34
Halloween Party Scandal at The Darlington:
Guests Dance on the Graves of Dead Morals!
INsiderHeadline
Kate
“Henry is going to lose it when he sees you.”
Grace sat cross-legged on the bed in my hotel room and watched me with a smile as I stared at myself in the mirror. I hardly recognised myself. Who was this woman? The dress was the prettiest I’d ever worn in my life. It wasn’t black but made of a light, silky fabric that hugged my body to create the illusion of curves. Thin straps gathered at the back of my neck, and while the neckline was relatively high, the cut left almost my entire back exposed. It was a stunningly elegant dress—but it was how Grace had transformed me that took my breath away.
She had brought makeup with her, along with the scissors Amy used to trim her fringe. For the first time in months, my hair was even, with Grace having fixed what I hadn’t managed on my own. Afterwards, she had used her straightener to add soft waves to theends of my hair. And she had made my eyes look sultry behind the gold mask, which covered only the top half of my face. The sides of the mask were adorned with delicate, white feathers, as if it had sprouted wings, or a tiny angel had landed on my face.
“I think I’m going to lose it too,” I replied. This was yet another one of those times when I couldn’t quite believe that this was my life now. I had experienced so many of these moments over the last few weeks.
Grace laughed. “You look amazing.”
“Thank you.” I gently ran my fingers over the silky fabric. I had the strange feeling that I moved differently in this dress. Maybe because, for the first time in months, I wasn’t trying to be inconspicuous or invisible. I wanted to be seen, because this dress deserved to be seen. “For your help too.”
“I expect a detailed report tomorrow as a thank-you.”
“You would have received one anyway,” I said, tearing myself away from the mirror.
Grace had risen from the bed to put on her shoes. She had the day off today and had come to the hotel especially to help me, but Amy was waiting for her at home because she had been stood up by Garrett again. The twins were having a film night instead, something I would have been jealous of were it not for the fact that Henry was picking me up at any moment. “I can’t wait. Have fun tonight.”
“Thanks, you too. Say hi to Amy from me.”
Grace slipped on her coat, and we hugged goodbye just as the doorbell rang. She shot me an excited smile before she went to open the door.
My stomach did a somersault when I saw Henry. He looked as if he had stepped straight out of one of my romantasy novels.Instead of a regular suit jacket, he wore a burgundy tailcoat adorned with black embroidery, paired with a matching waistcoat and elegant gloves. Like me, Henry wore a mask that concealed the upper half of his face. But while mine came from a supermarket’s Halloween assortment, Henry’s seemed custom-made. It fit the contours of his face perfectly and had two curved horns protruding from it. If this was what the devil looked like, I could hardly wait to get to hell. Or perhaps I was already there, given how hot I suddenly felt.
“Perfect timing, Mr. Darlington. You look great.”
“Thank you, Grace.” The mask gave Henry’s smile an air of mischief.
“Have fun, you two, and behave yourselves.” Grace smiled as she slipped out into the corridor, leaving me alone with Henry.
His full attention was on me, and the heat in my body intensified. His gaze swept slowly over me before returning to my face. My throat suddenly felt dry, and my heart pounded wildly as he approached slowly before stopping right in front of me. Even though I was wearing heels, he was still much taller. He looked down at me. His pupils were dilated, yet the blue of his eyes seemed even more intense than usual behind the dark mask.
I swallowed hard. “Hey.”
“Hey,” Henry answered. “You look stunning, Cupcake.”
I suppressed a smile, not because I liked the nickname, but because he simply wasn’t giving up—it wasn’t in his nature. “Thanks. But please don’t call me Cupcake, Mr. Darlington.”
“Mr. Darlington?” Henry asked, bemused.
“Don’t you like me calling you that?”
“Oh, I do. Far too much,” he replied with a smile that made me want to say his last name more often. He took another step closer and raised a hand. His fingertips gently grazed my mask,then skimmed the ends of my hair before finally tracing my bare shoulder. My heart pounded even faster. “I have to admit, I slightly regret inviting you to this ball.”
“Oh, really?”
“Yes. Now I’ll have to share you with everyone else.”
“We could always stay here, order pizza, and watch a film,” I suggested, not entirely selflessly. As much as I was looking forward to the evening with Henry, I was nervous about diving deeper into his world. I had nothing in common with the people at this ball, and I had no idea what to expect.
