“True.” Kiran leaned in the doorway. “Try to sleep. Tomorrow we’ll test out your luck at a few of the local taverns.” His eyes dropped down to my hands, rested on my knees and then moved up to the length of my legs until he flicked his gaze back to my face. “We must test out the power of that gold dust before we do anything. And you’ll need coaching on some of the more…classic games.”

            I scowled at him. “Yeah, I get it. Street dice is for street folks.”

            Kiran spread his hands, shrugging apologetically. “We’ll have you fitting in in no time.”

            “Don’t do me any favors.”

            That maddening grin again, and then Kiran turned for the door. “Goodnight, Cassandra.”

            I watched him close the door, cutting off the light from the hallway. For a second or two I watched the sliver of light flicker under the door as Kiran moved across the hallway. His heavy footfalls grew faint and there was the click of a lock from the opposite room. I slipped under the covers reluctantly, staring at the ceiling for awhile, thoughts in turmoil. It didn’t occur to me until I was finally slipping into dreams an hour later,that he’d called me Cassandra.

            I’d never told him my name.

            I woke up with a jerk the next morning, light searing my eyes, tongue stuck to the roof of my mouth. Fear shot through me at first, them tapered to a thin, pin-prick of irritation as I looked around the room. Now I remembered where I was.

            The ray of light that was blinding me was practically the only light in the cramped room he’d left me in. It was slipping through a crack in the paper blinds, falling across the bed in a solid bar of gold.

            It made me think of real gold. Money.

            The idea made my fingers itch. In a way, I wanted to go along with Kiran’s plan. Not just because he was nice to look at, but also because I knew he was right. This would be a once in a life time opportunity to get my hands on more gold than I’d ever seen before.

            It would also be a terrific way to end up dead.

            There was a sharp rap on the door that made my shoulders stiffen. Instinctively my gaze flicked this way and that over the room. Of course, he hadn’t left me with any weapons.

            A muffled voice came through the door, one I recognized as his. “Can I come in?”

            “No,” I muttered under my breath, and then said more loudly, in as surely a voice as I could muster, “Are you going to stay out there if I say no?”

            The door creaked open slowly, and Kiran poked his head in and stared at me. “Just making sure you were decent.”

            I narrowed my eyes at him. “I’m not getting naked with you around, Lightfoot, as much as you might wish it.”

            Kiran scoffed. “Don’t flatter yourself.” He shoved the door open the rest of the way and strode in, boots clomping on the wooden floorboards. He was dressed much the same as he had been yesterday. This time his shirt was white, and more open at the collar, revealing a bit of his chest. I kept my gaze firmly away from the smooth, bronze skin. Locked my eyes on his face. On his lips.

            Bloody hell. Stop that.

           “What now?” My voice came out sharper than I meant it to, and Kiran raised his brows at me. His voice was even when he spoke.

            “Now we go next door and see if you can win us some gold. We see how subtle you are. It won’t do if people notice you right away.”

            My stomach dropped.  I was suddenly nervous. “I’ve never played much of anything else, just dice.”

            Kiran nodded. “I anticipated as much. I’ll run you through the rules of a few different games, and then the best thing to do is watch me play.”

            “How are we guaranteed you’ll win if you play?”

            Kiran crossed the room in two steps, startling me. I backed up until my shoulder blades hit the wall, and then Kiran was right here, leaning close to me. Impossibly close. He reached out one hand, cupping the side of my face, sending goose bumps down both my arms. My body was rigid, fear and anticipation crashed through me as Kiran dragged his thumb gently across my lips.

            He pulled away just as suddenly, leaving me empty with shock.

            “There, see?”

            “Wha…”

            He was standing there triumphantly, holding up his hand, which was coated with glimmering gold dust. You could only see it properly when he moved his hand this way and that under the light. The inside of his thumb was coated though, thick enough to be visible.

            “It’s on your face too. Luckily it looks like face powder and lip stick or something. I dress you up enough, no one will think you’re a fairy, just a glittering noble woman.” His eyes were alight with excitement.

            I could still feel his fingers on my face, still feel his thumb tracing my lips, and I was suddenly vibrating with anger. “Great,” I snapped. “What the hell does that have to do with anything? How are we getting gold from next door?”

            One dark brow twitched upwards. “I assume this will work on its own without you. Are you familiar with the tradition of blowing on dice? Cards even?”

            It was my turn to raise my brows at him. “So you want me to get the dust on your cards and dice before you play.”

            “Yes exactly, and pay close attention to how I play the game. You’ll have to learn fast in the time we have, which isn’t much.”

            He strode over to the door, beckoning for me to follow him. I trailed after him, across the hall, into the room across from mine, which was every bit as cramped as mine had been. That was good, if he’d been in some big luxurious flat I probably would have kicked his teeth in.

There was a wooden trunk shoved against the wall, and Kiran unhooked the metal lock on the front. The lid opened with a rusted shriek, revealing a pile of clothing inside.

            “You’ll need something besides those dirty pants and boots you’re wearing. We need to make you look more like a girl.”

            I glared at the back of his head. “I like what I’m wearing just fine. It’s functional.”

            “You’re not functional anymore,” Kiran said pointedly. “You’re a lady.”

            “That’s bloody ridiculous.” I crossed my arms over my chest. “I won’t wear a dress, if that’s what you mean.”

            Kiran snorted. “Yes you will.”

            If looks could kill he’d have been on the floor bleeding from all his orifices. “There’s no way I’m going to…”

            “Ah,” Kiran said sharply. “This will do.”

            He was holding up a long gold dress with a black bust. The material was silky, flashy even. There was no way I was wearing that.

            “No way, I’ll look ridiculous in that. You want me to look like a street walker?”

            He looked exasperated. “You won’t look like a street walker. I made sure you’ll look like the other companions in there.”

            “Companions,” I spat at him. “What in the hell am I pretending to be a companion for? It’s basically the same as a street walker…”

            “Not the same,” Kiran said patiently. “They’re much classier.”

            I narrowed my eyes at him, pressing my lips together firmly. If I said anything else right now I might tear his head off.

            He sighed. “Look, there are no high class ladies that go into the kind of places we’re about to go, so you have to pretend to be a companion, just for a few hours. Until you learn the game.”

            I crossed my arms over my chest and gave him a stubborn look, alarmed when he shot me a look that was every bit as stubborn.

            “Get into the dress, Cassie.”

            “No. And that reminds me, it’s creepy you know my name. You really were following me everywhere, weren’t you? How much do you know about me?’

            “You’re changing the subject.”

            I glared at him. “You have me at a disadvantage.”

            Kiran grinned. “I know I do. Which is why you’re going to wear the dress.”

            “Fine,” I growled, snatching the bundle of silky cloth from him. “On one condition. I wear the stupid dress, you tell me everything you know about me.”

            He blinked. “Everything?”

            “Everything you know.” I flicked my fingers at him like I was shooing a barn yard animal. “Go. Go away, I’m not getting into this stupid thing with you standing there.”

            Kiran looked around the room nervously, probably wondering if I was going to try to climb out the window if he left the room. I had to admit, looking down at the fancy dress in my hands, it was tempting. I’d never worn one of these in my life.

            “I’ll be just outside,” he said shortly, and stomped out, shutting the door behind him.

            “Fine,” I shot after him. “Just don’t…don’t listen outside the door like some kind of lurker.”

            His voice came back through the door, sharp with irritation. “I’m not purposely listening to you undress.”

            “Yeah I bet you’re not.” I stripped off the dirty pants I was wearing, and my belt hit the floor with a metallic jangle. There was silence from the other side of the door now, and it actually sent a shiver through me, thinking about him standing there with only a thin plank of wood separating us. And now I was down to my skivvies. Standing there nearly naked with Kiran inches away.

            It was ridiculous, but I could feel my face glowing red. Had he heard my belt hit the floor? Was he picturing me in his head?

            Flustered, I yanked the dress on over my legs, tugging it up my waist and over my shoulders. Then I tried to lean back and do up the tiny brass hooks in the back, cursing under my breath while I fumbled with them. A full minute later Kiran’s voice floated through the door,

            “Still there, Cassie?”

            “Cassandra to you,” I huffed. “I can’t get the damn dress done up.”

            The tiny hook slipped out of my fingers for the fourth time and I tipped my head back to the ceiling and cursed more loudly this time.

            A pause from the other side of the door, and then Kiran said slowly. “Uh…do you want me to…”

            “NO,” I said sharply. “No, I don’t want you to…” the clasp slipped out of my hand again, and I cursed furiously and then trailed off, staring at the wall in frustration. There was no way I was going to be able to do this myself. There wasn’t even a mirror in here to make sure I was doing it up correctly.

            “Fine.” I forced myself not to stomp my foot like a child, even though all I wanted to do was throw a tantrum and rip this bloody dress off and stomp on it until it was ground into the dirty floor. “I guess…I need you to help me with this.”

            More silence. I ground my teeth together so hard I was sure he could hear it. The door creaked open and Kiran appeared, biting back a grin.

            I scowled at him. “If you laugh, I will find something to stab you with, I swear it.”

Please vote if you like it! *throws dice at you* no wait, that's not what I meant to give you *throws chocolate dice at you*