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I should be the one panting here.
    The gaping holes in his pale neck instantly healed, and he lay on the bed, hair fanning out around him. He lifted a finger and pointed to the closet. “My formal clothes are in there. Please, be a darling and choose them for me, as you promised last night.”
    I pouted. Oh shit, he remembered that? I licked the blood off my lips and cheeks, and I took a moment to let his blood course through me.
    The closet was a darker wood than the rest of his furniture in the room and was beautifully painted with red and white calla lilies. It slid to the right and there were his formal clothes. I imagined his casual clothes were in his dressers.
    I decided to pick a crisp black jacket and an expensive lavender long-sleeved dress shirt. I wanted to choose one that was almost identical, but it had ruffles on the collar and chest with belled sleeves, but I chose otherwise. I also picked out a silk lavender tie and black pants, matched with polished black shoes.
    Darius started to laugh. I looked at him, lying on the bed, hands clutching his stomach.
    “What? What’s so funny?” I raised my voice, embarrassed.
    His laugh was so smooth and perfect it sent tingles down my neck and spine. Darius got out of bed and strode to me, a faint grin on his face. “I told you to choose what you wanted me to wear, not what you thought I should wear.” He caressed my jawline, and I skipped back at how cold he was. He put some of the clothes I chose away and took out the ones I had liked and let his robe slide to the floor. I turned the other way as I heard the shuffle of him dressing.
    “All done, my dear,” he announced. I turned quickly and was baffled with his looks. It was like he had walked out of a painting. He wasn’t wearing the jacket, just the belled-sleeve lavender shirt with the ruffles cascading down the collar to his chest. His pants were tight black breeches, and a pair of black lace-up leather boots covered his feet.
    My jaw mentally dropped. “You look…stunning. But I thought this was formal? Shouldn’t you wear a jacket or a suit?
    He combed a hand through his thick mane. “It is vampire formal, my flower. No one cares what another wears. These clothes are my favorite to wear; I am astonished to see that you chose them. Lavender is my favorite color.”
    An air of relaxation blew over me.
    “Now, my dear, it’s your turn. Would you like some assistance with your clothes, or would you prefer to help yourself alone?”
    I was not letting him see any more of me today, tomorrow, or the whole goddamn next month. “It’s all right. I’ll do it myself.”
    “Then I shall escort you back to your quarters.”
    “Don’t you have a butler or something to do this?”
    “Yes, but it’s my duty to show you where everything is as your sire.”
    When we approached the door to my room, I went inside and saw a bright column of sunlight settling on my bed and drawers.
    “Mr. Crowley, would you please draw the curtains in Lily’s room?” he commanded in a loud voice.
    In a few seconds, a tall, black-haired man in a suit came and rolled two midnight-blue velvet curtains down over the windows. He bowed before leaving.
    I asked, “Is he mute?”
    “No, and he is my butler.”
    “Oh.”
    Darius took my hand in his and gingerly kissed my wrist. “I shall leave you to dress. When done, call out to me, and I will come. Then we will drive to the party.”
    “I thought that no one is supposed to know I’m a vampire.”
    He sighed. “We will make it known. You must, however, say that you wanted to be turned.”
    “But I didn’t. You threw it on me!”
    “If I hadn’t gotten you, someone else would have. It was simply a matter of time. I accept your hatred and anger toward me, but it was the only way. I couldn’t let them kill—I wanted you safe, and this was the only way I knew how to perform such an action.”
    His amber eyes dove into mine, and I could see a pool of indescribable sorrow lying