Beth set the check on the table as if it was a sacred object that might break, and then sighed. “Is part of that for costs of buying things?”
Felicity frowned. “I don’t think so. She said it was just my pay. Usually for big jobs like this they’ll open their own account and give me a specific amount of money to work with and we’ll go from there. We didn’t discuss any of that though.” At the thought of what she did do yesterday—make out with Dom—she blushed.
Beth took a seat and smiled wickedly. “Okay, tell me everything. The dress worked, didn’t it?”
“Like a freaking charm.”
Beth clapped and tossed her head back laughing. “I knew it would. That dress on you just begs for attention.”
“Yes, well, um there are a few problems with all that.”
“Like what?”
“Well, he’s getting blood bonded in a month to another woman, and I think I really like him.”
Beth frowned. “What’s a blood bond?”
Right, sometimes Felicity forgot her best friend was mortal. “It’s like a wedding only much harder to divorce from and much more permanent. It’s a forever kind of thing, usually.”
Beth raised a brow. “But I was reading one of your vampire magazines—”
“It’s called V Society,” Felicity interrupted.
“Riiight, V Society, and it said that Dominic Blackmoore of the illustrious Blackmoore family had severed his bond with a woman named Helena.”
Felicity remembered that too. “That just means he must have been seriously unhappy with her. They were together for almost five hundred years. They were never really seen together either. The magazine is filled with pictures of her but none of him.” Felicity shrugged.
“So who’s the woman he’s supposed to marry—I mean bond with now?”
Felicity grabbed her teakettle and started making hot water. Beth loved her hot tea—heavy on the milk and sugar.
“Julianna Greenwich, another blue blood like him. She’s gorgeous.”
Beth’s eyes rounded with remembrance. “Tall, willowy, blond, stunningly beautiful and dresses to the nines? Does that sound about right?”
Felicity smiled tightly. “That’s about right.” Too right.
Beth whistled low. “I saw her in those magazines too. She’s on like every other page. So he gets to bond to the pretty blond woman? No fair.”
“Yeah, tell me about it.” Felicity played it cool but fact was this bothered her. Talking so flippantly about Julianna mating with the man that drove her wild didn’t exactly make her feel good. It made her feel sick to her stomach.
“Why bond with her? They close or something?”
“Well, his father died of a rare disease a few months ago and the big election is coming up. I guess since his father was president of the council for so long everyone expects he’ll get the nomination. But he needs a bruid. All presidents had one when they were elected. Those who didn’t never won. Plus Julianna has a great history with her family. People like her. He’ll get voted in for sure.”
“What’s a bruid?” Beth said rolling the “r” as Felicity did.
“Exactly what it sounds like I guess. The female who’s getting mated is called a bruid. When two vampires are mated they form a blood bond. It’s actually called sanguis vanculo. You find the one you want to bond with, there’s a ceremony, blood is drawn and shared, you have sex, there’s possibly a fight and so on. A blood bond.” She shrugged.
Beth got up to start fixing her tea. “Whoa, wait, blood, sex, and fighting. The blood I get. Swapping and drinking it or whatever you all do. Sex I get, that one is pretty universal, but the fighting? Where does that fit in?”
Felicity had never seen a challenge personally; they were rare. “Before the ceremony ends, if another male or female would like to fight—like a challenge—for the rights to one of the mates then they can do so. If either one wins then they will take the place of the original person.”
Beth gave her a say-what? look before she dumped a gallon of sugar into her tea. “So, wait now, let me see if I get this. Let’s say I wanted to bond with Dominic Blackmoore. Then I could attend this ceremony, interrupt it at the right time to challenge Julianna, and if I win then I can take her place to be his bruid?”
Felicity shrugged. “Pretty much. It’s rare but it happens sometimes. Usually it’s a male fighting over the woman. They deck it out and whoever wins gets to claim her.”
“That sounds pretty unfair. What if they’re desperately in love and the man loses and has to give her up?”
Another shrug. “The law comes from a long time ago when things were still pretty archaic. It comes from the whole ‘might is right’ idea where stronger males and females will make stronger offspring. Makes sense if you think about it like that.”
“Riiiiight,” drawled Beth. She sat down across the table with her tea and leveled her chocolate eyes on Felicity. “So you really like him, don’t you?”
Felicity looked up at the ceiling feeling that heavy weight in her chest grow. “I do. There’s just something about him. He makes me feel...he makes me feel special. It’s like there’s something between us. He can’t take his eyes off me. He didn’t even look at Julianna the same way and she’s a knockout. Seriously, however gorgeous she is in V-Society she’s a hundred times more beautiful in person. So unfair...”
“What are you gonna do about it?” Beth said gently.
“What can I do but ignore it? Make sure he knows I’m off limits. I mean he’s getting mated in a month and I’m planning it for him. I can’t be having an affair with him.”
“Do you think he’ll agree to stay away from you?” Beth sipped at her steaming tea.
“Hell no,” Felicity snorted. “He isn’t the type. I’ll have to figure something out. It’s like the second he touches me I just...melt.”
Beth blew out a dreamy sigh. “That’s how I feel listening to Lucas Blackmoore sing.”
At the mention of Lucas Blackmoore, Felicity shot up, darted across the house to her bedroom in a blur, and then returned to the kitchen table with a huge grin on her face. Beth did a double take.
“I hate when you move so fast. You know I can’t see it.”
“I got a surprise for you. That’s why I called you here.”
Instead of looking excited Beth’s face shut down growing wary. “What is it?” Beth hated surprises. All the more reason Felicity loved to surprise her.
“I met someone yesterday,” Felicity said in a sing-song voice.
Beth tensed. “Who?”
Felicity leaned down and said in a loud whisper, “Lucas Blackmoore.”
Beth shot up from her seat, the chair wobbled back, nearly falling over. Her bad leg wobbled but she righted it, breathing hard. A strange look came over her face part-excitement, part-terrified. Weird.
“What happened?” Beth said.
“Oh, he’s just a great guy. He’s nice, funny, seriously good looking. Oh, and I told him about how you like his music.”
Felicity had never seen Beth blush, but now she did. Even with her dark skin she could see it darken from caramel to mocha. “You did not.”
Felicity froze. Beth didn’t sound excited in the least. She almost sounded devastated.
“Are you okay?”
Beth blinked then nodded quickly, but Felicity watched her swallow hard.
“Honey, what’s wrong? You can tell me. You know you can trust me.”
Beth grabbed onto the chair in front of her, digging her fingers into the wood until her knuckles flexed. “I really like his music.”