“And that sounds like my cue,” Caroline said with a super chipper voice from behind us.
I glanced over my shoulder and sure enough, there she stood grinning in the doorway with Amelia and Landy by her side. And then her words registered. I frowned. “What does that mean?”
Caroline rolled her eyes. “There’s a ball tonight, Emersyn. Time to get our dresses. So let’s go, Bergdorf is waiting.”
“Oh, Bergdorf.” Tegan did this little wiggle dance. “I’m definitely in.”
I sighed.
Claudia walked in behind her daughter then came rushing over to us. The smile on her face was a bit more reassuring. “Go on, Emersyn, we’re all set here.”
I opened my mouth to fight this dismissal off when Tegan gripped my wrist and we were suddenly standing in front of Caroline and the girls. I groaned. “Tegan.”
She shrugged, completely unphased. “Don’t make me play dirty. Let’s go find dresses.”
“Fine.”
When we finally made it into the evening wear section of Bergdorf and I took in the sight of all the sparkles, I realized this was a brilliant kind of distraction. Landy’s jaw dropped. Amelia squealed in excitement.
Caroline bumped my shoulder with hers. “See, not such a bad idea, right?”
I nodded. “Right. Except now I have to pick one.”
Caroline strolled in front of me and then cracked her knuckles. “All right, ladies, tell me what color you’d prefer to wear this evening—”
“Black.” Tegan shrugged. “Unless you have a shade darker than that.”
Caroline grinned. “I’ll work on that, but for now…” she pulled her crystal wand out of her jacket and swished it in the air.
“Hey, what about the hum—”
“Just trust me, k?” Caroline winked at me.
Black gowns of every length and fabric floated off the racks then drifted through the air. Caroline swung her wand toward the mirrored wall off to the right. There was a click and then a door opened to reveal a quaint little fitting room. She flicked her wand again and every single black dress soared straight inside then hung themselves on hooks.
“WHOA,” Landy breathed.
“Okay, that’s cool.” Tegan skipped over to the open fitting room and peeked inside. “Goddess, I love magic.”
Amelia giggled and jumped out in front of Caroline. “Do Landy next!”
Caroline turned to little Landy and smiled. “And which kind of dress would you like to try?”
Landy bit her bottom lip. “I like…purple? Maybe? I don’t know…maybe blue? Green?”
“It’s all right, you don’t have to know.” Caroline pursed her lips then swished her wand again. About a dozen dresses in different colors, lengths, and cuts floated into the fitting room next to Tegan’s. Caroline looked down to Landy and winked. “I put a variety in there, just go try on what you think is pretty and we’ll go from there, okay?”
Landy’s eyes widened – and then she sprinted into the fitting room.
Caroline chuckled. “Miss Amelia, you’re up.”
“I want a big poofy princess dress so I can dance.”
“I like your priorities, kid.” Caroline laughed and flicked her wand. “Bippity, boppity, boo.”
Amelia was running before her dress options even left their racks.
“And that brings us to you.” Caroline stepped out in front of me and arched one eyebrow.
My stomach dropped. I cursed. “Oh, I don’t know.”
Caroline crossed her arms over her chest.
I groaned and threw my hands up. “I like sparkles?”
She grinned. “Now that I can do.”
I couldn’t lie, her little trick was really cool. Not that I was surprised, her closet had left its mark on me last month. The truth was, I hadn’t put any thought yet into what I wanted to wear to the Yule Ball tonight. I’d been too focused on getting everything ready to think about it. All I knew was I liked anything that glittered. And as over a dozen gowns twinkled as they flew passed me, I knew Caroline had hooked me up good.
“What about you?”
“Oh, I’ve had my eye on a Dior gown for a hot minute.” Caroline’s grin turned dreamy, but then she shook herself. “Okay, ladies, start trying on gowns – and go!”
Amelia and Landy giggled and practically dove into their fitting rooms. Tegan leaned into the room for me that was right next to hers and took a peek. Then she glanced over to me and wagged her eyebrows. But before I could say anything, she gave me two thumbs-up and slipped inside her own fitting room full of black garments.
I sighed and hurried into my room. It was wall-to-wall glitter…and it was improving my mood by the sparkle. Except there were far too many. I needed to eliminate some. And there was quite the variety. First, I pulled out anything with long sleeves. All of this anxiety was making me sweat and I didn’t want pit stains in a couture evening gown. Then I yanked out five dresses that dragged the ground and three that were big and poofy – all so I could move around the ball easier. Being in charge changed how you dressed for an occasion.
Once those were gone, I reviewed the remaining options. There were two white dresses that were gorgeous…but I didn’t want to wear white. I wanted to save a gown like that for a certain special occasion, even if it was years away. So, I moved those gowns aside.
“OH MY GODDESS!” Amelia screamed, then squealed. “THIS IS IT. PERFECT. OH MY GOD.”
“Come out and show me!” Caroline laughed. There was a creak and then Caroline gasped. “Oh, Amelia, I love it.”
Better start trying something on. I grabbed the closest dress and slipped it on. It was silver and covered in glitter…it was cute, a flapper-style dress that got a modern remix. But it wasn’t my style, so I took it off.
“Amelia?” Landy shouted. “Are you out there? I want to show you this dress.”
“YES!” Amelia yelled back. “Come out – yessssssss! That color is amazing on you. That’s the one. Caroline?”
I pulled on a pale gray dress that fell only to mid-thigh and was covered in fluffy feathers. It was pretty but lacked that impact I usually liked.
“Ah, definitely. Nice pick, Landy!” Caroline said outside my fitting room.
Shit. I cannot be the last one. I yanked the gray one off and tried a rose gold gown but quickly determined it wasn’t my style and took it right back off. Next, I put on a bright pink sequin a-line dress that hugged my body like a glove and fell straight to the floor. It was stunning and I loved it. However, the deep v-neck that dropped all the way to my waist wasn’t ideal for someone who was going to be running around all night. I didn’t want to worry about wardrobe malfunctions at an event I was in charge of.
“Em, how you doing in there?” Caroline called out through the door.
“I’m definitely going to buy this dress I have on but not for tonight,” I said as I carefully slid that dress off and sat it aside.
Caroline chuckled. “I won’t stop you there – oh my GOD. TEGAN. Tennessee is going to die.”
“I know, right?” My twin laughed. “I can’t wait to see my brother Cooper’s face.”
I turned to my rack of options and spotted one that took my breath away. It was basically a disco ball in dress form. The silver sequins were so shimmery that they reflected everything around me. It had thin straps and just enough of décolletage to be flirty but not enough to fall out. The dress itself fit flawlessly to my body in a straight cut that stopped perfectly at my knees. And the slit on the side was just enough to give me good mobility.
Plus, I can totally wear my Old Gringos Deacon got me with this.
I grinned and yanked my fitting room door open, then jumped out. Caroline, Tegan, Amelia, and Landy all gasped. I held my arms out to the side and spun in a slow circle.
Amelia sighed. “Can you just wear that everyday?”
“That’s really pretty,” Landy said softly.
“The Alex Perry dress.” Caroline fanned her eyes like she was goin
g to cry – even though we both knew she wasn’t. “That dress is so Manhattan. I’m so proud.”
I chuckled and turned to my sister, the one who’s opinion mattered the most. “Well?”
She gave me one of her rare, genuinely happy smiles. The vulnerable kind she didn’t let most people see. “That’s…wow. I love it, twin.”
My heart fluttered. “You don’t think it’s too short?”
She shook her head. “No one is going to notice it’s short. Besides, you’ll be more comfortable knowing you can move around in this one easily – and that’s important. And your glitter boots Deacon got you will look sick as hell with this.”
I grinned. My twin knew me so well. I spun around to the wall mirror and inspected my dress. It really was perfect for the occasion. “Okay. This is it. Now let me see y’all’s!”
Amelia jumped forward and twirled. “Look, ours match!”
They did. The bodice was made of almost the same silver sequins, but the neckline was a delicate scoop and it had cap sleeves. The sequins fell to her hips and then the skirt flared out in rose-colored tulle down to mid-calf. But all along the tulle were silver sequin stars.
“We’re gonna look great in pictures together!” I chuckled, but then I spotted Landy watching me. So I turned to her and smiled. “Landy! That color is incredible!”
She blushed and twirled her skirt. Her dress was made entirely of a deep burgundy velvet that fell to the floor and had long sleeves. It was definitely modest, but Landy was not a girl who wanted to stand out. This dress was perfect for her.
I turned and had to bite my cheek to stop myself from commenting on Caroline’s dress of choice. It was gorgeous and hot and she looked like a million dollars in it. I pointed to her. “The Dior?”
She wagged her eyebrows. “You know it.”
It was a sapphire blue, tea-length silk gown that cinched at the waist and had a wide, deep V-neck to show off her assets. I was very glad she wasn’t still after Deacon in this thing. “That’s girl crush material, Caroline.”
She grinned. “Thanks, but I think Tegan wins that title.”
Then I remembered hearing her reaction to my sister’s dress and I suddenly didn’t want to look. I can’t wait to see my brother Cooper’s face. That wasn’t a good sign. I spun around – and my breath left me in a rush.
I cursed. “Dammit, Tegan. Does that even count as a dress? You had more clothes on last night at dinner, and that dress barely hit mid-thigh.”
Tegan cackled like a Disney villain and did a little shimmy. “What? I like black.”
“That’s not black, T. That’s see-through with a hint of black.” I rolled my eyes. “Tennessee is scary enough without you dressing like this.”
She grinned and shrugged. “I know, but I can’t wait to see Cooper freak out.”
I sighed and pinched the bridge of my nose. “One day we’re gonna have to stop torturing our brother. You know that, right?”
“Duh. But that day is not today.” She gestured toward her dress. “So imma wear this.”
This was a black mesh dress that was basically entirely see-through with black lace strategically placed over her body parts. The straps on the shoulders were thinner than my pinky and the V-neck dipped all the way down to her belly button. Then the material hugged her body tight until it flared out just above her knees.
It was a dress designed to kill…and she knew that.
I shook my head. “All right, well it sounds like we’ve all picked our dresses—”
“You know what that means!” Caroline looked up from typing on her phone. “Hair and makeup time!”
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Deacon
“Tennessee…” I pinched the bridge of my nose and sighed. “For the millionth time, you have to wear a tux tonight.”
“I still haven’t heard one valid reason as to why—”
“Because you’re Coven Leader for Goddess sake!” I groaned and scrubbed my face. “For the love of – why is this so complicated?”
“It seems to me the biggest struggle might just be getting him to wear any shirt,” Noah said while laughing. “Because he’s been standing there for thirty minutes shirtless.”
Christian frowned. “Yeah…it’s giving me a complex, too. Can we get him to cover up?”
I threw a stack of ties at the two of them then turned back to Tenn. “Dude. You’re Coven Leader, this is your first Yule Ball and shit has already been crazy because of Samhain and Joseph. Now you had us open this school. This whole event is kind of a big deal and you need to look your best—”
“Why though?” He held up two different dress shirts and wiggled them in the air. “Tell me why?”
“Teeellll me WHY,” Christian sang that Backstreet Boys song.
Noah immediately jumped in.
Neither one of them could stop laughing.
I was about half a step away from using my gift of persuasion on Tenn, even though it probably wouldn’t even work. But still.
Tenn tossed both shirts on the couch beside us. Then he pointed to my white velvet and satin tuxedo. “How does this make me look appropriate?”
“This wouldn’t, but you’re more important than me…and with that comes certain—”
Tennessee groaned. “How about if I just don’t wear my leather jacket? Just a regular black shirt —
My phone blared from my pocket. When I pulled it out, I found Royce’s face on my screen as he tried to face-time. There was a good chance I didn’t have time for whatever nonsense my cousin was about to throw at me, but I could use his assistance with Tenn.
I answered the call and held the phone up to my face. “Hey, Royce. What’s up?”
Royce sighed and shook his head. “Is boss man there? I’ve been texting him.”
I flipped the screen to show a very shirtless Tenn “Yep. Currently trying to convince him he must wear a tux this evening.”
Noah and Christian burst into laughter.
Royce’s eyebrows rose. “Did I hear that right?”
Noah leaned into the phone. “You heard that. And I suggested navy.”
“No, navy ain’t his color man.” I pushed Noah away from me. “He needs a classic.”
The sales guy, Dominic, walked up and rubbed his palms together. “How are we doing here — oh, not well, I see.” He laughed.
“Excuse me, mister sales dude guy?” Royce shouted through my phone.
I turned the screen to him. “Dominic, this is my cousin Royce. Royce, meet Dominic.”
Dominic waved into the phone. “Hello! Good evening.”
“Hi.” Royce snapped his fingers. “Listen, Dominic…we’re looking for an Idris Elba in Givenchy at the Met Gala kind of get up, you feel me?”
Dominic lit up. “OH. Yes. Perfect. Be right back.”
And then he was gone as fast as he came.
“Okay, problem solved. You’re welcome.” Royce wagged his eyebrows. “Boss man, just put it on and shut up. Now, can I bring a date tonight?”
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Deacon
It was Yule Ball night.
Everything was ready to go.
I knew it was, even before I left my apartment after assuring Emersyn I would go make sure. My mother was overseeing everything. My mother. The same woman who ran all of New York. She was a machine. I had zero doubts or concerns about this event, especially with Emersyn co-running it with her.
But my soulmate was freaking out, so I volunteered to come take one final look. It wasn’t just average nerves, either. Tennessee had already told her how happy he was with the job we’d done. There was nothing left to be nervous about – Tenn’s words, not mine. But Em kept telling me she had this feeling that something bad was coming, that something was going to happen. I didn’t know what that could be. I didn’t see the future. Bentley did, but when I called to ask if we needed to be worried he – in his roundabout, vague, Tegan-style way – told me no.
Kind of.
I real
ly had no idea what he meant, but his demeanor was calm so that was what I took from it.
So, I went to the school for a final run through, and as expected, everything looked normal and ready. The Knights of New York were in place and ready to swap shifts. The kitchen staff were lined up like marines and the food was on schedule. Literally everyone was in place. I walked up to the doors for the ballroom, the location for the event itself, and the last place for me to check on.
I pushed the doors open…and my jaw dropped. I hadn’t seen the finished décor yet, but damn did they do an impeccable job. It was a winter wonderland to rival the one outside right now. Everywhere I looked was silver, gold, and white. It was chic and elegant, just like New York was.
The ground was white and shimmering like fresh fallen snow in an open field. Claudia had put a spell on the ceiling for fake snow inside, at Emersyn’s insistence. It looked real as it drifted down, too. The little snowflakes fell in blankets and then drifted off several feet above our head.
I spun in a slow circle, taking it all in. All around the room were these tiny sparkling lights and they reminded me of Saffie’s fireflies. I smiled and rocked back on my heels. The room was magical. It felt like a fairy tale. Emersyn had told me she wanted us to capture the feeling of Yule and the winter solstice and I was positive we nailed it.
I pulled out my phone and checked the time. We had thirty minutes before the official start time but about fifteen before Tegan would start portaling in important people – like the DJ and photographer. But it was time for Emersyn to get over here. One, because she needed to see for herself that we were ready. But two, because I just wanted a moment alone with her before the chaos began.
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