Cambion's Law by Erin Fulmer

Author:Erin Fulmer [Fulmer, Erin]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 978-1-64898-112-8
Publisher: City Owl Press
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

18

Not a Diamond Ring

I slipped out of Sebastian’s bedroom door to the landing and leaned over the polished wooden banister. Dressed in his robe with my hair still wrapped in a towel, surrounded by that big, fancy, echoing house, I felt like Eliza Doolittle in My Fair Lady. I could have danced all night on his kether, but ultimately, I didn’t belong.

But then, I was no Audrey, and Sebastian, thank goodness, was no Rex Harrison.

I had worried earlier that he would stick around to eavesdrop on my call, but he’d made himself scarce. He hadn’t gone far, though. His presence tingled in the periphery of my awareness.

From somewhere below, his voice floated up to me, his words indistinct but his warm tone unmistakable. A door shut, and then he came into view, crossing the hall to the foot of the stairs.

“There you are.” He held a brown paper shopping bag in one hand, not the kind from the grocery store, but department-store style, with corded handles.

I eyed it, and him, with suspicion. “Was someone at the door?”

“Not to worry,” he said. “Just a delivery. A trusted courier. No reporters.”

“What’s that?” I descended the stairs at a cautious pace, wary of the way his gaze followed me.

“Oh, this?” He glanced down at it as if he’d forgotten what he held, his expression sheepish. “It’s for you. I took the liberty of sending out for some fresh things.”

“You did what?”

He offered the bag to me, his face pinking up slightly with boyish pride at the cleverness of his gift and pleasure in his skill at anticipating my needs. “You said you didn’t have anything to wear.”

“I wasn’t asking you to buy me clothes! Sebastian…”

“At least look at them first.”

With unwilling hands, I took the bag from him. It contained several soft packages wrapped in neat white tissue. I set it on the stairs and lifted out the top package. His focus on me made my fingers clumsy as I tried to unwrap it without ripping the delicate tissue. Under it, I found a collared, button-down silk blouse in midnight blue. Simple, sleek, and yet obviously expensive.

“No,” I said. “I can’t accept this. It’s too much.”

“It’s just a shirt,” Sebastian said. “It’s not a diamond ring, Lily.”

I shook my head. Setting the shirt aside, I picked up the smallest package, then dropped it back into the bag with haste when a peek inside revealed demure blue lace and soft cotton. “And underwear!”

“You’d prefer to go without?”

My face heating, I avoided his eyes. The next package, bulkier this time, proved less embarrassing. Black jeans, almost certainly designer if their supple denim was any indication, although I didn’t recognize the brand. “There are no tags.”

“No, that would be tacky. You don’t like the clothes?”

Face still averted, I folded the jeans back into the bag. “You can’t just give me things. I can’t—I don’t—”

“Then don’t,” he said. “You can go home in your dirty clothes if you want. Or the robe. I really don’t care. I just thought…” He trailed off, the pleased excitement in his desiderata curdling into hurt.

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