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“Indeed,” he answered, releasing her. “Come out to the sitting room when you are ready. I will set your shoes out for you.”

She nodded, and he took a step away from her, backing slowly out of the bathroom. Theon finished getting ready, forcing himself to calm down before he went out to the living room to find Axel and Luka dressed in jeans and button-down shirts.

“So fancy, brother,” Axel teased with a smirk.

Theon raised his middle finger, walking to the liquor cabinet and finding a small bottle of whiskey. He downed the entire thing.

Axel tsked at him. “You are so dramatic sometimes.”

“Talk to me when Father is sending you to meet your first potential Match,” Theon answered with a growl. His attention was fixed out the window, and he was contemplating getting another bottle of liquor.

“I don’t know why you are complaining,” Axel retorted. “Not when you get to spend the evening with this exquisite creature at your side.”

Theon turned and found Tessa standing there, a slight flush to her cheeks at Axel’s words. The black heels raised her up several inches, her gown just brushing the floor now, and her hair was braided in some intricate way over her shoulder. He didn’t know how she’d managed to do something like that to her hair in just a few minutes. Her lips were painted bright red, and she slid her eyes to Theon before looking at the floor.

Axel had crossed the room to her and held out his hand. “Spin, baby doll. Show us everything.” A small huff of laughter left her, and she let him spin her in a slow circle. He dramatically clutched at his chest before leaning in and pressing a soft kiss to her cheek. “You look stunning, Tessa.”

“Thank you,” she said softly, giving him a small smile.

“How are you feeling?” Luka asked from where he sat on the sofa. His eyes were roaming slowly over her too, but his brow was furrowed, as if he were confused or contemplating something.

“I’ll be fine,” Tessa said nervously. She reached up as though she was going to fiddle with her hair, but then seemed to remember it was styled. “We all found our ways of dealing with the assessments.”

“And how do you deal with them?” Luka asked, his head tilting as he continued to study her.

She shifted her weight from foot-to-foot, and beneath it all, she still looked tired. Theon hated that he had to force her to go out tonight.

“In the past, my friends and I would sneak off the Estate to deal with them, but since I doubt you all are going to let me sneak off, I’ll figure out some other way,” she answered, glancing at Theon.

“That would be an accurate assumption,” he replied, finally moving from where he’d been rooted to the spot. When he reached her side, he slid an arm around her waist, his hand resting on her hip, and she immediately leaned into him. He could have sworn he felt her let out a little sigh of relief at the contact. “Are we ready?” he asked, looking at Luka and Axel.

They all filed out of the room, and Theon didn’t miss the various looks Tessa received while they stood in the lobby waiting for the valet to fetch their vehicle.

“I’m not going anywhere, Theon,” Tessa whispered.

“What?” he asked, glaring at a guy who was blatantly staring at her, his eyes roving freely.

“If you tighten your grip on me any more, you’re going to leave bruises,” she teased, and he snapped his gaze to her at the tone. He hadn’t realized he’d been pulling her in closer and closer the longer they stood there.

“I don’t like them looking at what is mine,” he ground out.

Again that almost-smile graced her lips, and she turned into him. She reached up and straightened his tie before she tilted her chin to meet his eyes. “Let them look,” she replied. “You are clearly the only one who gets to touch.”

Theon bent down so his mouth hovered just over her lips. “How much will you let me touch tonight, Tessa?”

Her eyes widened slightly, but she didn’t pull away. She didn’t even flinch. “I told you the other night, Theon, only mortals get to touch me like that.”

With that, she pushed away from him just as the doorman pulled the door open. She didn’t wait for him as she followed Luka and Axel down the steps to the vehicle. He hurried after her, slipping into the backseat.

Only mortals get to touch her?

Fuck that. That wasn’t an option. Not again. Never again. If that was her wish, she was never going to be touched again. She had told him she would sneak off the Estate regularly to meet up with mortals, but she’d also just said the same thing about dealing with the assessments.

Tessa hadn’t slid across the seat like normal, instead scooting into him as soon as he entered the vehicle. He brought his lips close to her ear, his arm holding her to him. “You do know that no mortal will ever touch you again, right?” Her lips pressed together tightly, and when she didn’t speak, he went on. “How did you deal with assessments before, Tessa?” But she didn’t answer. She just shook her head a few times in refusal. He would get the answer from her sooner or later, but right now, he needed to cover something else. “You know what is expected of you tonight?”

She stiffened beside him, and he knew if he hadn’t been holding her so tightly to him, she would have pulled away.

“Yes, Theon. I know what you desire of me tonight,” she answered, her eyes falling to her lap.