Page 44 of Wolfsbane Hall
Celestine fiddled awkwardly, wringing her hands again. She never knew what to do around him. “What happened to Margot?”
Dean let out a low growl. “I’m sure you’ll find out tonight. I can’t imagine the Phantom wouldn’t make it a part of his sick play.”
13
Saturday, November 11, 1939
The Hallway
Dean walked with Celestine, a chasm of space between them. Lord forbid he touch her or guide her back to the ballroom on his arm—like a gentleman—as Everett or James would have done. Dean was just so frustratingly distant. But she longed for him to be the devil she saw beneath his eyes.
But he never would, or at least not with her.
What was wrong with her? She couldn’t want three men. Three was too many. Right?
Clicking footsteps approached, mingling with the echoes of long-played, drawn-out arguments. Dean’s eyes latched to hers, and quick like wildfire, he pulled her behind a red curtain just as the voices turned the corner. His hand covered Celestine’s mouth, and his body pressed her into the wall.
“Will this ever cease?” Anger dripped from Lorraine’s voice like water from a leaky faucet.
Irene snickered. “Probably not. If you wanted to live a certain way, you probably shouldn’t have chosen this life.”
The sound of the slap ricocheted against the marble floors. “You are worse than that whore we ki—”
“Ladies, ladies…” Firm footsteps rushed into the hall. “The arguing needs to stop.” It had to be Archibald trying to break up the women.
His hand frozen against her lips, Dean looked heavenward, exasperation seeping onto his face. It was an expression that said,For the love of God, again?If it were a typical argument between his family, why did he need to hide Celestine’s presence?
“Fine,” Lorraine scoffed, and a dramatic huff accompanied the snapping of her heels, fading away.
“Now that she’s gone, and no one seems to be around,” Archibald said, and a crash sounded on the wall next to the curtain where Celestine and Dean were hiding.
“Oh, God no, not again.” Dean’s words were lower than a whisper and were covered up by the frantic passion erupting next to them. His father and aunt were kissing, and maybe more, in the middle of the hall. Oh, no, it was definitely more from the moans and flesh slapping together coming from next to them. A hallway quickie. Was everyone sex-addled in this house?
Celestine certainly was.
Dean shook his head and looked like he wanted to disappear into the wallpaper and never be seen again. Death might have been preferable to this. At every slight movement and moan, he flinched.
Celestine cupped her hands over his ears to relieve some of his pain. She couldn’t imagine what it would be like hearing her mother rutting around with someone inches from her. Not pleasant. Dean’s smokey eyes tilted down and captured Celestine’s, and she had to suck in a deep breath, because she suddenly realized how close they were standing.
Far, far too close.
And his skin against hers was nearly unbearable. Both hot and cold, all at the same time. Like a metaphor for the two ofthem. He was always ice, and she was an eternal fire. Her heart beat into her throat as Dean’s hand slid down to her neck, the movement a caress. All the while, he didn’t take his eyes off hers. His irises were painted in either hidden seduction or ruthless hatred. It was hard to tell with him. A part of Celestine believed they might be one and the same. He hated her, but perhaps he wanted her at the same time?
Or she could be making it all up, because his hand dropped to his side a moment later, and his gaze slid away.
“Not in the hall,” Irene said, panting and cutting through whatever Celestine felt toward Dean.Thank God.“One of our children could hear us.”
Too late.
The pounding in Celestine’s ears rattled her composure as Dean’s aunt and father slipped away into another room to finish what they had started.
“Why do we need to hide from your parents?” Celestine asked.
“One should always hide from my parents.” He looked like he was going to be sick.
Celestine laughed. “I understand why.”
His parents are the worst monsters imaginable, Margot said.
