Prince by Blood and Bone: A Fantasy Romance of the Black Court (Tales of the Black Court) Read Online Free PDF Page A

never seen a room like this. Three times as large as the living room in the Albuquerque house, once-upon-a-time, it must have been fit for a princess. Now the enormous, canopy bed was draped in faded blue fabric that still had a bit of its bygone shimmer and shine, but when she looked closely, she could see the wear. She stood up and stroked the shabby curtains and they shifted colors between a faded blue and shimmering green.
    A pale green marble fireplace, shot with blue, put out enough heat to raise the room to a comfortable level. She ran her fingers along a beautifully, carved dresser, and the large baroque mirror hanging over it, and came up with dust. The room had been cleaned, but in a hurry. The matching dressing table and partially dusted silver hand mirror, brush, and comb lying on its smooth surface also showed signs of quick wipe downs. All evidence they hadn’t been expecting her and had thrown this room together at the last minute.
    The walls were paneled in dark wood, and even though the oil lamps provided light, it seemed a little gloomy. The absence of windows left her no emergency way out, and no sign of the outside world. She shivered with a sudden chill despite the fire’s heat.
    She reached for the top dresser drawer. Behind her, something scraped across the floor and she lunged for the fireplace poker. Turning, point at the ready, she swung. And nearly took out the strange little grey man’s abdomen with the sharp metal tip.
    He sucked in his stomach and flinched.
    “What the hell are you doing sneaking up behind me?” She’d sworn the door was locked when she’d looked at it earlier, but now it was wide open to the empty stone corridor.
    Beezel straightened, somehow pointing his flattened nose high to the ceiling. “I’m sorry, miss, but His Highness requests your presence for dinner.”
    “Oh he does, does he?” She considered not going, but her stomach growled, reminding her that the last time she’d eaten had been in another world entirely. If she was going to escape this madman she needed to stay strong. “All right, lead on.”
    “You can’t go dressed like that!” His wide grey lips pursed together.
    She looked down at her scooped tank top and shorts. “Well, I don’t have anything else, this will have to do.”
    “I’ve taken the liberty of providing you with a dress.” He waved at the bed.
    She turned. There on the bed, where she’d been lying not two minutes earlier, lay a dazzling full-skirted, icy blue Cinderella ball gown, complete with slippers and a dark blue silver-studded wrap.
    Her mouth dropped open. She stared, flabbergasted, before stuttering out, “I can’t wear that.”
    “Your current attire is inappropriate for dinner.”
    She hesitated.
    It was every little girl’s dream dress, the one that never made it into the dress up drawer because it would be worn at every chance. The one she’d never had, never even knew she wanted. But she did. She wanted it. Craved it in the worst way. She wanted to stroke the puffy satin, finger the delicate lace on the bodice, and slide into its corset strings.
    “I’ve gone to a lot of trouble to procure that dress. It’s not easy to make these things happen in a place like this.” He waved his spindly arm. “As soon as I saw you I knew you’d need something else. Those clothes are not appropriate.” He wrinkled his nose. “And they’re too cold,” Beezel added.
    “What?” She had no idea what he was saying. She was caught in the spell of the lovely dress lying on the bed.
    “Your current attire is too cold for the palace.”
    She wasn’t sure this piece of fluff would be much warmer, but she crossed to the bed and picked up the long wrap of midnight blue velvet studded with stars. “It’s lovely.” She wanted it and the dress with a fierce desire that was totally at odds with her need to escape. This dress was poetic, and lyrical, and totally impractical. A dress that made you beautiful just by wearing it.