With tears in my eyes, I wrapped him in a hug. “Thank you.”
“Be happy, Mel. If nothing else, be happy,” he whispered to me before kissing my head and releasing me. “Are you driving there yourself?”
“Yeah, just in case the others need to go home. Plus, you know how I’m not big on this town stuff. Especially since they all think I’m a killer,” I exhaled before putting the lid back on the box. “Thank you again, dad. I’ll wear it tonight.”
“See you later tonight then,” he smiled before looking at Isadora. “Good seeing you again, Isadora.”
“You too, Mr. Hardgrave.”
He nodded awkwardly before shutting the door behind him as he left. Isadora quickly tore the box from my hand as she skillfully unzipped my dress in one swift motion. Shoving the new dress at me, bouncing on her heels in excitement. Laughing at her antics, I removed the prom dress to put on my mother’s dress.
“It’s a little tight in the chest, but overall it fits. How do I look?” I relayed after zipping up the side of the dress. Isadora nodded before turning me to face the mirror. The dress wasn’t fancy, more like something you’d wear to a church or in this case, a town dance.
The blue fabric of the dress had another glittery layer on top that looked almost like liquid as I twisted my hips. It hung down to my ankles with a slit that exposed my left leg up to the thigh and hugged my chest a little too perfectly despite how tight it almost felt.
“The top layer is silk from the Seelie court. Curious that your mom continued to possess it despite running away from Shadowhaven. It’s only a precious commodity outside of the Seelie court in Shadowhaven. It holds no value here.”
“My mom and her past are a mystery. I don’t think we will ever get the answers that we want from her.”
“Well, on another topic,” she drawled awkwardly. “Lucien is going to pass away when he sees you. Honestly, I knew you had a rack, but girl,” she complimented. I rolled my eyes and her hands cupped my breasts with a delighted squeal. “Gods, I feel so flat chested next to you. My brother is a lucky man.”
“Isa,” I gasped before swatting her hands away.
“Don’t worry,” she chuckled. “If I feel or see something I haven’t before then I’d throw money at it.”
“Are you, um, do you—.” I paused, racking my brain for a way to ask this in a respectful way. “Am I attractive to you?”
“Yes,” Isadora raised a brow before bursting into laughter. “Is this a sensitive subject for your world or something?”
“Sometimes.” I nodded and she patted my shoulder while still laughing. Her eyes roamed down to my chest again as she whistled before going to where her dress was waiting. I had to help her find her own, but Isadora was quick to adapt and find a dress that would not stand out too much.
Dad drove in his truck once we finished getting ready, following us to the mayor’s land where the dance was always held. His house sat on a large plot of land that had a small personal lake that he had strung lights up across to give it a more elegant appearance. The driveway to his home was lit with fairy lights in the trees and a massive amount of red roses in the gravel.
“What a waste of rose petals,” I sighed as I looked down at the passing red spots in white gravel.
“We’re here,” Isadora squealed as we pulled up to a parking spot.
Lucien appeared, opening my door with a handsome smirk.
“May I?” he asked with an outstretched hand. I slipped mine effortlessly inside. Pulling me from the car, he caught me in his arms so that he could carry me across the lawn towards where others were gathering. “You didn’t tell me this was a Shadowhaven party.”
“It’s starting to become clearer once I met you all.”
He brought my hand to his lips, creating a heat in my cheeks. “Looks like I was a missing piece in more ways than one.”
“When we leave later, I’ll show you another way you were a missing piece,” I winked. He let out a throaty laugh at my try at dirty talk, his face burying in my curls. He growled softly, just close enough that sent shivers down my spine.
“Perhaps we could leave now. I’m very fast.”
“Oh, I know,” I chuckled. “But we have to stay. I promised a dance to my dad and to Isa.”
“Perhaps a fast tempo then? A foxtrot?”
Isadora appeared beside us, since we had remained at the entrance a little longer than expected. “Perhaps you could move out of my way so I can make an entrance? If you’d set your lovely mate down, brother, you’d see she’s wearing a dwarven dress. And rocking it too.”
I beamed at Isadora’s compliment. Lucien quickly, but carefully, set me down so he could take a step back to survey me. Another growl spurred from him as he took me in.
“I think you should take me in, Isa,” I suggested to Isadora with amusement. “Lucien might take a detour home if he gets his hands on me.”
