Page 79 of The Monster and the Last Blood Match

To try to clear her mind, she sent Everett a text message.

Want to do that thing this weekend? I have plans Friday, but maybe Saturday?

He answered almost immediately.

I don’t think it’s a good idea. What if we get caught?

He had a fair point. She didn’t know what would happen if she got caught sneaking into a black-market blood bank, but she didn’t exactly think it would be rainbows and butterflies.

Then let’s not get caught.

You make it sound so easy.

Last time, the room was unguarded when the crowd was in an uproar. Maybe we just make something like that happen?

How exactly do you expect to do that?

That was a great question. She had no idea, but she wanted to get back in there and find out what they were up to.

I don’t know.

Maybe we can meet this weekend and figure it out.

Reyna shrugged. She didn’t have any plans except this Vault thing, so it sounded fine to her.

Saturday night?

See you after I get off work.

…

Time felt endlessly slow on Friday. She was cooped up in her room, waiting for this Vault thing to go down. Waiting for something that she knew nothing about made her unbelievably anxious. When she looked up the Vault, her search came back with a bunch of meaningless websites. Certainly nothing that would have the need for this level of secrecy.

At around eleven at night, two women showed up in her room and got to work on her hair and makeup. When she attempted engaging them in conversation, they remained silent. She didn’t know if they were under orders from Beckham not to give anything away or if they really didn’t know what was going on. Either way, they transformed her face until she almost didn’t recognize the sexy vixen wearing the smoky makeup. The hairstylist pulled her dark hair into a sexy updo with loose tendrils framing her face and falling out of her twist.

When she walked out of her bathroom, she found a small white bag on her bed. She peeked inside, and her eyes widened. Of all the things Beckham could have suggested, the last thing she’d expected was skimpy lingerie. She hoped that something was going over this.

She ran her hands over the soft silk and laces of the outfit and then stripped out of the dress she was wearing. A woman came in a minute later to assist her into the red-and-black corseted top. She tightened the laces until Reyna was afraid she wasn’t going to be able to breathe. The corset was paired with ruffled black boy shorts, thigh-high stockings that attached to the bottom of the corset with ribbons, and a pair of black-heeled boots. She felt ridiculous but also sexy in a way she never had before.

“Where is my dress?” she asked.

The woman handed her a black silk kimono that didn’t look like it would even cover her ass. “Here you are.”

“Wait, but where is the dress that goesoverthis?”

“This was all we were provided.”

Reyna slid the kimono over her shoulders and pulled it closed over the revealing outfit. Not that it did much to hide the fact that she was wearing very little. She pushed down her apprehension and decided to own it. She had gotten herself invited to the Vault. There was no way she was about to walk away just because she was dressed in even more scandalous clothing than normal. Beckham had seen her half naked. This wouldn’t be so bad.

When she left her room, Beckham turned his gaze to her, and she let the front of the kimono drop open. His eyes swept her body. He inhaled deeply, and his lip quirked upward for a split second. He tried so hard to hold on to his cool demeanor, but she could tell that her outfit affected him. She may be pissed at him, but it was always nice to feel sexy.

“Stay close to me,” he said, walking toward her. “Everyone is going to want to get their hands on you in that.”

“Everyone?” she asked.

He smirked. “Oh, yes…everyone.”

“Even you?”

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