He’d had to come tonight, Dom had known that as soon as he’d known the ball was being thrown. All the Oligarchs had to show their face - or at least a mask covering it in this case. But he didn’t like events like this and had wanted to just show up, maybe make small talk for a couple of hours at most, and then go home to find his mate curled up in bed waiting for him, or at worse, curled up in front of the TV sleeping after devouring all the ice-cream and tuna in the house. She did have some funny ideas about what she should eat in Dom’s opinion, but the cravings the shifter inside her were creating were messing with that completely.
Anyway, his plans for that had gone to pot when he’d mentioned the masquerade to Carrie and she had become so excited. He’d tried to convince her otherwise, that a party like this was going to be boring, full of people she didn’t know (well, some people she saw every month, but still) and since he’s had nothing to do with the organisation he hadn’t known whether they were going to be standing up all night when she was only a week or so away from giving birth. And a week was their best guess, they didn’t really have much idea given the rate shifters aged.
He could tell how uncomfortable she was, but she was trying so hard to hide it that Dominik didn’t want to mention that she could have stayed at home, tempting as it was. He’d learnt the hard way that teasing a heavily pregnant woman did not always turn out well. And when there was a risk she could turn into a monster if she got too angry… he wasn’t that stupid.
Dom hadn’t splashed out on his outfit, although it was obvious some had. Instead he wore a simple, but very well made black suit, teamed with a gold silk shirt and tie which were a new purchase, so that he might match Carrie’s mask. His own was a simple black mask which covered the top half of his face and neatly trimmed beard covered the bottom half.
“Let’s find a table,” Dom murmured to his mate, steering her to a table a good distance away from a group of snobby looking vampires, knowing very well if they were older they wouldn’t appreciate having a werewolf too close ruining their precious evenings. He gestured to a waiter as they approached and ordered a glass of water for himself before letting Carrie choose her own - non alcoholic - drink.
“Have I mentioned how stunning you look?” Dom asked as he helped Carrie sit on a chair he knew was no where near supportive enough, but giving her a smile. She wanted to be here, so he wasn’t going to complain. At least there were such a mingle of species in here that the vampires shouldn’t be able to pick out the smell of the werewolf too easily, and it wasn’t like she was the only one in here.
Sebastian gave a quiet chuckle at Jenna’s excitement at finding her mask and helped her attach it in place without hesitation, allowing his fingers to brush lightly over her hot skin as his hand dropped away from the ribbon and he gestured for the lady to choose one for him as well. It didn’t take long for Sebastian to find a
mask to match the
top hat and tails he wore, the cream design matching his waist coat, and the ancient removed his top hat to tie the mask into place before replacing it to complete the look, giving his date a grin. Who didn’t love a chance to dress up and show off the beautiful woman on his arm?
As he offered his arm to Jenna to lead her away from the table Sebastian let his blue eyes scan around the room, recognising instantly that he was one of the older vampires in here, which to be honest was a bit of a relief. He’d expected that in a city this popular a lot more ancients would show up and be invited to an event like this. Perhaps like Lazarus they weren’t in the Oligarchy’s good books.
And speaking of being in people’s good books, Seb’s gaze settled on Kerr and the small crowd gathering around the Luminary. He hadn’t wanted to flaunt his being with Jenna in front of the Irishman, and hadn’t really considered Kerr at all when Jenna had invited him (although Sebastian had been invited himself separately). In fact there was hardly anything to flaunt. They’d got along so far on the trip here and the entrance, but any second he knew they may well be at each other’s throats.
The older vampire gave a nod and a warm smile to the Luminary, having caught his gaze with ease and his gaze flickered to the blonde beside him who was staring a little too much for Seb’s liking. Ben, the lover, no doubt, although the way the brunette on the other side of him leant closer to murmur something made it difficult to tell from a distance.
“Did he say Sebastian? Who’s that?” Ichabod said quietly to Kerr as all three of them had turned to look the way of Jenna’s entrance, pressing a little against Kerr’s side, unsure if his sire would even be able to focus on the question so he pressed it gently into Kerr’s mind at the same time as voicing it. He was growing concerned and more antsy by the second although he tried to squash down his nerves, knowing the would do nothing to help.
“Shall we find a drink?” Sebastian asked, turning his attention back to Jenna and gesturing for them to collect drinks, wondering whether she would choose alcohol or a soft drink. A bit of a buzz might be nice if he was allowed to drink from her later, but he didn’t want to assume anything with her so let the young woman choose for herself.
“I’m afraid I only know yourself and Kerr so far, but there are definitely some interesting looking characters around…” Seb said as he sipped his glass of warm blood. Yes, it would probably be best not to head straight for Kerr, considering the situation. Besides, it looked as though several others were craving his attention. Or at least had been until they had entered. Now it seemed the most of that group were fixated on them.
