Page 37 of Hollow House
I had to blink a few times just to be sure I wasn’t hallucinating. It wouldn’t be the first time tonight, and I was starting to feel like it might not be the last.
“Why is this here? This can’t seriously be for me?” I asked.
“It wasn’t originally brought here for you specifically, but rather, for the woman of my desires.”
I almost choked at his words, holding back a giggle. I looked back, only to find him completely serious.
Moonlight poured in from the single window, almost spotlighting the chair. I walked toward it, drawn to it for some reason, its presence both magnetic and unsettling. The air in the room weighed on me, and I held my breath, not knowing what I was even waiting for.
My hand ran along the arm of the throne, an intricate golden metal design. The seat itself was black with a tall back, outlined in gold.
“Sit,” he commanded from behind me, his voice growing closer.
My pulse picked up, and I slid into the chair, which felt massive compared to my tiny frame. An odd hum rang in my ears as I watched him approach. It grew louder, only adding to the blood rushing in my ears. My head spun as he leaned over me, arms on either side, gripping the arm rests.
“Perfection,” he said in a low tone.
I swallowed hard. The word shouldn’t have made me flush the way I did. This house of pleasure was one whole night of purely ludicrous happenings.
“This is ridiculous,” I huffed.
“Is it?” he asked, leaning in further and pressing kisses to my neck. “Is this whole house not a tad ridiculous then, this entire party, a house of pleasures? Some might say that is also a little ridiculous, and yet, you’re still here. So perhaps it is the rest of the world who places the unexpected into ridiculous little boxes and tries to trap us there?”
“Damon…” I started as he resumed his nips and kisses.
“Do you feel it?” he asked.
“Feel what?” I responded.
He dragged a hand slowly up my thigh, eyes now locked on mine.“The way people here respond to you, the way you fit perfectly in this house,” he answered.
Before I could answer, he leaned back in and cut off my words, gently kissing my lips. He pulled back slightly, his words a whisper against my flesh.
“You belong here,” he said firmly.
The chill in the room intensified, the humming growing louder. Goosebumps spread across my arms, and I shivered under his touch.
“Damon, I can’t---” I started, unsure what I even wanted to say.
My head swam with every possible thought. This was not what I was expecting to find when I decided to come here. I never once thought this entire new future would be laid out before me. A single article, that was all this was supposed to be. A way to get Darren off my back. And now what? Damon wanted me to give up my life for one I had only seen a glimpse of in a single night.
Damon pulled away completely and held out a hand as my head still tried to wrap itself around the offer that hung between us.
“Come. The party is almost over.”
Chapter 21
The ballroom-sized roomI had started off in was silent when we entered. Men and women in their masks gathered in the middle, but not a single one spoke. They just parted to let us pass.
The music had ended and the DJ was gone.
I didn’t spot any of the waiters from before, realizing the crowd had formed a circle of sorts in the middle of the room. Damon was leading me to the middle.
He stopped at the edge, encouraging me forward. I hated all the eyes on me. It was different when it was just him, but now, I realized there were at least fifty or more people here, all with their focus trained on me.
The ballroom was darker than before, the lights dimmed, curtains drawn shut. The chandelier above was the only reason I could make out anyone around me. I still couldn’t gather many details of their appearances, their masks still firmly in place.
My skin crawled, each stare tearing into me. The way Damon saw through me, could they also?
