by the intense training regimen Liam and Nathan had subjected me to.
“Look here.” Finished with my hair, Sienna tilted my face toward hers, applying eyeshadow with sure strokes followed by mascara. A moment later she stepped back to scrutinize her work. “This’ll have to do. What do you think?”
She took my hand to help me stand before leading me to the full-length mirror on the opposite side of the room.
I stopped, the reflection in the glass taking my breath away.
The dress Sienna had chosen was exquisite. The sequined bodice shimmered in the light. A black see-through tulle overlaid the deep red fabric of the skirt. Around my neck, Sienna had placed an antique silver filigree necklace. A ruby was set in the center with another of a similar size dangling from the setting as a pendent. Smaller rubies decorated either side.
My eyes had a smoky, slumberous look courtesy of the makeup Sienna had applied. To complete the ensemble, she’d fastened my shoulder length hair into a simple low side bun. A few tendrils framed my face in soft curls.
While I was admiring myself, Connor stepped out of the bathroom wearing a modern looking, slim cut suit with a black lace tie that matched my dress.
“One last thing.” Sienna drew out a pair of heels that looked exactly like the ones she was wearing and handed them to me. “Your shoes don’t do that dress justice.”
I took them from her, surprised to see they were in my size.
Sienna approached Connor next, setting a pair of cufflinks in the palm of his hands. “Your sire hoped you would wear these in your first appearance as your House enforcer.”
I gave the cufflinks a curious look as I sat down to put the heels on. In the shape of a wolf’s head, they matched my necklace with tiny rubies in the place of the wolf’s eyes.
I stood, taking a few steps to test the fit of the heels. “Those are pretty.”
The weirdness in Connor’s expression and the way he hadn’t moved since Sienna gave him the cuffs finally registered.
I stopped. “What’s wrong?”
He started to shake his head before he froze, his gaze fixed on my neck.
A sad smile formed. “That belonged to my mother.” He held up the cuff links. “These were my father’s.”
I touched the pendant self-consciously. “Do you want me to take it off?”
I would if he asked.
He didn’t talk about her, but I knew the story from Liam. She, with the rest of their village, had dragged his father and uncle into the daylight shortly after their transition. While vampires could survive the sun, that didn’t apply to the newly turned.
She’d meant to kill them. An event I’m sure was traumatic for Connor.
Still, she was his mother.
