This process went on for two long hours and then, by the time the sun set, the transformation was complete. I stood before the full-length mirror, and even I had to admit... the Duke was right. I was extraordinary. I mean, I already know that before, but I manage to outdo myself each and every time.
I tilted my head, watching the way the candlelight danced across my collarbone, tracing the faint, fading marks Julian had left like a map of conquered territory. I didn't hide them with powder; I let the sheer chiffon of my wrap whisper over them. Why hide the evidence?
But I suppose the fox fur will do just that.
"Look at me, Beatrice," I commanded, my voice low and honeyed.
The bunny looked up, her eyes stinging with fresh tears. She looked at the midnight blue silk that fit me with an almost illegal intimacy—a skin she could never inhabit. She looked at the way the Duke's sapphires glowed against my throat, as if they had finally found their rightful owner.
