Jason lay back against the pillows. He raised one knee, his hands lying across his stomach. He looked relaxed, lascivious, but his eyes stayed on Jean-Claude.
"You are almost the perfect pet, Jason, but do not provoke me."
"You never said she was off limits."
"I am saying it now," Jean-Claude said.
Jason sat up on the bed. "I'll be a perfect gentleman from now on."
"Yes," Jean-Claude said, "you will." He stood there in the doorway, still lovely to look at, but dangerous. You could feel it building in the room, whispering through his voice. "Leave us for a moment, ma petite."
"We don't have time for this," I said.
Jean-Claude looked at me. His eyes were still a solid midnight blue; the whites had drowned. "Are you protecting him?"
"I don't want him hurt because he got out of hand with me."
"Yet you would have shot him."
I shrugged. "I never said I was consistent, just serious."
Jean-Claude laughed. The abrupt change in mood made both Jason and me jump. His laughter was rich and thick as chocolate, as if you could pull it from the air and eat it.
I glanced at Jason. He was watching Jean-Claude the way a well-trained dog will watch its master, looking for clues to what its master wanted next.
"Get dressed, my wolf, and you, ma petite, you must change as well."
I was wearing black jeans and a royal blue polo shirt. "What's wrong with what I'm wearing?"
"We must make a show of it tonight, ma petite. I would not ask if it were not important."
"I am not wearing a dress tonight."
He smiled. "Of course not. Just something a little more stylish. If your young friend does not have anything suitable, I believe he and Jason are about the same size. I'm sure we could find something."
"You'll have to talk to Larry about that."
Jean-Claude looked at me for a heartbeat. "As you like, ma petite. Now, if you would leave Jason to dress? I will stay in here until you have chosen more appropriate attire."
I wanted to argue. I didn't like being told what to wear, or what not to wear. But I let it go. I'd been around vampires enough to know they admired the spectacular, or the dangerous. If Jean-Claude said we needed to make a show of it, maybe he was right. It wouldn't kill me to dress up a little. It might get us all killed to refuse. I just didn't know the rules in this situation. I suspected that there weren't any.
I hadn't packed with meeting a master vampire in mind, so my choices were sort of limited. I settled for a crimson blouse with a high collar and a spill of lace down the front. There was even a little frilly cuff at each sleeve. It looked like a cross between a Victorian blouse and a business shirt. It would have looked very conservative if it hadn't been screaming vermillion red. I hated the idea of wearing it, because I knew Jean-Claude would like it. Except for the color, it looked like something he might wear.
I put the all-purpose black jacket over the blouse. With both guns, both knives, and a cross around my neck inside the blouse, I was ready to go.
"Ma petite, may we come out?"
"Sure."
He opened the door and took it all in with a glance. "You look splendid, ma petite. I appreciate the makeup."
"I look pale in crimson without it."
"Of course; do you have other shoes?"
"I only have the Nikes and high heels. I move better in the Nikes."
"The blouse was more than I hoped for; keep your jogging shoes. They are black, at least."