I smiled at the courtiers, nodding as I tried to ignore the queen’s stare. My hold tightened upon the prince, and, when it seemed appropriate, I turned my eyes up at him with doting affections. I relished in the jealousy I observed.
Until I didn’t.
“Your Highnesses.” Quinn’s voice cut through the chatter. He stood before us in his fashionable attire, but his stiff posture befitted a guard more than a guest. His eyes met mine for a fraction of a second, and I tried not to tense up; then he found something past my shoulder to focus on. “It was a beautiful ceremony. May your hearts find harmony.”
His blessing had all the warmth of winter snow.
“Quinn,” Nicolas acknowledged with a nod. “Enough formalities, brother. You’re exquisitely dressed. No doubts you’ll be finding a lovely woman to dance with this evening?”
Quinn’s expression quirked, just barely. “I imagine I shall struggle to find any woman whose loveliness remotely compares to your bride.”
“Quinn…”I hesitated, and the viscount took my moment of weakness to bow and retreat without so much as another glance. He disappeared among the other Hadrians, acting as though nothing was amiss.
Perhaps he hated me now.
Perhaps that was best.
Before I could dwell on that, familiar voices rose from my right. My parents pressed forward, Mother’s makeup once again rendering her a stranger.
“Oh, Alana! You look so—oh, Logan, look at our daughter!”
My father stood transfixed, a weak smile forming. He’d seen my husband abduct me from the woods. He must have wondered how I’d come to love the man as strongly as it appeared.
“Maybe we were wrong,” Mother said quietly. “It seems you were blessed, all this time, not cursed. What a fortunate fate.”
My stomach contorted. I tried to smile, but the comment had thrown me off-balance. This was notfortune. It was survival.
“I am the one who is blessed,” Nicolas said, filling my silence. “Forgive me, my new mother and father—if I may call you that.” He paused, watching Mother’s expression liven with pleasure. “I’d like to dance with my wife before the wine renders the crowd hazardous.”
My parents bowed and backed away, and Nicolas took me by the hand. As he guided me to the center floor, the musicians took their cue and played an intimate piece, one intended solely for the bride and groom.
“Thank the gods for you,” I whispered. “Ever since I’ve come here, my mother…”
I couldn’t finish. Nicolas understood, tucking one of my loose curls behind my ear. “She thought you’d lead a hard life and now sees only your luxuries. Forgive her and come to me.”
He pulled me against him, our noses touching as we spun a tight circle about each other. The music swelled, and he lifted me just enough that my feet left the ground. When he set me down, he kept me close, swaying gently.
“I know you might have chosen another fate for yourself, if you had the opportunity. I claimed you the moment we first met. But I promise you this…” He paused, lowering his voice to a mere breath in my ear. “I will never cage you. You’ll come and go as you please, wherever you want. You’re my wild lady, and I will not see you tamed.”
My throat tightened. I looked into his eyes. “And what of you, Nicolas?”
“What of me?”
“You need freedom, too. From the burdens of the crown, from the image you uphold.”
For a few notes, his steps faltered. His gaze left mine, and when he spoke, his voice was a raw whisper. “I don’t know what freedom feels like. I see threats everywhere. Even now, I’m calculating exits, watching shadows.”
I pressed my thumb gently into his palm where our hands were joined, a small, grounding motion. His eyes snapped back to mine and I held him steady as I guided us into the next turn, taking the lead until his breathing evened.
Nicolas hummed with gratitude, resting his head on the crook of my neck. “Perhaps I’ll find refuge in your arms.”
The court watched and whispered all around us, but for the way he looked at me, we might have been alone in the world. And I wasn’t afraid.
As the drinks continued to pour, the affair became increasingly boisterous. Dances lost their formality for displays of a more whimsical nature. Someone pulled a curtain rod down and the men began to contest each other in their limberness, bending over backwards as low as they could while the rod went lower with each round. I stepped back from such action, watching with amusement and momentarily forgetting the expectations that were settling in.
Even when Nicolas took my hand, spiriting me away from the eyes around the ballroom, it hadn’t caught up to me.
It took the sight of the full moon for me to remember.
