mate had been well connected, but he'd had no idea how high up the Darkhaven food chain Elise was herself.
Your hospitality overwhelms me, Herr Reichen...Andreas, she corrected demurely. Thank you for welcoming us so graciously.
Tegan stared hard at her now, seeing how easily she fell into the role of diplomat with Reichen. She hadn't been so gratingly proper with him last night at the compound. No, with him she'd been wanton and demanding, perfectly willing to use him to get what she needed.
And why the hell not?
He knew how the Darkhavens viewed the Order. With the exception of a few current generation males who'd been impressed by the warriors' destruction of the Boston-area Rogue lair the summer before, most of vampire society regarded the Order on a par with feral pit bulls. Those within the Enforcement Agency, the group whose policies of capture and rehabilitation operated in direct opposition to the Order's bag- and-tag methods of dealing with deadly Rogues, were the most vocal in their contempt.
Little wonder that Elise, as the Breedmate of one of their highest ranking officials, would think of Tegan as nothing more than a means to an end.
That he'd let her drink from him burned Tegan like a lick of midday sunlight on his skin. The fact that he craved the woman--even a little bit--made him want to leap out of the moving car and run until he hit the dawn.
Yeah, it was a damn good thing he was seeing her clearly now. Before he allowed himself to do anything even more stupid with the female.
Chapter Sixteen
Elise skimmed her hands over the yards of glistening indigo silk that covered her. The sleeveless designer gown was breathtaking, one of more than a dozen couture pieces that Andreas Reichen had arranged to be brought in earlier that day from the city for her selection. She chose the simplest dress in the least dramatic color, wishing she didn't have to attend the evening's reception at all.
She'd been treated like a queen all day, and even after a restful bit of sleep, she wasn't much in the frame of mind for the hours of socializing that awaited her in the lakeside estate's grand ballroom downstairs. But years of practice on Quentin's arm had taught her what was expected of a member of the Chase family: duty first. That had been his personal credo, and one Elise had learned to embrace as well. So, after a quick shower in her guest suite, she had put on the form-fitting dark purple gown and a pair of gem-encrusted sandals, then arranged her short hair into some semblance of a style and headed out of her room ready to act her part.
Or at least, she thought she had been ready.
As soon as she descended the curving stairwell from the expansive wing of living quarters above, the din of voices and elegant music made her pause.
This would be the first public reception she'd attended since Quentin's death. Until she'd left the Darkhaven four months ago, she had kept herself in mourning, wearing the long white tunic and scarlet sash that declared a Breedmate a widow. As such, she'd been able to sequester herself in her home, seeing only those people she wished to, and neatly avoiding the sympathetic stares and whispers that would only remind her of Quentin's absence all the more.
There would be no more avoiding it, she realized, seeing Andreas Reichen striding toward her across the marble foyer from the direction of the crowded ballroom. He was stunning in a black tuxedo and crisp white shirt. His dark hair was pulled back off his face into a loose queue at his nape, showcasing those razor-sharp cheekbones and his strong square jaw. The handsome German's warm smile put her somewhat at ease immediately as he approached.
A perfect choice. You look exquisite, he said, his dark eyes taking her in from head to toe as he took her hand and lifted her fingers to his mouth. His brief kiss of greeting was whisper soft and warm as velvet. He released her with a slight bow of his head, and when his gaze reached her face, he frowned. Something is wrong? Is anything not to your liking?
Everything is fine, she assured him. It's just...I haven't done this in a very long time. Been out in public, that is. For the past five years, I've been in mourning--
Reichen's frown deepened in understanding. In mourning, all this time?