Auctioned Mates Revenge
Chapter 44

The morning of the opening, Grace made French Toast, another thing I had never had before. Matt swore it was the best French Toast he'd ever had and Alyssa had nearly whined with annoyance. We could make it too if we knew how.

I scoffed, What is your deal?

Alyssa huffed, The alpha is building a pack. We should be his luna.

My face heated at the thought. Me as Matt's Luna? The idea was ridiculous. Matt left again to handle something else and get a haircut for the night. He left his card with me.

"Go to the salon or something," Matt said, "There's one downstairs."

I looked at the card as he left and tossed it on the table. It was a sweet gesture, but looking at Grace's apprehensive expression, I knew she wasn't interested in going to the salon downstairs. "How about an at-home spa day?" I asked, "I'm not interested in being poked and prodded."

Grace nodded, gratefully, "Sounds great."

I opened the cabinet to see what we had and what we might have to order from a delivery service before putting in the order and pulling things down. It was familiar and a little bittersweet to be thinking about homemade facial recipes and picking out nail polish with Grace.

"Are you going to keep your blue hair?" Grace asked, "It looks nice. I don't think I could pull off that color."

I laughed, "What do you need blue hair dye for? You're a honey blonde!"

While she was working, I bet she was popular. If Mordecai wanted her so badly, I could only guess that she was a natural blonde. Men gravitated towards what they deemed was special, usually a blonde or a redhead. Brunettes like me had to use other methods to climb from the bottom of the ranks to the top.

Grace stroked her hair, "It's my mother's fault. She liked to say it and my skin tone was the only thing she could pass onto me."

I frowned, "You don't look like your mother?"

She shook her head, "I take after my dad's side of the family in everything else. How about you?"

I laughed, "My Dad too, but my little sister, she-"

I broke off, wincing. I hadn't spoken to many people about Angelia. Most days it hurt too much to know that no matter how loud I screamed for her, I never got a reply.

Alyssa wasn't strong enough to tell me much more than the fact that we were farther away from her now than we had been in Warhammer. Given the fact that Warhammer and Midnight were on opposite coasts, there was no telling where she was on the continent. "It's okay if it hurts too much," Grace looked down, "I was... just curious. I haven't had anyone to talk to in a long time."

I eyed her. I could imagine. She had been Felix's favorite, and while that offered her protection, it kept her isolated from everyone else.

The prostitutes who worked at Club Heaven had mixed feelings about her from what I could remember. She was a great ally to have and a horrible enemy to have too because she was so close to Felix. It was just easier for most to bow their heads and do as she asked, hoping that she'd do what she could to make their lives easier.

I understood loneliness and just trying to survive without losing too much of yourself in the process. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad to trust her a little. An alliance was built on trust and I had far less to lose trusting her than trusting Matt. Besides, having a friend never hurt anyone. We would be around each other a lot.

"My mom, my sister, and I would have spa days at home every few weeks," I said as the doorbell of our hotel rang. I went to the door and took the package from the concierge service with thanks and brought everything back into the kitchen. Grace's eyes widened, "What is all of that?"

I beamed, "Beauty Secrets."

I set everything on the table and went looking for pots and pans.

"My little sister takes after our mother the most," I said.

"Is she still alive?" Grace asked.

I nodded, "Yes. I just hope it stays that way."

Her eyes narrowed before she gasped, "You're looking for her, aren't you?"

I didn't say anything as I started to unpack things to make bath soaks and face masks. Grace didn't ask again and she took my directions about how to mix things well. We worked in silence for a while, enjoying the odd freedom of being in the hotel alone together. "I always wanted a sister," Grace said suddenly. "My dad only had brothers and they only had sons."

"You were the little princess, hm?"

Grace chuckled, "Good luck telling them that."

Grace had roughhoused with them like she was just another boy for a long time. She and her mother had their bonding time, but they all spent most of their time in the distillery.

When she was old enough, she was supposed to learn the secret recipe as well, but no one expected her to use it more than to help out when needed. She had considered not even learning it so no one would be tempted to marry her for the secret. I smiled, "Your Dad probably didn't have a problem with it."

She laughed, "No. He always said that as a father it was his job to make sure I never married."

I laughed, "My Dad was the complete opposite."

He was always resigned that one day Angelia and I would go replace loves of our own, happy to support it, and tell us that we shouldn't settle for just anyone. Our mates were the ones we were meant for and it was okay to wait for them.

I decided to change the blue to a rich magenta to go along with the pink coloring of my dress and the magenta jewels sewn into the gown. After we'd showered and soaked for a while, we sat in the living room painting each other's nails. I gave her a dazzling gold coat made of refined gold ore inside of a rich clear polish.

"Is this real gold?"

"Yep," I said a little proudly. "Not just the dust or remnants either. We mine and refine it before chipping it into gold powder for this shade."

I smirked picking up the shade called Coins Galore and twirled it around so she could see the flecks of gold, copper, and silver inside.

"We do the same thing for the copper and silver flecks, and-"

I closed my mouth realizing that Grace was smiling at me and not looking at the bottle in my hand, and I had said far too much.

"I meant, they... I-"

"You're from Fluorite," Grace said, her face showing no hint of shock. "I... suspected as much."

I set the bottle down and winced, trying to think of something to say.

"He won't replace out from me," Grace said solemnly, "I promise."

I eyed her for a moment before thinking about the sheet that I'd tucked in my bag regarding Frost Pelt and Frost Melt.

I nodded, "Thank you."

"My mother's name was Grace," she said, "Maybe one day we'll meet each other for real."

I smiled, "Renda is close enough to my real name that you could probably guess it."

Grace's eyes lit up and she laughed, "Were you nervous you'd forget and wouldn't respond?"

I wrinkled my nose, "I had to come up with it on the spot."

She laughed, "Oh, Renda, that's the best!"

I felt a bit silly, but it felt good to laugh. When our nails were dry, I helped her with her make-up as she seemed unable to do much beyond a simple n**e eye.

I batted her hands away from the palette as she went for a boring nude color.

"Not sexy enough," I said, "You're going to be his Lady Luck, and a major distraction!"

She sighed and surrendered to my whims. I grinned and had her close her eyes so I could give her a deep smoky eye that would make her blue eyes pop. I lined her eyes and put on her mascara before doing my make-up using the metallic pink eyeshadow. Matt returned as I was finishing up our make-up. We slipped into our gowns, jewelry, and shoes before walking out to meet him. He adjusted his cuffs beneath his deconstructed tuxedo and turned to us.

His eyes drifted over Grace's form before locking on me. I felt his eyes skimming over the curves of my hips and breasts like a possessive hand before our gazes met.

"You're dazzling."

Flustered, I turned to Grace, "Sexy enough to cause Mordecai some problems?"

I turned her around with a grin as she let out a nervous laugh.

Matt grinned, "Let's go ruin his evening."