Drop the Ball
Loz
Opal breathes quickly, her chest rising and 1 g as she recovers from another orgasm. Frest my check on her thigh. I’ve set up shop between her legs. She is truly insatiable. If she could live on orgasms alone, she would do it,
“You’re good at that,” she murmurs, her voice drowsy. “How are you so good at that?”
Hlazily crawl up the bed to lie beside her. “A lot of practice.”
She glares at me, but there’s no real heat in her gaze. “How many women have you eaten out?”
“I lost count,” I answer glibly. “I could ask you the same thing. How many cocks have you”
“You don’t ask a lady that, Lex.”
“You’re not a lady,”
“I’m a princess. And I can do what I want.” She gets off the bed and goes to her vanity where she takes a seat and starts brushing her hair with a silver brush. “Why is it when men sleep with as many. women as possible they’re praised for it? But when I do the same thing it’s wrong?”
I sit up and catch her gaze in the vanity mirror’s reflection. “It’s how the world is made, Opal,”
“All this importance on virginity and limiting one’s amount of partners,” she continues. “Everybody has s*x. That’s how we continue on with the species.”
Drop the Ball
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I leave the bed to come closer to her. I take the silver brush from her to brush through her long, dark hair. “I agree. People should mind their own business. Why does it matter wh
nd how many people you’ve had s*x with?”
“It all goes back to our grandparents‘ generation. They wanted us all to be pure and innocent little dolls until they wanted us to continue the bloodline. And suddenly s*x is necessary, and we should f*ck until we give them heirs.”
I snort. “That’s why I’m relieved to be the spare. The burden of continuing the bloodline isn’t solely on me. No one expects me to be responsible for that.”
She scowls and continues, “My father cares so much about these things that he didn’t even ask me if I wanted to marry Kane. Can you believe that? He just told me he had brokered a marriage for me and sent me to Crimson Peak without even considering how I felt. He shipped me off like I was a piece of furniture.”
“Did you not like being engaged to Kane?”
“I didn’t mind it. He’s handsome and powerful. He’s also not old enough to be my grandfather. I know that my father could have chosen a worse match for me, but I would have liked a choice, even just the illusion of it.” She adds, “After he told me about the engagement, I decided to have s*x with whomever I wanted. I needed to feel some semblance of freedom. I knew as long as I didn’t get pregnant with anyone but Kane’s baby that it was going to be fine. Since it’s not possible for most men to get me pregnant, I wasn’t worried.”
I place the silver brush back on the vanity table. “Except I got you pregnant and ruined all of that.”
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She scoffs and turns around to tell me, “That wasn’t an accident, Lex I made sure you got me pregnant.”
Ive had some suspicions, but I didn’t think I would ever get at confirmation from Opal. “Why?”
4knew Kane didn’t care about me. And after he brought that wolf whore into the castle, I knew I had to make sure he wouldn’t leave me. I thought he would be honorable and marry me because as long as the baby was his blood…”
“You thought he would accept it as his own even though the baby is really mine?”
I had it all planned out, and he still chose her.” She shakes her head, perplexed. “I still don’t understand it.”
“Kane is in love. He would rather risk losing everything than not be with Emory.”
“Love?” she echoes in disgust. “That’s for fairy tales and commoners. We don’t get that privilege.”
I stop to really look at Opal and her perfect face. I have always seen her as petty and shallow. That’s the version of herself she shows to the world. There could be hidden depths there she wouldn’t let anyone see.
“Why are you looking at me like that?” she inquires.
“I just forgot how pretty you are.” I turn her around in her chair so she can look at her reflection. “And somebody that attractive deserves to have an escort that can match her.”
She snorts. “You still want to go to the ball?”
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“Come on, Opal.” I lean down to k*ss her neck and her shoulder. You know I’m a great dancer. And we’d look magnificent together. All the courtiers will be jealous.”
She moans as I cup her breasts through her gown. “You do make a good point.”
“Say yes,” I murmur in her ear. “And I’ll f*ck you tonight. No more holding back.”
She moans again as I suck at her pulse point. Sighing, she says, ” Fine,” I smile triumphantly and k*ss her so she can’t see the self- satisfaction on my face.
Kane
Lex has managed to get his hands on the guest list. To my eternal dismay, almost all the vampire kings are going to be in attendance at King Peter’s masquerade ball. King Myenas is my biggest concern. He has never cared for me, and an alliance between him and King Peter will be disastrous.
As the days go by, my allies doubt me and whether I’m worth. supporting. If I’m the kind of man to wallow in despair, I might have done that. I can face off against Peter alone, but not Peter with the rest of the kingdoms by his side.
Rainer knows about the challenges I face, and he has one suggestion I shot down instantly.
“I can’t make an alliance with the wolf packs.”
“Why not?” Rainer questions. “There are wolf packs almost as
wealthy as the other vampire kings. They can provide you with more blood and the forces you’re scrambling to get.”
“The wolf shifters still won’t trust me after the war with the Moonraker pack, and I don’t blame them. They sta.. to lose more than gain from allying themselves with me.”
“And that’s where Emory could come in and help. She’s an Alpha now. She could smooth over any doubts the wolf packs have about you. They may not trust you, but they’ll trust her.”
I shake my head. “I can’t put her in that position. She’s a new Alpha, and her pack is recovering from a decade–long war. She needs to focus on rebuilding, not trying to help me recruit new
allies.”
Rainer looks put out and suggests, “You could still ask her how she feels about it instead of dismissing the entire idea. Emory wants to help.”
“She’s helped me enough. I can’t add to her stress. There’s the baby to worry about.”
Rainer runs a hand over his face. “If only the solution would just magically appear to us, huh?”
I don’t disagree with him. This whole thing feels futile. I feel like I’m pushing a boulder up a hill every day only to watch it roll back down so I can start all over again. Even in my frustration, I know I have to put Emory first.
***
Lex
The ballroom is filled with people. Women are dressed in elaborate
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gowns decorated with jewels and feathers. Even the masks are extravagantly designed to make it hard to see people’s faces. I look across the crowd of people trying to see if I can recognize any of the guests but I can’t.
There are tables filled with an array of food, mc than a whole village could consume in a week. Goblets of wine and fresh blood are being offered by servants on a platter. A quartet plays soft music while nobles take to the dance floor. Opal’s arm is tucked against mine as I move us through the crush of people.
She moves closer to me and says, “When the next song starts,
dance with me.”
I have always enjoyed dancing, and Opal is graceful on her feet. I accommodate her and take her to the dance floor for the waltz. We’ve danced together ofte before, so I easily lead her through the steps. We glide on the ballroom floor like we’ve been doing this for
centuries.
The dance gives me the freedom to look across the ballroom as we twirl around the other couples. I find King Peter as he’s still wearing his crown. He’s talking to a man wearing a raven mask.
“Who’s that?” I ask. “The man your father is talking to.”
“King Myenas, I believe. See that stupid mask? He’s obsessed with birds.”
That confirms the guest list I found in Opal’s belongings is accurate. I need to tell Kane. If King Myenas allies himself with King Peter, we will be in trouble. Before becoming king, Myenas was a warlord who accumulated land by wiping out entire.
kingdoms. He is a heartless butcher. And he has never lost a battle.
After the waltz ends, I try to excuse myself, but Opal isn’t having it.
“You begged me to be my escort tonight,” she says. “You can’t jilt me now.”
“I only need a moment. I’ll be back soon.
“If you embarrass me by leaving me in front of everyone, Lex, I will never forgive you.” Her blue eyes are serious behind her mask. “T′ll never let you near me again.”
My head begins to ache from stress and frustration. “Can’t you amuse yourself for one moment? I promise I’ll come right back.”
“What’s more important than me?” she challenges. “Is there someone else you’re f*cking besides me?”
I snort. “Don’t be ridiculous.”
“Am I being ridiculous? Really? Because you wouldn’t have s*x with me earlier, so it only makes sense that it was because you were getting it from somebody else.”
“There’s no one,” I tell her, exasperated. “You are the only woman I look at. You’ve consumed my entire life.”
She lets out a bitter laugh. “That might have sounded romantic from another perspective, but you don’t care about me at all do you? Not even for a minute. Or is it just the baby inside of me you give a damn about?”
can say something flattering and appeal to her vanity once more. I could lie and say that I care about her and maybe even love her. The truth is, I don’t feel anything for her, and I don’t think I’m
capable of such emotions. I know she can’t feel similarly about me.
We are alike in the worst ways. Wemirror each other. What are we but two vain creatures needy for affect and willing to accept it from anyone? When I look at Opal, see all the parts of myself i despise the most, the parts that I know make me hard to love. They make me hard to stand at all.
I choose honesty because I don’t have the patience for lies tonight. I give her the unvarnished cruel truth. “The answer is obvious, Opal. Anyone can see it. Even you.”
I see the flash of hurt in her blue eyes, Guilt blooms in my belly, and Lignore it. There is no point in letting her think we are anything besides two people that accidentally made a baby. It would truly be the worst thing I could do..
Opal closes her eyes and says, “All the men in my life always disappoint me.”
The hurt and disgust in her tone is clear despite the cacophony of noise in the ballroom. Opal leaves the room, eager to get as far away from me as possible. She shoves and elbows her way. through the crowd and out of the ballroom. People are staring at me, having watched the spectacle like the hungry vultures they are.
Standing in a room full of people, I have never felt so alone.
