by Fawkes, Sara
pins holding it up. Now I ran my hands through it and looked to push through the throng.
Then I felt that stare again. Someone was watching me. Not just watching but scrutinizing every
inch of me. I could feel the gaze from my shoes to the top of my head.
I turned and scanned the dance floor but no one was looking my way. Everyone was too busy
jumping and twisting and grooving to be interested in what I was doing. I swiveled around. Who could
see me inside the crowd of dancers? The thought unnerved me which warred with the pleasure that
filled my body from the watcher’s gaze.
Shaking it off, I pushed through the dancers to find Paige and Ethan. The watcher’s gaze followed
me to the corner. With every stride of my leg, I sensed someone’s eyes on my calf and my thigh, and
the curve of my ass as I walked. By the time I reached the table, I was vibrating with desire. For who
or what I had no idea.
“You look like you need a drink,” Paige said, pulling me down to the sofa.
I nodded. “Water preferably.”
She handed me a tall icy glass of water and I chugged it down not fully realizing how dehydrated I
was.
“Guess what?” Paige asked, her eyes alight with glee or mischief I couldn’t differentiate. She
loved playing the guessing game. I think it gave her a sense of power in a way, always knowing
something I or others didn’t.
“What?”
She grabbed my arm and pulled me to her. “You are going to freak out.”
“Okay?”
“Xavier is here.”
I burst to my feet. “What?! What do you mean he’s here?”
“Ethan was jabbing with the bartender, talking about where we’re from etc., and he just happened
to mention that you were searching for Xavier and that he’d heard that he maybe frequented the
place.” Paige grabbed my hand. “The bartender said he’s here.”
“No way.”
“Yes way.”
“Where?”
She shrugged. “He’s probably in one of the private rooms.” She stood up next to me. “Let’s go
look.” Grabbing my hand, she tugged me toward one of the curtained-off areas in the club.
I resisted but only a little. My overwhelming need to meet Xavier outweighed my embarrassment
at being an overeager groupie. Before I could protest though, Paige brushed past the lacy curtain and
dragged me into the private room startling the small group engaged in eye-popping activities that I
might not have engaged in even in the privacy of my own bedroom.
Paige giggled. “Oh sorry.” And pulled me back out.
I had to stop for a minute to clear my head. There are just some things a person can’t unsee.
“Oh my God,” she laughed. “That was ah, interesting.”
I shook my head. “There is no way Xavier was part of that group.”
“Are you sure?” her eyes twinkled. “Maybe he was.”
“No. Way. In. Hell.”
She laughed again. “But what...”
I pulled her away from the room and we made our way to the next curtained off area. I didn’t care
whether Xavier turned out to be an old fat man with warts on his hands and nose. In my mind he was a
genius. But there was no way a man who created such beauty and exquisiteness could have been one of
the lecherous men in that room.
While I neared the next room, I peered through the lacy curtain. I could make out a single
occupant sitting on the sectional sofa sipping a drink. It was hard to make out features, but I could tell
it was a man. Tall by the way he sat, with longish dark hair. And he was looking at me.
I could tell by the way my body tingled. It was my watcher. I had no doubt about it.
“It’s him.” Before I could barge into the room, two beefy security men stepped in front of me and
Paige.
“Nein,” one of them barked with a deep voice.
Paige got in his face. “Don’t be rude. My friend here has to meet Xavier. Has to. Do you
understand?”
“Zurück. Keinen Eintrag.”
While Paige verbally sparred with one of the behemoths, I ducked around the other. He reached for
me, but I was too quick and agile and I dodged his ham-sized hands. I drew back the curtain and
stepped inside. “Xavier.”
Except the room was empty. Save for the half-full glass of red wine on the table.
I spun around in a circle. How was that possible? I would’ve seen him come out of the room even
with the two walls of muscle blocking me. Paige and the two security men stumbled in a second later.
“Where is he?” Paige asked.
“I don’t know.”
She peered at the walls. “Must be a false door in one of the walls.” She ran her hands along the
wall behind the sofa.
One of the security men grabbed her arm. “Aus. Aus.”
“Let go of me, asshole.”
“C’mon Paige, let’s go.” I felt like crying and I didn’t know why.
But before we could leave, a short gentleman in a suit stepped in. He smiled at me. “Xavier sends
his regrets that you couldn’t meet this evening, but has instructed me to give you, and your two
friends, an invitation to a masquerade ball at his home tomorrow night.” He handed me three black
envelopes.
As I took them, my heart raced. I stared at them, wondering if they were truly real. I looked back
at the man. “Are you sure you have the right person?”
He smiled again. “Oh yes, Xavier was quite clear.”
Paige swung an arm around me and squealed. “Holy shit! Can you believe it Em? You’re finally
going to meet him.”
My hands were shaking so hard that I nearly dropped the envelopes. This couldn’t possibly be real.
Things like this didn’t happen to girls like me. We didn’t have grand adventures in foreign countries.
And we especially didn’t get a chance to meet the one man that moved us to tears without a single
word or touch.
But maybe at least for this single, beautiful moment, I wasn’t one of those boring, predictable
girls. I was forged, created, into someone else.
Chapter Two
The next day went by in a blur. I couldn’t think about anything but Xavier’s masquerade ball. I didn’t
even have the brains to find a place to rent a costume and mask. Paige and Ethan went out and did that
for me. I was like a gooey mess unable to even conduct the simplest of tasks like shaving my legs or
washing my hair. So Paige splurged (she’d won a ton of money in the lottery last year) and sent me to
a spa for the day to be pampered and preened over.
When I arrived back at the hotel, I was thoroughly waxed and oiled up. My skin was the softest
and most supple it had ever been and I smelled like pomegranates. I couldn’t stop putting my arm up
to my nose and inhaling.
I found Paige waiting for me in my room. The second I came through the door she pounced on me.
“Oh my God, wait until you see the dress I got you.” She squealed and ran to the bed where a mass
of black and red fabric was pooled on the mattress. She grabbed the dress and held it up.
My eyes bugged out. I’d never seen anything so extravagant in my life, except for maybe in the
movies. Like a Jane Austen film of maybe Vanity Fair. It was all red velvet and black lace. It even
came with a hooded cape, and a black and red lacy mask that would cover my hair and the top half of
my face. And she even got a fan with it
. I was floored.
“Ah, Paige, I think maybe you went a wee bit overboard.”
“Nonsense.” She shoved the dress into my hands. “This is a once in a lifetime event. I mean, when
will you ever do this again? Never. You can tell your kids about this when you’re old and grey.”
I held the dress up to my body and looked in the mirror. I couldn’t believe I was going to wear
something so beautiful. “What did you get?”
“Oh mine’s in green. And it’s short.”
I shook my head and smiled. “Of course it is.” Paige loved short everything. Short hair, short
shirts, short skirts. Except for her men. They were usually tall.
I laid the dress back across the bed. “I can’t believe this is happening.”
“I know, it’s like a fairy-tale or something.” She sat in one of the chairs.
“It’s weird though right?” I looked at her. “I mean, he just disappeared from that room, and then
that odd man showed up with invites to his party.”
“I bet he was like Xavier’s butler or something.” She fiddled with her hair. “I mean the dude must
be worth a fortune.”
I nodded, yes Xavier was worth a fortune. His paintings usually went for two to three million
easily. His most famous work “O” was recently sold at auction for a cool six million. So maybe wealth
and his reclusiveness just made him extra eccentric. It still didn’t cloud my desire to meet him. I
wanted that more than anything right now.
Paige jumped to her feet. “We got three hours before we have to go. The drive will probably be
about an hour outside of the city.” She went to the door. “Wait till you see Ethan’s tux. It’s green like
my dress.” Giggling, she left my room.
Once she was gone, I sat on the bed next to the dress. I slid my fingers over the velvety bodice and
thought about tonight. It was surreal. Did situations like this really happen? It was like something out
of a movie or a fairy-tale like Paige had said. And was I the fairy princess in all this?
If I was, then what role did Xavier place? Handsome prince? Or nefarious villain?
A shudder wracked my body. Standing, I shook it off, and went into the bathroom to prepare for
the evening. I guess I would soon find out just who Xavier was and in what way he would affect me.
Because I knew without a shadow of a doubt that he would.
Everyone stopped and stared when I stepped out of the elevator and into the hotel lobby. I smiled
behind the open fan, secretly enjoying the attention. I spotted Paige and Ethan immediately waiting
for me near the doors. They were both resplendent in green. Ethan even wore a green top hat, and
carried a silver tipped cane.
Paige beamed at me. “Oh my God, Emily, you look amazing.”
“I don’t feel like myself.” And I didn’t. I felt like a completely different woman. Definitely not the
same one who had boarded a plane from Ottawa to London three weeks ago.
“Well then, tonight is the perfect night to be someone else.” Paige wrapped her arm around mine.
“Shall we?”
“Yes, we shall.”
Ethan opened the door for us and we went out into the night to the waiting taxi.
I was nervous as hell on the way to Xavier’s home. I fidgeted and squirmed and managed to peel
all the nail polish off my thumb nail by the time we arrived.
It was pitch black as we left the main road and turned onto a winding single lane through dense
forest. When we emerged, it was like coming out of a dark fog. There was light up ahead a narrow
winding road that seemed more suited for a horse and carriage than a car, which seemed to lead up to
the clouds. The light turned out to be two big torches flaring with fire on either side of the precipice
we drove under and into a roundabout courtyard.
“Good lord, he really does live in a castle,” Paige said as she gaped out the side window at the
enormity of the estate we’d just pulled in front of.
A uniformed doorman opened the car door for us and we slid out; Paige and I careful not to
damage our dresses. Once out, I looked up at the towering building. It had to be six floors high with
three spires and turrets pointing toward the sky. The double doors were open, manned by more
doormen, and violin music spilled out. As I walked toward the entrance, I felt like I was back in the
eighteen hundreds.
I handed our invites to the doorman. He thanked me as he looked them over, then he bowed and
allowed us entrance. Paige giggled beside me as we sashayed into the castle foyer. A hundred people
easily milled about in the room before the ballroom. White tailed waiters served tall glasses of
champagne from silver trays. Ethan snagged us drinks from the passing server.
“This is unreal,” I said after sipping some champagne and looking at all the fancy gentlemen and
ladies in masks float by on the way to dance in the ballroom. Many of whom glanced at me while
passing. There were flirty smiles on those faces.
“I know, right?” Paige gestured to the colorful tapestries hanging on the walls. “This place still
looks like it’s the eighteen hundreds. Everything is still lit with lamps and not electricity.”
She was right. I’d noticed all the kerosene lamps hanging on the walls when we’d come in. It was
practically medieval and I loved it.
I’d also noticed the artwork on the walls. I recognized it immediately. Xavier had a distinctive
style that was evident in the colors and subject matter. He often painted women in the throes of desire
and lust. And these works were no different. Everywhere I turned I saw faces and bodies writhing in
passion. Tingles of pleasure skimmed my body, and I put a hand to my belly where they all seemed to
converge.
“We should dance.” Paige grabbed my arm and Ethan’s and tugged us forward. “I bet that’s where
we’ll find our host.” She wriggled her eyebrows at me.
The ballroom was extraordinary. The walls were painted with murals depicting forest scenes, and
the floor was done in a mosaic of tiles in rich colors of reds and golds. It was a lovely contrast in color
and themes. Dancers reeled to a waltz in the middle of the floor while others waited their turn on the
sidelines, clapping and laughing to the music.
“Oh my God, I have to dance.” Paige grabbed Ethan’s hands. “Dance with me my darling.”
“Of course, my love.” He took her hand and wrapped it around his arm.
She looked at me. “You’ll be all right here?”
“Yes, go. Dance. Have fun.”
I watched as Ethan moved Paige around the floor. It almost looked like he knew what he was
doing. Except for when he dipped her and almost dropped her on the floor. Laughing, Paige slapped at
him, and they went around the floor again nearly colliding with every other couple.
A small pang of jealousy filled my chest. I loved Paige and Ethan, together as a couple they were
great, but seeing them like this, happy and enjoying each other, made me long for a partner. Someone
who would accept me for who I was, and who I wanted to be.
The heat in the room of so many people crowded inside and dancing enveloped me, and I felt a bit
faint. I flipped open my fan and cooled my face. Before I could cool down, someone bumped into me,
and I dropped my fan. I stooped to pick it up, but someone already beat me to it.
He was the most beautiful person I’d ever seen in my life. Tall, lean frame
, (he wore his tux like a
panther), with slicked back black hair. The ends skimmed the collar of his jacket. His face, of what I
could see beyond the mask, was sharp and angular. It looked like it had been carved from white
marble. It looked just as smooth, and I had to tamp down an urge to test that theory with my fingers.
“This is yours, I presume.” His voice was lilting. A European accent to be sure, but I couldn’t
quite place it. Regardless, it was music to my ears.
“Yes, thank you.” Nerves shot through me, and my hands shook as I reached for the fan.
His eyes pierced me through the black mask he wore. And I knew I’d finally found the man I’d
been searching for. His gaze was even more affecting up close.
“Thank you for inviting me to your party.”
He smiled then, revealing perfectly straight white teeth, and my knees went weak.
“I will only accept your thanks if you dance with me.” He held out a white gloved hand.
I took it, and he led me out onto the dance floor. Most people stopped and stared as we passed by. I
spied Paige and Ethan gawking as Xavier positioned me on the floor, my hand in his, his other hand
firmly on my waist. I was shaking. I know I was but I tried to keep my head up and keep his gaze.
“Don’t be nervous, we are only dancing,” he said, right as the music started.
He moved me around the floor effortlessly which surprised me because I was not the most graceful
on my feet. His firm grip on me afforded no room for mistakes. He led me like a master.
Commanding. Yet gentle. By the time the song was half way done, we were floating across the floor.
“What is your name?” he asked, after spinning me.
“Emily,” I said, breathlessly. “Emily Brooks.”
“Why are you in Germany, Emily?”
“Sightseeing mostly with my friends,” I said, trying hard not to watch his mouth when he spoke. It
was difficult though as his lips were so lush and kissable. “This is a beautiful country,” I quickly
added.
“Yes, I have found many beautiful things here.”
“Like the subjects of your paintings.” I didn’t know why I said it, but it was out before I could
think about it. I’d never been bold before, especially not with a man, but Xavier made me want to be.
He smiled then, it was slow and easy and sexy as hell. And I had an instant reaction in my belly