Girls of Venomania 4

The Winter Ball was fast approaching and Luka barely had any time at all to herself.  It seemed

to her that every girl in Asmodean was approaching her for a dress.  One afternoon, after she had

finished what seemed to be her thousandth dress, she looked up at the Duke's coat that had been sitting

on the same shelf for days. She picked it up and noticed that it had a thin film of dust on it.

The mysterious man had not set foot in her shop since the day he arrived, and the only times she had

seen him since then was in the town newspaper.

She sighed, unfurling the purple garment and placing it on the table next to her sewing machine

to find the tear at the very tail end of the coat. Faintly, she could smell the sickly sweet aroma that

had surrounded the duke in the cloth as she worked, and instantly her mind went back to that time.

"Next time, I'd like to see you out of this shop Miss Lukana."

She shuddered as the words echoed through her mind. The memory of that day seemed like a dream, yet

here was proof that the man was in her presence.  What had frightened her even more was the fact that

she barely had any memory of what had occurred after he handed her his coat. She decided she would

confront him when he returned.

The next few days passed by rather quickly until finally it was the eve of the ball. Luka was putting

the finishing touches on a gown when the door of the shop jingled.

"That's weird, I remember locking that door," she mumbled to herself as she walked to the shop counter.

She froze when she saw the tall violet haired man standing in the doorway.

"Hello Miss Lukana. You're looking as beautiful as ever." He said with a charming smile.

She wavered only slightly before replying, "What business have you got here?"

He frowned, looking slightly offended, "Is that any way to speak to your betters? Why it just so

happens that I'm here to pick up my coat. I do believe I left it here for you to mend."

"Ok…" she said, and she went to retrieve his coat. As she handed the coat to him, he smiled and dropped

two bags of gold coins on the counter.

"Hey, that's way too much! I can't accept all of this!" she protested, her eyes wide with surprise.

He smiled and said, " That's quite alright, think of it as a gift."

She frowned, "But…"

"Fine then, if you want to repay me, then come with me to the Winter Ball." He whispered into her ear.

As if entranced, she mumbled a soft "Ok…"

He grinned and kissed her on the cheek. "There's a good girl. I shall be here at eight to pick you up

Miss Luka."

He started toward the door, but before he left, he turned and winked suggestively at her.

"You'll make a beautiful wife."  He said softly before the door jingled shut behind him.