He reached into his pocket and drew out a small box. He opened it, and my eyes went wide at the little gold chain inside. It was a bracelet - delicate and elegant and covered in diamonds. And there, set in the middle of it, were three elegantly curved, diamond studded crowns.
He held my wrist out and put it on me, kissing the inside of my wrist as he clasped the bracelet on me.
“This just says you’re spoken for. If anyone approaches you, you just show them this, and the matter will be dropped.”
“It’s an understood rule here,” Micah added.
I swallowed, tracing a finger over it.
“It’s beautiful.”
“Fits you well then,” Victor murmured.
I looked up at them. “I’ll be right back, there’s just something I have to look into.”
“We’ll be right in here,” Luke nodded through an open doorway to a darker, sultry looking room.
I nodded, kissing each of them quickly before turning and heading off to find out if I was seeing things.
I caught a glimpse of her unmistakably gorgeous and enviable chestnut hair again as I watched her quickly step up a curved staircase through a crowd. I moved past the other groups, only once having to hold my wrist up and nod at the bracelet when a gorgeous man with a thick beard put a hand on my hip.
I followed the mystery girl up the staircase, stepping quickly after her as I watched her disappear around a corner.
I wanted to say there was no way it was Anya, but I’d known my cousin my whole life. If this wasn’t her, then she had a twin no one knew about.
I rounded the corner and frowned, my shoulders slumping as I looked down a long, totally empty hallway.
Damn.
I’d lost her.
I was turning to leave, when I noticed the women’s restroom sign on the door next to me and decided to duck in to take a breath before I rejoined my three men. And I was just pushing the door open, when it yanked open by itself, and I tumbled right into her.
This time, there wasn’t a shred doubt who it was.
Our eyes locked, and both of us gasped in shock at the same time.
“Anya?!”
“Jules?!”
We gaped at each other, jaws on the floor and eyes wide behind our masks.
“What— I mean, why. How?!” She balked at me, her face turning a shade of crimson that I’m sure matched mine.
…It’s not everyday you run into your cousin at an elicit, exclusive sex club.
She grabbed my hand and yanked me into the bathroom, poking her head out into the hallway and looking around before stepping inside and locking the door.
She yanked her mask off, and I did the same.
“What the hell are you doing here?” She hissed, her eyes wide.
“I could ask you the same!”
She blushed bright red. “I— I’m just…”
Anya swallowed, her face looking worried.
“Jules, you can’t tell anyone about this.”
“You think?” I threw back sarcastically before I frowned. Anya didn’t just look embarrassed to be caught here, she looked worried.
“Hey,” I reached out and touched her arm. “Don’t worry, I’m not telling a freaking soul about this. Trust me, this is just as insane for me.”
“No, Jules…” Her lips twisted, her brow furrowing as she glanced at the door.
“It’s more than that,” she whispered.
I shivered.
“Anya, what’s wrong?”
“Nothing, I just…” she bit her lip. “I should go.”
“Hey, hang on,” I snagged her arm as she tried to brush past me. “Are you in some kind of trouble?”
She said nothing out loud, but her look said enough.
“Look, Anya, the guys I’m here with — they’re powerful, and they can—”
She barked out a brittle laugh.
“Help me?” She rolled her eyes. “Jules, all the guys here are powerful, and rich, and have all sorts of influence.” She sighed, forcing a smile to her face.
“Sorry, I’m not trying to freak you out. I really am fine, there’s just this situation I’m trying to avoid.”
“We can go right now,” I said quietly, meaning it. However important that night was for me and my guys, Anya was family, and making sure she was okay was even more important.
She grinned at me. “You don’t really want to go right now.”
“I would, and I will if you’re in trouble.”
She smiled, pulling me into a hug.
“This I why you’re my favorite cousin, you know.”
“I’m you’re only cousin,” I giggled, making her laugh.
“I’m really okay, Jules. There’s just—” she signed. “My being here is maybe a tiny bit more complicated than you being here.”
“Wanna bet?” I muttered.
“Yes.”
I glanced up at her, my brow worrying again. “If you’re in trouble, we’re getting out of here right now.”
“If I need an escape, I’ll find you.” She smiled. “I’m okay, Jules.”
I nodded.
“I’d ask how you managed to find yourself in this place, but,” she grinned, winking at me. “I’m betting it has something to do with your new job at a certain Prince’s offices?”
She glanced down at my wrist, and her brows went up.
“Taken, I see?”
I blushed, glancing down to see she didn’t have a bracelet on, which somehow seemed dangerous in a place like this.
“You’re sure everything is okay?”
She nodded. “You?”
I shrugged, swallowing. “Yeah, I’m just… this place is overwhelming.”
“Yeah, tell me about it. I’ve heard about this before — you know, just whispers and rumors around Lorne, but being here…” She whistled. “It’s a little crazy isn’t it.”
“Uh, just a little.”
She grinned again. “Should we maybe get back out there instead of hanging out in the ladies room all night?”
I laughed. “Probably. You’re sure you’re okay?”
“I will be,” she said quietly.
“Better come get me if you need me.”
“Deal.”
We put our masks back on before we slipped out and headed back down the stairs into the fray of it all. I gasped as I saw a blonde woman off in another room draped across a huge four-poster bed with three gorgeous men with bodies sculpted from steel kneeling around her, their mouths wandering over every inch of her body.
“I’ve got someone I need to find,” Anya whispered, nudging me. “Better go find your dates.”
“We were about to come looking for you,” Victor murmured, pulling me close. I’d just found them, right inside the doorway to the dark room I’d left them in.
“Everything okay?” Luke purred into my ear, his hand slipping up my spine. I melted against him.
“Yeah, all good. I just saw—” I shook my head. The whole point of this place was anonymity, right?
“There was something I had to check out. Sorry.”
“No problem at all,” Micah said, moving in to run a hand over my hip. “Anyone try anything with you?”
I grinned, holding my bracelet up.
“Good,” Micah growled, pulling me close and kissing me deeply.
All of a sudden, the lights in the room dimmed even more, and the murmurs of the groups around the room died down.
“You’ll want to watch this,” Luke whispered darkly in my ear. “And I’ve got a feeling you’re going to enjoy it.”