Twenty-year-old Claire must deceive a vampire prince to infiltrate the monarchy and discover their secrets while resisting her desire for him.
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Nothing in my life has ever been easy. Including the mission my family has sent me on.
My sister and...
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Regarder (verb) to watch; to look at
Bastien was gone for several minutes, leaving me alone in the room while he collected the men and women whom I would be selecting for my harem.
But just as tension rose inside me, making me jittery, the door to my bedroom opened, and ten applicants filed into the room, all wearing black robes with hoods that shadowed their eyes.
They formed a straight line in front of me, and I tried my best not to fidget or appear nervous as Bastien closed the door.
He stared as he made his way over to me, brows furrowed and jaw set, as if to say, are you sure you want to do this?
I pressed a sweet smile onto my face, replying, absolutely.
It stung more than I wanted to admit that the people before me would do whatever I wanted, yet the man beside me regretted even touching me.
My smile widened until my cheeks hurt, and Bastien relented, addressing our guests.
"You have the pleasure of meeting Claire Donadieu, my new sanguine partner."
His words were less an introduction, and more a warning.
"You shall address her as Mademoiselle until such a time that she gives you leave to use her given name. Do you understand?"
The assembled bowed or curtsied in response.
"My lord," I said, interrupting him and setting a patronizing hand on his arm, "there's no need for such formalities with me. I'd prefer for them to call me Claire."
The muscles in his jaw ticked and irritation curled up one side of his mouth.
He was incredibly handsome when he was annoyed. As frustrating as that fact was.
For once in our relationship, I felt like I had some power over him, not just he over me, and it was glorious.
He turned back to the assembled. "Starting on the left, remove your robe and state your name."
My chest tightened as my gaze wandered to the line of hopefuls. I hadn't realized they'd be disrobing, but I supposed that was important to the selection process. I should find them...attractive.
But I'd never even kissed anyone before, and Bastien was the first person to ever lay hands on me, so I was more than a little intimidated to see ten people get naked for my inspection.
I did my best not to let it show.
Again, Bastien canted his head in my direction, as if to ask if I'd had my fill of this spectacle so he could send them away. And again, despite my anxieties, I smiled pleasantly back at him like I was completely fine.
A woman with deeply tanned skin and a slight, muscular frame undid the sash on her robe. The folds opened just enough to see the swell of her small breasts and the soft v between her thighs.
