Because there are definitely strings attached, Wolfie said.
“You okay?” Neve asked, stepping into the bathroom.
“Yup. Just a little nervous about tonight. I haven’t been to a fancy party before. I wish you were going.”
Neve handed me a bottle of water. “You’ll be fine. Jaxson and Damian will be there. They know how to navigate.”
Damian, I had no doubt. But I hadn’t really thought of Jaxson that way. He was so rugged and down to earth. I knew he had political connections—hell, he owned half of Dockside—but he seemed more fitted to a truck than a tux.
Surprised the Wolf King might have a different side? The waitress sure does.
I looked at myself again in the mirror as my stomach twisted. I hope I do.
Neve stepped up holding my new pink pumps. I glanced down at my red dress and frowned. “Unfortunately, I’m going to need to pick a different dress to wear with those shoes.”
“They’ll be perfect. Trust me, I know shoes.” She laughed and slipped my feet into them. Maybe she knew shoes, but was Neve colorblind?
As soon as they were on my feet, I glanced down and gasped. They felt like walking on clouds, but more importantly, the leather on them began shifting its color, like a chameleon changing its skin, until the pumps matched the red of my dress.
My jaw dropped, and I looked to Neve and Jeannette. “They change?”
Jeanette looked personally offended and frowned. “They’re Todorova heels. What did you expect?”
Neve laughed. “They feel good, right? They’re magic. Not only can you run in them like sneakers, but they change color to match whatever outfit you’re wearing.”
Holy hell. “I might never take them off.”
“You’d better not,” Jeannette said enviously.
They spent the next half hour doing my hair and makeup.
Jaxson had returned in the meantime, and I heard the shower down the hall running. A fluttery feeling filled my chest, and my mouth went dry. I was beginning to see the softer, kinder Jaxson beneath that hard exterior, and I liked it.
Jeannette finished with my mascara and stepped back, admiring her work with apparent satisfaction. I glanced at myself in the mirror, and a smile spread over my lips. She’d put beach waves in my hair, and my smoky eye makeup made my eyes pop. Subtle yet sophisticated. I looked like a freaking movie star.
The doorbell rang.
Neve glanced at me in the mirror. “Ready for the ball?”
In this dress and these pumps? I was ready to slay.
Neve was right, I thought as I sauntered down the stairs. These heels were like walking on freaking clouds.
Damian and Jaxson stepped into the room, their gazes falling on us. I inhaled sharply as Jaxson tracked my movement like a predator, pupils dilated, assessing me carefully. He wore a dark charcoal three-piece suit that accentuated his broad shoulders and slim waist, his five o’clock shadow adding to the alluring effect.
Now that’s a Werewolf King.
“You clean up nicely,” I said awkwardly as I stepped up to him, sure that he could hear my heart thudding against my ribs.
His eyes fell to my lips “So do you. I’m going to have to keep a tight leash on you tonight.”
A deep, aching need flashed through me.
“Mm,” I said, like tasting a delicious dish. My eyes went wide as soon as the sound was out of my mouth.
His chest rose rapidly as he sucked in air, and I could smell the heady mixture of desire, possessiveness, and something else.
“Thanks for the shoes,” I blurted. “I love them.”
“It’s nothing. You needed shoes.”
Neve’s voice startled me back to my senses. “Are we all set?”
Damian nodded. “A car will pick us up from the portal to take us to Alejandro’s. Unfortunately, according to my source, he always watches the attendees from his balcony but never mingles.”
“So how do we talk to him?” I asked.
“Sometimes, he grants audiences to people who acquire a favorite object of his. The showpiece tonight is an enchanted sapphire and diamond brooch that once belonged to the Romanovs. I’m guessing Alejandro will be keeping a close eye on that sale. That’s how we’ll reel him in.”
The Romanovs, like Anastasia? Man, the price of that would be staggering. Was it Damian’s intention to buy the brooch just to help us out?
Apparently, he owed Jaxson a mighty big favor.
“What if we don’t catch his eye?” I asked.
“Then we do things the hard way.” Damian cast Jaxson a knowing look and drew a folded set of blueprints from his pocket, which he then unfolded. “We steal it.”