An End of Night (A Shade of Vampire #16)(56)

It was only now that I looked around more closely at the wedding attendees. I spotted Adelle and Eli standing at the edge of the dance floor, holding hands and talking. Micah and Kira had started dancing near us, and so had my grandfather and Kailyn. My mother and father were just about to join in along with Vivienne and Xavier.

“The ogres are here, too,” Caleb said. He indicated with his head to our right.

Brett and Bella were sitting on the ground with overflowing plates of food on their laps. Food hadn’t even been served yet, so I could only assume that they’d helped themselves. A smile spread across my face as I realized that they’d dressed up. Brett wore a large white shirt and—shock, horror—pants. I was so used to him wearing a loin cloth, I had to look twice to check I wasn’t seeing things. Bella on the other hand wore a long cream smock that reached beneath her knees. Though cross-legged on the ground, she was not sitting at the most strategic of angles. She was flashing her underwear to everyone who looked her way. Which was probably why nobody was looking her way.

Corrine must have attacked them both with a wardrobe. Not the best choice of colors, though. Their smart-looking clothes were fast being soiled as they overfilled their mouths with wedding food.

At least they looked like they were enjoying themselves.

“Happy birthday, Rose!” Griffin called to me. He swerved next to us, dancing with Becky.

“Thank you.” I laughed, even as joy mixed with melancholy.

“Happy birthday, Rose,” Anna and Kyle called, also taking to the dance floor.

“Thank you,” I said again, giving them a smile.

I noticed Ariana in one of the seats looking after baby Kiev.

I continued looking around and greeting people. I was amazed at the turnout with such short notice. I couldn’t spot a single dragon anywhere, though. I guessed that they were still feeling sore that their prince couldn’t have me. Otherwise, the only familiar faces I couldn’t spot were Yuri and Claudia. It saddened me that they weren’t here, but I knew that I could count on them to be having fun in Paris.

We danced for about half an hour more, and then it was time to cut the cake. Corrine floated it into the center of the dance floor on a table and beckoned to Caleb and me to approach. Laced with white and light pink icing, it was a gorgeous cake. I felt almost bad cutting it. Holding the knife together, Caleb and I sliced a piece.

As was custom, Corrine insisted that we take the first bite. Unfortunately, Caleb couldn’t or it would make him feel sick. He picked up the piece of cake and dug a spoon into it, feeding me.

He smiled, watching my reaction. “Good?”

I nodded, licking my lips. It was delicious. We moved to a seat at the side of the dance floor and Caleb pulled me onto his lap. He spoon-fed me the rest of the cake, watching me with interest as I swallowed.

“Don’t you miss dessert?” I asked.

“You’re all the sugar I need.” He winked at me.

I reached my fingers through his hair and ruffled it, winking back.

After Corrine and Ibrahim had finished dishing out the entire cake to our guests, they began serving the main course.

The piece of cake Caleb had fed me was particularly large, and I wasn’t hungry for anything else, so Caleb and I entered the dance floor again while everyone was busy with lunch. I enjoyed having the area to ourselves. I draped my arms around his neck, resting my head against his chest and listening to his heartbeat. I closed my eyes, blocking out the rest of the world, locking myself in our own little bubble.

When people finished eating many took to the dance floor again. The music sped up and became more lively. I enjoyed Caleb walking me through the different moves at various paces. I even tried a few moves of my own—something I didn’t usually do with him since he was so expert at leading me. As I did a little twirl, Caleb paused, looking at me with raised brow.

“Getting a bit adventurous, aren’t we?”

I snorted, before doing another twirl. I definitely felt more confident at dancing now than a year ago—all credit to Caleb. At least, I didn’t feel like such a klutz.

“Why don’t you try leading me?” he asked, taking my waist again.

“Leading you… into embarrassment?”

He laughed. “Just give it a try.”

“Okay.”

As the music picked up pace, I took the lead. It was surprisingly effortless. I was so used to mirroring Caleb, flowing with music came naturally to me now. I barely thought about it.

“I’m impressed,” he said.

“Well… you’re a good teacher.”

More people joined us on the dance floor again once lunch was over and we continued dancing for hours. I’d long lost track of how much time had passed, but I knew it must have been a lot because my feet were beginning to ache. Kicking off my shoes, I continued barefoot.

Then it was time for my presents. My mother approached us and pointed to the seats where a pile of wrapped gifts were stacked. I felt bad to see how large it was. I sat down and began unwrapping them one by one. My parents had gotten me a brand new phone. Vivienne and Xavier gave me an e-reader pre-loaded with dozens of my favorite novels. I opened Ibrahim and Corrine’s package to find my passport, reverted to its original state with my real date of birth. I looked up at Corrine guiltily. Also in the package was a collection of intoxicating perfume—apparently hand-crafted by Corrine.