“You do?”
He seemed startled by her question. “There’s no one I believe in more.”
She balked, caught completely off guard.
The spotlight swiveled toward them and burned into her already flush skin. The heat of thousands of eyes seared into hersoul.
“Paloma! Paloma! Paloma!”
All these people were rooting for her. They wanted to seeher.
She beamed and waved the hand that wasn’t still holding on to Ignacio. The audience roared. The sound rushed through every empty and broken part of her. She once thought Ignacio’s presence was all she needed to feel whole. But she’d been wrong.This.This noise. The screams. The people callingher name. This was what she needed to fill the void. To quiet all the wretched thoughts and memories swirling inside her mind.
She waved harder as they walked toward the center ring. The hanging hoop she planned to use was slowly rotating beyond Paco’s podium. She led Ignacio to the hoop and released him. With a flick of her wrist, she brushed her feather bustle out of the way and took a seat.
“What do you want me to do?” Ignacio asked.
“I’ll let you know when the time comes.”
“And what about right now?”
She chewed on her lip. “I was told earlier today that I should use whatever we have—or had—to excite the audience. I need you to play the part of longing lover. Gaze at me as if I am the only girl in the world.”
He scoffed. “That’s ridiculous.”
“Please.”
After a moment, he sighed. He gripped the ring on either side of her and frowned down at her. “How’s this?” he asked.
“You look like I poured salt in your tea. Try harder,” she ordered.
Ignacio pressed closer to her. His eyes roamed over her face like soft kisses. “Better?”
Her pulse quickened. “Not quite.”
He brushed a knuckle down her cheek.
“Will this do?” he asked.
Her insides turned to mush.
“Yes. You…um…you play the part well.”
He huffed bitterly. “When have you ever known me to be an actor?”
“What are you trying to say?” she asked.
“I could never fake how I look at you. I’m not like you in thatway.”
Her lips parted with surprise. “What does that mean?”
“I saw your reaction in the wagon when Keara mentioned my love for you. You looked…repulsed.”
That wasn’t what she had been reacting to. General Keara had almost made it sound as if she had known Esmeralda was within the carnival all along. The thought had rattled her to her very core. It made her feel as if she hadn’t actually escaped. Like the comandante was toying with her, just waiting for her term to end so he could strike.
“Had it always been a lie, Dovie? Did you ever want me? Or were you…were you using me to…I don’t know…to help pass the time? Before you went on to bigger and better?”
“How could you say such a thing? Besides, I wasn’t even the one to start our friendship. You did.”
