Ojbect Read Free Page B

designed to make us pleasant to those we interacted with. When we realized that they also stopped us from focusing on the day-to-day necessities, the masks came into play. Eventually, they expanded to cover the entire body.”
    He walked with her through wide halls covered with portraits and then out through a set of double doors that led to a stone deck and, from there, a garden with a hedge maze.
    “Yimra said you picked out the gown yourself.”
    Bella nodded. “I used to have an eye for what flattered me.”
    “You still do. Once a guest has chosen a gown, it is theirs forever. It will be stored in a locker with your name on it.”
    She ran a hand down the gown. “Thank you, though I cannot imagine a scenario in which I would return; I thank you for the offer.”
    “I think you would not turn down a direct invitation.”
    “I think I would have to. This is not in my allowed job activities. I could be sent to Janial for being here.”
    He chuckled. “Yet, here you are.”
    She wrinkled her nose as they walked further into the maze. “Six months was too long to hold my curiosity back. I will return to court, file my report and wait to see what happens.”
    “If it is so dangerous, why did you come here?”
    Bella glanced at him. “I think I knew what I needed the moment I heard it. Life behind a mask was so tempting, but now, it is losing its attraction.”
    “That is a common attitude. I can tell you that there is no punishment for coming here. Off-worlders are expected to seek us out.”
    Inside, she sighed with relief. She liked it on Kloa, even with the mask.
    They walked in silence for ten minutes, wending their way to the centre of the maze and out again.
    “What did the ancients of Kloa look like?”
    They were pacing toward pools that had lazily splashing guests in them.
    He looked at her in surprise. “Why would you care about that?”
    “To know why folks make the decisions they do, looking to the past is suggested.”
    Lord Akking smiled. “There are pictures inside the private gallery, but I only invite the closest of friends to join me there.”
    “Apologies if I was insensitive.”
    He chuckled. “No, but you are obtuse. If you were Kloa, you would have recognized my attempt at seduction.”
    She stumbled. “Sed—”
    He nodded briskly, interrupting her. “Yes. Don’t your people couple for pleasure?”
    “Yes, some of them. In my life, I have restricted my coupling to when I feel an emotional attachment, in the moment when I felt safe.”
    He tilted his head. “You do not feel safe here?”
    Bella shook her head. “I do not.”
    He nodded. “I see. Pity. I think we would be amazing together.”
    She shivered at the husky promise in his tone. “I will have to trust your assessment on that. I am not willing to test it today.”
    She wanted to clamp a hand over her mouth when the qualifier slipped out of her lips. His slow smile was enough proof that he had caught it.
    Fortunately for her bright blush, he changed the subject and began to show off the amenities of the club and the premises.
    She took in the variety of aliens laughing and enjoying themselves while the Kloa with them talked business. It was confirmed.
    Bella sighed wistfully. “Thank you for the tour, Lord Akking. I have what I need. I can return to work now.”
    “You do not wish to take advantage of the offer to speak without obscuring one’s features?”
    She smiled. “I already have. Thank you for that. I need to return to finish that report and absorb the thought of what I have learned today.”
    Lord Akking looked flustered, and he took her directly to Yimra for a reversal of her earlier process.
    Before he handed her over, Bella turned to him and went up on her toes, pressing a kiss to his perfectly carved lips. Before he could grab her, she reversed direction and headed down the hall ahead of Yimra. The other woman was giggling as she followed.
    The shoes came off, the hair went up, and behind the screen, the