Free Eyes of Ice (Eyes of Ice Erotica Series) by Emily Rose Page A

don’t think I can,” she said.
                  “Let’s go to a party, then.”
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
    Four
     
                  Ten minutes later, they were stepping out of the car once more, this time in front of an old landmark building that Cecelia recognized. It was only a few blocks from campus – she had seen it on some of her walks around the city. But she hadn’t known that it was still in use for anything other than the whims of historical preservationists.
                  “Anything I should know?” she asked, as she took Andrew’s arm again.
                  “What do you mean?”
                  “I mean, anything I … shouldn’t mention, or is a sensitive topic, or…?” she trailed off, uncertain. He’s the most composed and mannered person I know – surely other … clan members … (she couldn’t make herself even think the word “vampire” at this moment) have similar social standards.
                  “No,” he told her. “Chances are, you won’t have to talk much at all. This is a formality, as much as Devon wishes it was otherwise.” His face darkened as he spoke Devon’s name, but Cecelia couldn’t see his eyes in the sudden brightness of the building’s lobby. She was sure, though, that they would have shifted darker as well.
                  However, as soon as her own eyes adjusted, Cecelia’s jaw dropped. She wasn’t sure what she had been expecting, as she was wearing the most formal gown she herself had ever seen, but the room was filled with a hundred more of them in all of the shades of the rainbow and shimmering textures of fabric, on the most beautiful creatures (and she couldn’t make herself now think the word “human”) she had ever seen. There were an equal number of men in the room, of course; she had been distracted by the many colors of dresses before her. The men were all as sharply dressed as Andrew in black suits and snowy white shirts, their shoes very shiny on the marble floor. 
    Andrew led her forward, into the golden light of what appeared to be a vast ballroom, and Cecelia was able to study the individuals as closely as she dared. But that was just it – though they had individual characteristics, the similarities between each was striking, as if they were truly all members of the same, strong-gened family. All were dark-haired and pale-skinned, like Andrew and Devon, and like Andrew and Devon, too, they were painfully handsome or gorgeous, depending on their sex. The men were strong-jawed and broad-shouldered, moving about the room with the ease of dancers. The women were delicate, willowy and poised, gracefully gliding along on heels at least twice as high as the ones which Cecelia herself had trouble managing.  And as Cecelia and Andrew proceeded farther into the room, a hush fell over every single being there.
    “Just a formality?” Cecelia repeated under her breath, as no fewer than two hundred pairs of darkening eyes turned to stare at her in mingled expressions of shock and interest. She felt a jab of panic, and gripped Andrew’s arm a little tighter.
    “They’re just curious,” Andrew said evenly. “They knew you were coming.”
    He continued to lead her forward, and Cecelia saw Devon making his way through the crowd, a tall, raven-haired woman on his own arm. So much for Mags , Cecelia thought dully and somewhat distastefully. But as they drew closer to the clan, Cecelia could fully identify the expressions on the faces of many of the individuals there.
    “Are they – can they – smell me?” she asked in a horrified whisper, recognizing the looks of hunger and yearning on the perfect, porcelain faces.
    “Yes. That’s natural,” Andrew said, in measured tones, the way one might speak to a spooked animal. “I told you, Cecelia, I won’t let them hurt you.” His voice was low, and