dresses off the racks, throwing them at her feet. Jewellery followed, then clutches and heels. Sucked to be Rosie later on. I hoped she had a maid minion to delegate the task to.
Tommy waded through the pile, selecting a few. I’d learned not to pick an exact dress for her because we had such different tastes. She always looked fantastic in the dresses she chose. I’d leave the decision to the master.
“Whoa, whoa, whoasies,” she whispered. “What’s this hunk of sexy?”
I hadn’t worn most of my wardrobe, so I genuinely had no idea.
Squinting, I caught the white silk dress, holding it up. “It’s classy. No wonder I never wore it.”
Tommy didn’t return my wolfish grin.
She dropped the dresses in her arms and held out the bottom of the dress. “It’s like Marilyn Monroe, ballerina gorgeous.”
“The silk is so thin.” It was beautiful. Simple. The dress had thin straps and was form-fitting to the waist where the silk flared in soft, feminine waves. I wasn’t fooled. The fabric would cling to every line of my body, hinting at but never confirming what lay beneath—which wouldn’t be underwear because even seamless panties would show.
“I’ll save it for a rainy day,” I said, moving to hang the dress up myself. A masterpiece like this didn’t deserve the floor.
My phone blared to life.
Sliding it free of my jeans pocket, I studied the name. Holding my finger to my lips, I warned Tommy with my eyes as well. She nodded, and I put the phone on speaker.
“Safina,” I answered.
“Basilia. This is Kyros’s mother, Queen Titania.”
Oh, shit!
Tommy covered her mouth, and I shot her another warning look. “… Queen Titania, what an honour.”
“Thank you. I understand you do not wish to join us for Kyros’s birthday tonight.”
Tommy’s eyes narrowed to slits, and I turned away from her.
Busted.
How did you say no to a queen? I’d barely had any interaction with her. “I—”
“Do not make yourself uncomfortable,” she interrupted. “I understand perfectly why you choose not to attend. If you would, I have someone here who wishes to talk with you.”
My heart sank. I had a fair idea who—
“Human.”
My throat worked. “Hello, King Julius.”
His voice was tight with anger. “My queen is upset. She tells me the only way to undo this is to assure you I will not kill you this night.”
Uhm.
I rubbed my forehead. “Right.”
I listened to their furiously whispering voices.
“Or hurt you in any way.” He ground out after a beat. “You will come to Kyros’s birthday dinner.”
The phone disconnected, and we both stared at it.
“Fuck,” Tommy hushed. “What kind of cosplay crazy parents does Kyros have?”
My friend was much smarter than me. I shouldn’t have put the call on speakerphone. Tommy wasn’t meant to know about Vissimo.
“Pretty crazy, right? That’s why I didn’t want to go,” I hedged.
“Or tell me it was the douchebag’s birthday,” she accused.
We both jumped as a message appeared on the screen—an address.
Tommy slipped past me and returned with the white silk dress.
“Looks like you have a reason to wear this after all,” she said sweetly.
I snatched it from her. “Sometimes I think about maybe disliking you for a small amount of time.”
She scooped up her own pile of dresses. “Put it on, lovely. It may give you some enjoyment during the messed-up cosplay night you have ahead of you.”
Truth.
This was a blank canvas dress that would suit pretty much any make-up and hair combination, but my nude lipstick and natural-palette smoky eye from today’s spa day were perfect. Tommy emerged in a yellow dress with a green clutch and burnt-orange chunky heels.
“I seriously don’t know how you do it,” I said, kicking off my jeans. “If I wore that I’d look like a wearable arts version of a potted sunflower. Hot, girl. Seriously hot.”
She curtsied. “Let’s get that dress over your hair.”
My long blonde tresses were gathered in a loose arrangement that gave the impression it could come undone at any time, but I’d seen and felt how many pins went in. That shit was there to stay. The stylist had pulled out lazy curls all around my face and at the back, reinforcing the sultry elegance of the updo.
I might go back to that spa one day. I’d booked under a fake name and they still did their best. Though Sansi would never forgive me.
Tommy’s mouth formed an O as she looked me over. “Is it too late to switch teams?”
“Don’t tempt me, Tommy Tetley. Come on. Let’s go. The sooner you leave on your date, the