Page 9

SERENAI

After a refreshing bath, Serenai put on a long white nightgown that looked good against her warm brown skin tones.

It reminded her a little of the long, modest nightgowns she’d always worn in the Convent except for the fact that the material was much thinner and more silky.

In fact, it was so silky it clung to her curves and showed the outline of her nipples pressing against the cool fabric.

She frowned as she looked at herself in the viewer across from the bed.

Ought she to wear something so revealing?

But all the other night clothes she’d found in the closet adjoining her room were even worse.

Some were much shorter and tighter and others had slits in inappropriate places.

Honestly , the white silk nightgown was the best of the bunch.

She’d spent a long time going through her mother’s wardrobe when she’d first come here.

Many of the outfits hanging in the vast walk-in closet were new, with the tags still on them.

Those were the ones Serenai preferred to wear.

It felt creepy to dress in clothing that her dead mother had worn.

The white nightgown was new—maybe it had been too modest for Mistress Bloodlash’s taste.

When Brax came back in, still toweling his hair and with Cheeky on his broad shoulder, she saw that he had found a new outfit as well.

He was bare-chested and wearing a pair of black sleep trousers made of some heavy, satiny material.

They showed a hint of the long tube-like thing between his legs.

Serenai wondered again what it was. Did he really have a trouser snake, like her old classmate had claimed?

Her new bodyslave seemed to be studying her too. His pale eyes flickered over her gown, seeming to linger on the outline of her heavy breasts and the tight points of her nipples.

Serenai felt her cheeks get hot but she had no urge to hide herself from him. Instead , she stood a little straighter, thrusting out her breasts. She liked the way he looked at her—it gave her that fluttery feeling in her stomach all over again.

“Well, you look ready for bed, little Mistress ,” he rumbled, his pale eyes half-lidded as he scanned her.

“Yes, I … I suppose I am.” Serenai nodded. “ Er , should I just go to bed and turn out the lights?”

“Yes, and I’ll stand right here and guard your sleep all night.” He took up a position right at the end of the bed, between the two tall bedposts. He looked so big and imposing that Serenai at once felt safer. But she had a thought.

“What about you, though? When will you get to sleep?” she asked him.

He shook his head.

“Don’t worry about me, little Mistress . I’m here to guard you. I can sleep later when there isn’t any threat.”

“Well…all right.” Serenai lifted her voice and said, “ Lights out!”

The room was suddenly plunged into darkness and she could barely see the outline of the huge Kindred half-breed standing guard at the end of her bed. But knowing he was there made all the difference. With a sigh, she snuggled under the covers and felt herself slowly relaxing.

She was safe…or so she thought.