Page 45 of Deadmen's Queen
I stepped into the hallway, realising straightaway that appearances were indeed deceptive. The outside of the house might be immaculate, but inside it was run down, and practically bare. There were no photos on the walls, no art, nothing that gave any indication a family lived here. How did someone as sweet as my Paige come from a place like this?
“Can I offer you anything? A drink, perhaps?” Pauline’s voice was silky, hiding the steel underneath.
“No, thank you.”
“You look a lot like your father,” she said, resting her hand on my arm and leaning slightly closer. “I didn’t know him well, but I saw him often at the club… ”
She smiled at me, her hand stroking up and down my arm as she attempted small talk, but I could easily tell she was trying to pump me for information about Bast and Nate, and our father’s, and I gave very little of substance away. Thankfully, I was used to charming women like her, and I flattered her, and made her laugh, all the time thinking about how she’d controlled Paige, how she’d hurt her.
“Paige tells me you've seen some of her artwork,” she purred.
“Yes she’s so talented,” I said. “Her paintings are so vibrant.”
“Vibrant,” she echoed. “Yes, she always had a flair for the dramatic. Watch her carefully Tristan, she likes to embellish.”
I clenched my jaw, but thankfully at that moment, Paige finally appeared at the top of the stairs and everything else in the world fell away. She descended slowly, clearly unsure on the heels Bast had sent her. Her hair fell in golden curls below her shoulders, but pulled back from her face, save for a few soft tendrils. Her deep blue dress clung to her like twilight shadows, accentuating every curve with a whisper of silk. Crystals glittered on her bodice, tiny stars in a dark sky of fabric, making her sparkle if she were the night sky itself, stepping down to earth.
“Wow,” the word slipped from my lips before I could catch it.
Paige gave me a small, almost shy smile, and it was like the sun peeking through storm clouds. After a week of grey skies, I had my sunshine back.
“Tristan,” she said. “Do you like it? Bast picked it out.”
“Like it? You're... breathtaking.”
Her cheeks flushed with a bloom of colour that only made her more beautiful.
“Thank you,” she said, reaching the bottom of the stairs, now only inches away. The subtle scent of her perfume wrapped around me, a mix of flowers and something darker.
I looked down at her. “Something’s missing.”
She frowned, looking down at herself, then back up at me. “I don’t think so. My clutch is by the door.”
“No, something is definitely missing,” I said, reaching into the inside pocket of my dinner jacket and pulling out a wide flat velvet covered box. I passed it to her and she opened it, gasping at the contents.
“Tristan… it’s so beautiful… and it looks so expensive. I couldn’t possibly wear it.”
“Yes you could,” I said firmly, lifting the diamond necklace from the box, and stepping around her to place it around her neck. I lifted her hair as I set it in place, fighting the urge to bend down and kiss the expanse of smooth skin across her bare shoulders with her mother standing right there. I moved back around and looked at her, noting the way the larger diamond pendant hung just perfect above the dip between her breasts. God, I missed those breasts. And those lips, and those eyes…
“Perfect,” I said. “You’ll need to put the earrings on, I’m good with my fingers, but that particular skill still eludes me.”
She grinned, then blushed at my innuendo, taking the box over to the mirror that hung next to the door. I turned to her mother.
“Don’t worry, Mrs Matthews. I’ll take very good care of Paige.”
“I’m sure you will, Tristan. Oh, Paige, darling?”
Paige turned towards us, the diamond earrings swinging by her face.
“Yes Mum?” her voice was quiet, subdued, and I hated to hear it like that.
“I put your phone and bank card in your purse with that other thing you need.”
Paige’s face went blank, and she nodded, reaching out slowly to pick up the silver clutch and holding it close to her chest. I decided it was time to go. I grabbed Paige’s coat from the hook by the door, and opened the front door, giving Pauline a friendly wave.
“Bye Mrs. Matthews, don’t wait up.” I held out my arm to Paige, and she slipped her hand around it, holding onto me for balance as we made our way slowly down the steps and out towards my car. I helped her inside, noticing how she stayed quiet and said very little until we rounded the corner and her house was finally out of sight. She gave a sigh, and turned to look at me. I was pleasantly surprised when she leaned forward, and kissed me on the cheek.
“I’m so so happy to see you,” she said. “Bast said he could send a car, he didn’t say he was sending you!”