showcasing the powerful angles of his face. A replication of Duncan, with a killer-rich air.
“Vanessa,” he said . “I’ve been expecting you.”
I blinked, fluttering my mascara-spiked lashes . He already knew my name and that I was coming to see him? “Who told you about me?”
“No one . I have a monitor that allows me to view the other realms. I saw you and your sister’s people.”
“Did you see the other warriors, too?”
He nodded . “I wasn’t able to see Duncan, though. I can’t view the world you come from.”
I had more questio ns, more I was compelled to ask. “Do you know that I created you and the other warriors?”
He nodded again.
“And you know why I’m here?”
He adjusted his impeccable posture without missing a beat. “For the magic that will break the curse.”
I forced myself to focus, doing my level best to keep his groom-like perfection from being my undoing . I was too young to get obsessed with marriage. “Can you help me find it?”
“ Yes, I most certainly can.”
He’d just told me, without a doubt, that he could keep Duncan alive . I wanted to melt at his feet. I wanted to kiss the beautiful curve of his mouth, too. He was smiling now, as dashing as ever.
He said, “Come inside and dine with me, and we’ll discuss doing away with the curse after we eat.”
I accepted his offer, and we entered through a door that led to the kitchen. It was big and brightly lit, with marble floors, granite counters, and etched-glass windows, but there wasn’t a stove or a refrigerator in sight.
Puzzled by its lack of usability, I said, “You don’t have any food or appliances. ”
“ Some people still cook the old-fashioned way, but I’m not much of a chef, so I prefer the new method.”
I waited for him to explain.
He opened a double-door cabinet, where a strange device was located. It looked like an enormous microwave with a keypad.
“ This is called a food facsimile,” he said. “All you do is type in the food you want, hit the start button, wait a couple of minutes and your request appears.”
“ Oh, wow. Really? I think I saw that in a space-age cartoon. Or a futuristic movie or something.”
“Go ahead and try it.”
“What should I request?”
“Whatever you’d like to have for lunch.”
“I don’t know.” I was overwhelmed by it. And by him, too. He was standing next to me, his arm pressed against mine.
He said, “How about a garden salad, pumpkin soup, roasted vegetables and honey-glazed chicken? Then strawberry pie for dessert?”
I laughed a little . “You certainly know your food.”
“I wasn’t always this privileged.”
“Were you poor when you were younger?” The way Duncan had been on the streets?
“Yes, and I used to worry about where my next meal was coming from. But I’m doing fine now.”
“H ow did you get to be so successful?”
He flashed a playful grin . “I invented the food facsimile.”
I could tell that he was kidding. “No, seriously, smarty. What do you do for a living?”
His smile went soft, the edges warm and blurred . “I turn butterflies into pretty women and kiss them to my heart’s content.”
An audible breath escaped my lungs . He was teasing me again, only this time in a dangerously sexy way.
I shakily said, “Tell me what you really do.”
He turned serious. “I breed a line of horses that can soar through the air. They’re the most expensive equines in the land. The most beautiful, too.”
So there it was, I thought . The type of answer I should have expected. He maintained his grandiose lifestyle from the magic that was inside him. Did that also mean he really could turn butterflies into women? At this point, I wasn’t sure.
“What do you do?” he asked , shifting the focus to me. “Besides create men like me?”
“I wor k at my aunt’s consignment shop. We sell vintage clothes and retro furniture.”
“My house is filled with antiques, along with modern
“Vanessa,” he said . “I’ve been expecting you.”
I blinked, fluttering my mascara-spiked lashes . He already knew my name and that I was coming to see him? “Who told you about me?”
“No one . I have a monitor that allows me to view the other realms. I saw you and your sister’s people.”
“Did you see the other warriors, too?”
He nodded . “I wasn’t able to see Duncan, though. I can’t view the world you come from.”
I had more questio ns, more I was compelled to ask. “Do you know that I created you and the other warriors?”
He nodded again.
“And you know why I’m here?”
He adjusted his impeccable posture without missing a beat. “For the magic that will break the curse.”
I forced myself to focus, doing my level best to keep his groom-like perfection from being my undoing . I was too young to get obsessed with marriage. “Can you help me find it?”
“ Yes, I most certainly can.”
He’d just told me, without a doubt, that he could keep Duncan alive . I wanted to melt at his feet. I wanted to kiss the beautiful curve of his mouth, too. He was smiling now, as dashing as ever.
He said, “Come inside and dine with me, and we’ll discuss doing away with the curse after we eat.”
I accepted his offer, and we entered through a door that led to the kitchen. It was big and brightly lit, with marble floors, granite counters, and etched-glass windows, but there wasn’t a stove or a refrigerator in sight.
Puzzled by its lack of usability, I said, “You don’t have any food or appliances. ”
“ Some people still cook the old-fashioned way, but I’m not much of a chef, so I prefer the new method.”
I waited for him to explain.
He opened a double-door cabinet, where a strange device was located. It looked like an enormous microwave with a keypad.
“ This is called a food facsimile,” he said. “All you do is type in the food you want, hit the start button, wait a couple of minutes and your request appears.”
“ Oh, wow. Really? I think I saw that in a space-age cartoon. Or a futuristic movie or something.”
“Go ahead and try it.”
“What should I request?”
“Whatever you’d like to have for lunch.”
“I don’t know.” I was overwhelmed by it. And by him, too. He was standing next to me, his arm pressed against mine.
He said, “How about a garden salad, pumpkin soup, roasted vegetables and honey-glazed chicken? Then strawberry pie for dessert?”
I laughed a little . “You certainly know your food.”
“I wasn’t always this privileged.”
“Were you poor when you were younger?” The way Duncan had been on the streets?
“Yes, and I used to worry about where my next meal was coming from. But I’m doing fine now.”
“H ow did you get to be so successful?”
He flashed a playful grin . “I invented the food facsimile.”
I could tell that he was kidding. “No, seriously, smarty. What do you do for a living?”
His smile went soft, the edges warm and blurred . “I turn butterflies into pretty women and kiss them to my heart’s content.”
An audible breath escaped my lungs . He was teasing me again, only this time in a dangerously sexy way.
I shakily said, “Tell me what you really do.”
He turned serious. “I breed a line of horses that can soar through the air. They’re the most expensive equines in the land. The most beautiful, too.”
So there it was, I thought . The type of answer I should have expected. He maintained his grandiose lifestyle from the magic that was inside him. Did that also mean he really could turn butterflies into women? At this point, I wasn’t sure.
“What do you do?” he asked , shifting the focus to me. “Besides create men like me?”
“I wor k at my aunt’s consignment shop. We sell vintage clothes and retro furniture.”
“My house is filled with antiques, along with modern
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