He kisses me again, and while I can no longer see the lovely swirls of pinks and golds that once circled our heads, that doesn’t mean they’re not there.
“Wow.” He grins. The kiss has left him as breathless as me.
“Wow, nothing,” I tease. “That was merely a tiny hint of the celebration to come.”
“You mean there’s more?”
“Oh, much more. So much more. More than you could ever imagine.” I push away, slide into the car.
“And exactly how long do I have to wait for this more?”
“Long enough for Daire to take down all the Richters, which, according to her shouldn’t take all that long.”
He kneels beside me, kissing me again with all that he’s got. Drawing away when he says, “Oops, guess I’m still bleeding. Here . . .” He licks his finger and uses it to clear the smudge from my cheek.
Then wrapping the kerchief back around his finger, he heads for his side of the car, and begins the drive back to Enchantment.
TWENTY-FOUR
DAIRE
Getting ready to head out to the Rabbit Hole is like getting ready for prom.
Not that I’ve ever been to prom.
Though I have spent enough time on various promthemed movie sets to know it involves fancy dresses, giddy friends, and a certain amount of nervousness.
What it doesn’t involve is a blowgun stashed in a boot, an athame strapped to a thigh, a buckskin pouch secured to a complicated up-do, and a plan to stamp out evil from the face of the earth.
“What do you think?” Lita stands before the full-length mirror, looking smoldering in her black slinky gown and the Venetian-filigree skull mask embedded with shiny, black crystals.
Axel’s eyes widen, his mouth drops, but no words come, which makes Lita laugh.
“You look lovely.” Jennika directs a final shot of hairspray to her curls, before she stands back to admire her handiwork. “You too, Axel.”
The mask he chose is nearly identical to Lita’s, except his is white to go with his slim-cut white suit that, according to Jennika, was recently worn by one of the world’s leading heartthrobs on a big-budget remake. Not that Axel cares about fashion or Hollywood for that matter. Lita is pretty much the center of his universe. Everything else is just background.
Lita edges out of the way so Jennika can give me a final swipe of lip gloss before adjusting the raven mask. “As your mother, I should probably be concerned about the cut of this dress.” She gestures toward the plunging neckline, which is only slightly more modest than the dip in the back. “But I have to concede you look stunning.” She bites her lip, blinks several times to ward off the tears. “I just hope you know what you’re doing.”
Me too.
Keeping my doubts to myself, I swirl the skirts around my legs, and say, “Think he’ll like it?” I watch as the color seems to shift from orange to burgundy to a rich, deep scarlet.
“I hope that was supposed to be a joke.” Lita frowns. “But either way, you are freaking me out.” She glares at me through the mirror, and I remind myself she speaks more out of concern than anger. “I’m worried about you.” She softens her tone along with her stance. “We all are . . .” She shakes her head, leaves the rest unsaid. “And I see you’re still wearing your key. Unless you plan to leave it behind?” Her voice rises with hope that’s soon dashed when I shake my head and center the black silk cord at my chest. Though when I pull the blue tourmaline ring from a pocket hidden deep in the folds of my dress, and ease it onto my finger, she clutches a hand to her throat and sags against Axel as though she’s seconds from fainting. “Oh my freaking Opossum—is that what I think?” She fans herself with her hand, her reaction a little overdramatic, thought I guess it’s not completely unwarranted. “Why am I the only one reacting?” She glances between Axel and Jennika. “Did you guys know about this?”
Axel shakes his head while Jennika reluctantly nods in assent.
“So, it was a secret?” Though most of her face is obscured by the mask, her voice betrays her annoyance.
“Listen . . .” I turn away from the mirror to better address them. Guess it’s time to explain before this gets any worse. “I need you to trust me. I know what I’m doing. Seeing me in this dress wearing this ring is the last thing Cade expects. It’ll throw him completely off his game, which will allow me just enough leverage to get a head start.”
Lita studies the toe of her shoes, as Jennika picks at the hem of her sweater. And while that’s not exactly the picture of solidarity I was after, at the moment, it’s all that I’ve got and it’s time to get moving. “So what do you say we head out and put our plan into action?”
Axel’s the first to react, steering Lita toward the door as Jennika follows. “I’ll be here if you need me,” she says. “I’m not leaving this place until you’ve safely returned. And if by chance you don’t . . .” She swallows hard, squeezes my hand so tightly my knuckles crack in protest. “Then I’ll go after those Richters myself. And trust me, not a single one of them wants to deal with me when I’m angry.” Her gaze is fierce, the tilt of her chin determined, leaving no doubt she means every word.
Wanting it to be the look I take with me, I say a quick good night, and head for Lita’s car.
The first thing I notice when we get to the Rabbit Hole is the abundance of floodlights. As though anyone could possibly miss it in a one-club town.