Chapter 21: A Dangerous Allure

PART 2: Damian, Sophie, and Desiree

Damian

The gallery hums with the murmur of conversations, but the only thing I hear is Sophie's lilting voice as we fall deeper and deeper into conversation. There's an inexplicable connection, a magnetic pull that draws me toward her that, try as I might, I can't escape.

"You've got a lovely laugh," I say before I even think about how my words must sound.

It's the kind of thing I would have said to Desiree when we were first mated and which, admittedly, I still do tell her all the time. But in the seven years we've been mated, I've never felt drawn to flirt so openly with another woman. It's both exciting and terrifying, especially since I can't seem to stop myself.

In the back of my mind, I'm urging tmyself to just walk away. But who could walk away from a woman like this? Her bright blue eyes practically sparkle, while her blonde hair, brushing her cheeks and shoulders, is like spun gold. The freckles across her nose hint at the mischief I can al