She gushed jealously at my dress, so I let her sift through the many dresses Jules left behind in her closet. I realized that many of the other Walker women wouldn’t have nice dresses to wear, either, so I sent a trunk full of them to Kemper to be distributed at the Walker Dorms. I wanted everyone to feel beautiful.
She meticulously painted her face with the precision of a marksman. I watched her with careful trepidation. She was stunning without the stuff, but it added a sense of glamour to her appearance.
She put a fragrant oil in my hair to smooth my many curls and applied a light-black salve to my lashes to make them appear thicker. We both put a radish paste on our lips to give them a red hue. Hours had passed when she was finally done, and when I finally looked in the mirror, I was pleasantly surprised to see the woman staring back at me.
My green dress fit my figure perfectly. It clung to my curves and kissed the floor elegantly. I liked how it flowed when I moved. My ordinarily wild hair still maintained its shape but seemed tamer. My face looked the same, but my expression held hope that wasn’t there before. I felt beautiful. Worthy.
Becca picked a seductive, red dress that showed off her toned back and complimented her bright-blonde hair. I knew that the men in this town would be drooling over her. We didn’t speak much, mostly because we found early on that we didn’t have much in common, but the silence was comfortable and noncompetitive. Becca was a pleasant companion.
Everyone left early to set up for the festival, leaving me alone in the house. I contemplated not attending last minute, since I wasn’t feeling in the mood to party. I still had this unsettling sensation that things were about to come to a head with Josiah.
Becca left long before I did, as she was eager to drink and dance with the handsome men that worked in the mines. She liked that men easily outnumbered women, and she felt desired. I stayed behind, counting the minutes until I knew that I had to make an appearance otherwise someone would come and drag me to the party.
While walking down the street lit by torches and candles, men and women around me talked loudly and flirted with one another. A few children ran up and down the road, chasing each other with sticks and bugs. It was a pleasant atmosphere, and I enjoyed the waves of happy energy that rolled off everyone.
I eventually made it to the General Store where I checked on the cake to make sure it was ready to be enjoyed later. After spending more time than necessary touching up the icing here and there, I walked back outside where I bumped into a man that was walking backward while joking with his friends. He turned around and immediately started apologizing.
“Ah, lass, I’m sorry I hit ya,” he exclaimed. “But, I can’t say I’m sad to have the opportunity to introduce myself. I’m Kindle.” He bowed respectfully, and I stretched out my hand in a polite greeting. He grasped it with sweaty palms and kissed it lightly, causing me to blush.
“It is no problem at all, sir,” I coughed out.
A loud cough from behind me made Kindle's eyes widen, and he dropped my hand immediately while stepping backward away from me. I turned around to see what had him worried and was surprised to see Huxley towering over me and leering angrily at Kindle.
“We’ve been looking all over for you,” he said to me.
“Sorry, I wanted to check on the cake” I replied, but he gave me a look that said he knew that I was stalling from being at the festivities.
“Come on; we’re all by the bonfire.” Huxley then turned around without waiting for me, and I followed him sheepishly. He pushed his way through the crowd while I apologized to those that stumbled in his wake. He was once again angry, and it was because of something I did.
“Did I do something to anger you again?” I yelled over the loud, folk music. A small band was playing outside, close to the bonfire, which made it hard to have a conversation. Huxley didn’t answer and continued walking. A man that was dancing pushed into me, causing me to fall. A light scream escaped my lips, and Huxley whirled around to see what the cause of my distress was. The gentleman that created my fall immediately held his hand out to help me up and was profusely apologizing when Huxley slammed a flat palm into the center of his chest, pushing him backward and down on the sandy road.
“Watch the fuck where you’re going,” he growled. I stared openly at Huxley while he bent over and picked me up, in the process he pushed himself closer to me, causing my heart to race.
“He didn’t mean to,” I squeaked. I felt Huxley tremble against me, and I tried to move away, but his arms locked around my middle, forcing me to stay put.
“Just . . .,” he sighed while leaning in closer to my ear. “Just dance with me,” he demanded.
He began moving against me, not giving me the chance to say no or escape. It wasn’t like the formal dance I shared with Kemper or even the heart-thudding sensual one I had with Cyler. This dance was a hard struggle between two bodies fighting their attraction to one another. It was both a tense dance between strangers and a passionate collision between lovers. It was intense. It was terrifying. I rested my head against his chest while our hips moved together against the beat. Couples around us were also pushing against one another sensually in a way that made the entire dance downright exotic. A light tap on the shoulder immediately made me go rigid and distance myself from Huxley. Our eyes connected before I turned to see who was trying to get my attention, and he peered at me with heated eyes.
I turned to see Patrick smiling at both of us with a mischievous grin. “I think it’s my turn, brother,” he said. Huxley then dropped his hands from my waist like I was made of fire and immediately put distance between us. I was the plague, and he was a victim of all my destruction. Shame filled me, but before I could allow it to consume my thoughts, Patrick pulled me into a tight hug. “You look delicious, Ash” he murmured. Like Jacob, Patrick was playfully flirtatious, but tonight it took on a more intentional tone.
We danced to a few upbeat songs, and he showed me a few steps that the other members of the province knew. As the night continued, many other villagers got increasingly drunk, which meant that the dancing got more suggestive and sloppy.
Soon, I followed Patrick to where the rest of the brothers were, and I sat in Jacob’s lap. They all each took turns to compliment my dress, and I felt increasingly fussed over. Being the center of their attention was addicting and intimidating.
It was difficult to talk over the loud music, but words weren’t necessary when I made eye contact with each of them. Maverick looked at me like I was a deep ocean that he wanted to swim in. He was a lighthouse in this crazy world, one that guided me and understood my path.
Kemper was tentative in his gaze. He looked at me like a man studying a painting, or a beautiful landscape. Like he wanted to commit every portion of it to memory.
Jacob’s smile reached his eyes and kissed my face with a kind and genuine appreciation. Like he couldn’t believe I was there.
Cyler’s gaze stripped me bare and left all the darkest parts of me open to him. He looked at me like he saw me for exactly who I was, and he still like every dark part.
Patrick absorbed every inch of my skin. He stole glances like a thief, and his heated looks made my stomach flutter. He drank in my appearance. I was a river rushing wildly between us, and his eyes steadily flowed up and down my body.