Did he plan to check to see if she’d obeyed him while at the ball tonight? Her pulse spiked at the thought. Yes, she wanted that. For some reason, maybe because she was madly in love with him, Dominic brought forth all of her most wicked sexual fantasies; ones she’d never even known she had until she met him. Such as the fantasy she was secretly, achingly, hopeful he’d fulfill tonight—to pull up her dress and make her come with just his hand between her legs in a room crowded with people. Just thinking the racy thought brought a blush to her cheeks.

Felicity and Dom stood in front of a crowd of paparazzi outside of Kensington house. Other politicians with wives on their arms smiled at the flashing cameras, their faces stoic with a smile, before making their way up the stairs to the house.

Heavy-muscled bouncers held the paparazzi back. Some paparazzi human but most were vampires working for V-Society. The flash from cameras pointed their way shot a spike of fear down Felicity’s spine. She forget all about her fantasy. The time had come for her to get serious. She had to act the part of a politician’s wife. Inside this ball was the alpha Zeke running for president, the leaders of the were and vampire council and nearly a hundred of the most influential names of were and vampire families.

Felicity and Dom gazed out at the cameras, as his mother instructed, and let them take the first photos of them as a couple. Their faces would be plastered everywhere especially since Dominic rarely let photographers take his picture.

“You look beautiful tonight,” he said.

Felicity’s lips twitched with a smile. It was the eighth time he’d said so in less than an hour. She wore a navy blue colored gown that rested off the shoulder. Her dress was made from a mixture of lace and silk and shimmering stones that covered her upper body like a corset and set apart the rest of the gown. Her shoulders and neck were completely bare, and Edwardo had taken her curls and used a clip made of beautiful white feathers and pearls to clip her curling hair atop the back of her head. The curls draped down across her back. It looked gorgeous and she knew it.

The material that covered the shell of her bodice turned into something much softer for the rest of the dress. The material rippled down her body, or at least that’s how it was sewn to look. The dress clung to her curves showing every dip and bend so she could hide nothing. Luckily the dress did something that made her butt look elegant and not huge. It even managed to hide the not-particularly slender belly she sported.

At her knees the dress flared out to form a round circle around her ankles so that the dress swished and moved with her as she walked. It was beautiful and timidly sexy compared to some of the other gowns she’d seen so far. Most importantly, she looked like a politician’s bruid. Edwardo had done her makeup giving her a smart but beautiful glamour. Her skin was bare of jewelry save for Dom’s heavy ring on her finger. And without a bra and panties, she was completely bare in her most private parts.

Dom still managed to outshine her. He made her look like a girl going to prom in a Wal-Mart dress in comparison. He wore a dark gray suit that had hints of navy in the lapels and seams. Just enough color so that they matched in a subtle way. His crisp shirt underneath was impeccably white, his bowtie navy and perfectly creased, and a cream handkerchief was tucked into the pocket of his coat. All of this he wore with a black overcoat.

They headed toward the stairs of the Kensington mansion but Dominic turned them to face the camera. This was it. With a practiced smile, he faced the cameras and put his hand at the back of her waist in a gentle touch. She put on her own, close-lipped smile as white flashes from the camera jolted in her face like little snaps of lightning.

“Dominic, any word on how your campaign is going?” one reporter shouted, trying to push past the large bodyguards that formed a wall to keep them out.

“Mr. Blackmoore is it true that alpha Zeke made an attempt on your life?” said another reporter.

“Is it true that you only recently met Ms. Shaw and that she’s already sharing your blood? Is it true she’s the reason you broke off the engagement with Lady Julianna Greenwich?”

At that, his hand stiffened at her side. His eyes followed the sound of that voice to land on a slim man wearing rounded spectacles. At the force of Dominic’s glare the man took a step back. He must have changed his mind because he stepped right back up, speaking even louder over the dozens of questions launched by the paparazzi.

“Ms. Shaw, how did you meet Mr. Blackmoore? Is it true you slept with him while he was still mating with Lady Julianna Greenwich? How does that make you feel? Are you using Dominic Blackmoore for his wealth?”

The hand at her waist tightened into a nearly bruising grip. Dom jerked her toward the steps and walked her into the house. She stumbled over her heels trying to keep up with him.

As soon as they were inside she hissed at him. “What is wrong with you? Are you trying to make me look like a fool?”

Dominic looked down at her and at once she saw the full force of his anger. “I wanted to kill him. I still might,” he said as an afterthought.

“What?”

“No one talks to you that way, Felicity. No one.” His jaw clenched and jerked as he worked out his anger.

“Oh, baby, it’s okay. Really, with you here,” she shrugged and smiled up at him. “I’m just happy.”

The lines around his mouth relaxed, slightly, and then he leaned down and kissed her. It was chaste and left her wanting something much deeper, warmer.

“Come on we have people to meet.”

Dominic led her down a short hallway where two sets of doors were open that led into an old-fashioned ballroom. The house itself was quite old. If Felicity remembered correctly, the house had been in the Kensington family for more than two-hundred years. Over time they had continued to make renovations on the home. What had started out as a ten-bedroom house now was a mansion the size worthy of the highest-paid actor in Hollywood.

The ballroom took her breath away. The floor looked handcrafted, like it was made of marble in cream and chocolate colors that formed a diamond shape that covered the entire floor. Up above the ceiling towered in a mighty dome where not one but three opulent chandeliers hung. Pieces of crystal hung beside the lights causing a shimmering effect across the walls and ceiling. Felicity couldn’t help but wonder how they dusted the chandelier.

With her arm tucked over Dominic’s she followed him into the room. Her stomach squeezed tight as he led them towards a group of older men. Gently inhaling she recognized them as vampires. At once, she put on her unimposing smile that Lady Blackmoore had taught her then quickly scanned their faces. She recognized them but her memory chose that moment to mash all those names and pictures of faces together. Her pulse fluttered. Panic surged. Breaths struggled to stay normal.

Just breathe, Felicity.

The one on the left had silver hair and a heavily lined face against pale skin. His name was Montgomery or maybe Charles. Shoot, she didn’t know. Her eyes quickly went to the man in the middle. He had dark, ebony skin with a smooth head and lovely brown eyes with a golden center. She struggled to place a name...David, Daniel, or was he Montgomery?

Panic built inside her as she searched the next two people’s face and only came up with more names but none of them seemed to fit the faces. Dom glanced down at her with an unreadable expression before he stopped her right in front of them. No, she wanted to say! Don’t take me to these men whom I can’t recall John from Joe. I’ll embarrass you.

“Gentleman, let me introduce you to the woman who strolled into my life and nearly wrecked it, Felicity Shaw.”