Starcrossed (Starcrossed 1)

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?What I think is beautiful is very different from what even my

twin would think is beautiful because we?re all turned on by different

things,? Ariadne explained bluntly for her.

?That?s right,? Cassandra said.

?But why a girdle?? Helen persisted.

?You have to remember, a few thousand years ago girdles were

considered very attractive, but they were also a form of protection

for the wearer. Some even had bone or bronze plates in them, like

lightweight armor,? Castor explained. He looked remote, though,

not his good-natured self. ?But there were two parts to the cestus.

The girdle itself, and its adornments. It was the adornments that

made the goddess irresistible to whomever she wanted to seduce,

and they had the power to change to suit the tastes of whoever was

looking at them. Time passed and girdles fell out of fashion, but

the transformative magic of the cestus is still the same. It can become

whatever you need it to be to make yourself more attractive,

Helen. And all these years you?ve only needed it to be a simple

necklace.?

?I?ve always loved it,? Lucas admitted softly. ?The way it falls into

that place.? He touched the dent at the bottom of her throat for the

briefest of moments. ?I think it?s perfect.?

Helen could see a hot flush wash across his cheekbones, but he

kept his eyes down, conscious of the fact that everyone was staring

at them with worried frowns. Castor especially looked so stricken

he could have been at a funeral.

?What I don?t understand is why are we all noticing it now? It?s

like it just got charged with love mojo in the past few days or

something,? Jason mused to no one in particular. Then a thought

occurred to him and he looked from Helen to Lucas, then away.