My hair was in two low space buns in the front, with the back of my hair down and long. I wore rose gold earrings that hung down with a crescent moon and a rose gold thigh chain. Everymate mark on my body was on display, and I felt like a goddess on Kalista all dressed up like this.
I couldn’t help but twirl around, letting the skirt flare and the trailing fabric sweep the stone floor. “I cannot tell you how much I love this theme,” I squealed.
Slater made a sound that was half-groan, half-purr as he slid his palms onto my hips. “Forget the theme. This dress on my venom baby? That’s the real masterpiece.”
I giggled. “Well,youpicked the best dress again.”
“I can’t take all the credit,” Slater said regretfully, stepping back to gesture at Drecken. “He enchanted it. He changed the color, too. It was originally that soft sea glass teal.”
“True,” Drecken murmured, blue eyes glowing as they swept down every inch of me, “but this? This looks more like you, viperling.”
Desire pooled low in my stomach as I took a moment to appreciate them.
All of my mates wore the same black formal suit that was tailored perfectly to their forms, but somehow, each looked entirely different in it. Drecken had even enchanted their ties to match my gown. They were glowing, glittering strips of neon silk that pulsed faintly with my heartbeat.
“Shall we dance?” I giggled, unable to hold in the bubbling excitement inside me.
I tugged all six of them onto the glowing dance floor.
Fae orb lights floated around, glowing neon green and shimmering like toxic will-o’-the-wisps. Venom illusions dripped from the ceiling in the streams we’d perfected yesterday, evaporating just before touching the ground. Fae-spiked punch glowed on the refreshment tables along with little appetizers.
It wassopretty.
I caught Eleanor’s gaze and waved at her as she danced with Lorian beneath the floating orbs.
Ivy and Solon were wrapped up in their own sultry rhythm as they danced together. Sylver, Cora, and Nym drifted around Tibby, who had no reason to be at the academy formal but had taken a temporary watcher contract just to sneak in for his mates.
Katie spun around with a boy I didn’t recognize.
Raze stood off in the corner, nodding at me and Zuko, looking bored out of his mind.
Seth was around the punch bowl, talking with Ominous.
Thiswas going to be a fun night.
My mates formed a circle around me, the music thrumming with low, haunting harmonics.
“Sensual music,” Slater mused, letting his fingertips brush his mark on my shoulder.
“Hypnotic,” Drecken corrected.
“I’d say haunting,” Dimitri cut in.
“But I would call it toxic.” Zuko grinned.
“Exactly how Rune wanted it,” Koa murmured.
“It is perfect.” I threw my hands up and swayed along to the melody.
“No, honey drop,” Jesper whispered. “You’reperfect.”
The seven of us moved together, bodies brushing, hands sliding, and heat rising in the air between us as our scents mixed beautifully.
Slater leaned, his breath brushing my ear as his fingers stroked my hip. “I cannot wait to get this dress off you later, venom baby. You have no idea what it’s doing to me.”
Zuko’s lips found the mate mark he’d left on my neck, kissing it slowly. “And I can’t wait to have my hands all over you again, pretty little poison.”
A shiver ran down my spine.
