Liander grinned. "They're becoming quite a fashion statement - though I doubt if anyone has quite cottoned on to your special use yet."
"Thank God. I'd hate to have to find another innocuous weapon."
Once I got them on, I turned and studied myself in the mirror. If smoldering sexiness was the look we'd been going for, then we'd achieved the right effect.
"What about my voice?"
"Modulators will fix that. Open wide."
I did, and he inserted the extremely thin plastic chips on either side of my mouth. The surface of the modulators were supposedly covered with an analgesic that deadened the skin as they went in. In theory, anyway. In practice, it felt like he was ripping out teeth rather than shoving in plastic. At least once they were attached, I couldn't actually feel them. And no one else would, either, unless I decided to deep throat someone.
"Those things always hurt going in," I said, when I could, amazed by the sound of my new voice.
"Stop being a baby," Liander commented, "and say the alphabet, so I know they're working properly."
The alphabet had never sounded so sexy, let me tell you. "What about a coat? Or are you intending to freeze me to death in the name of perfection?"
"Believe me, with the heat that'll be following you, you won't need a coat." He held up a hand, forestalling my protests. "I do, however, have one for you."
He handed it to me. Thankfully is was black, not eye-blinding red. I slipped it on and did up the buttons. No sense in giving Quinn a heart attack, especially when he hadn't yet decided whether he could continue a relationship on my terms.
"One final item," Rhoan added, offering me a small bag. "Clothes to change into after you leave the function."
"I certainly don't want Misha thinking I got dressed up specially for him," I muttered, accepting the bag gratefully.
Liander looked at his watch. "Time to go." He leaned forward and kissed my cheek. "If this doesn't blow your reluctant vampire's mind apart, I don't know what will."
I looked at Rhoan. "Have you been discussing my love life again?"
"Well, it is more exciting than mine at the moment. I mean, vampires, a horse-shifter, alpha wolves - "
"An alpha wolf?" Liander interrupted, and punched me lightly in the arm. "You go, girl!"
I grinned. "Believe me, I intend to."
Someone knocked on the door. "Riley?" Jack said. "You ready? We need to get moving."
"Coming." I kissed my brother. "You be careful out there."
"Right back at you. And remember, don't ever trust Misha. He's playing his own game, and, as yet, we have no idea what the rules are."
"I'll remember." I threw the bag over my shoulder, and headed for the door.
It was time to go hunting. Jack gave me the once-over, though he couldn't really see much thanks to the coat. "Very good." He handed me a bit of paper. "Memorize this. Ring it when you come out of the club, and we'll have a car pick you up."
I took the paper, inscribed the number to memory as ordered, then handed it back. "What next?"
"Next we get you to the car."
"Is it safe for us to be going direct from here to the airport?"
Jack pressed a hand to my spine, guiding me down the hall. "You'll be changing cars. Quinn's limo will actually be taking you to the airport."
I nodded. "Did you happen to find out anything more about that breeding center we were in?"
"Not a lot."
"What about building permits and the like?" Surely someone somewhere had to give approvals. Surely you couldn't build a structure that big without someone noticing.