I chuckle. “What is a ruby princess?”
“Didn’t your parents ever tell you about the royal families of Alkadon?” She eyes me in disbelief. My lips harden in a fine line, and she instantly understands.
“There were five of them, I believe. And the first daughters were always named ruby princesses, and they always wore dark red. It symbolized the power of a woman.”
“I naively never considered how big the world is.” I raise my eyebrows.
Aurick approaches and Ruth straightens her gold and black calf-length dress nervously.
“I am pleased you could join us tonight, Ruth,” Aurick greets.
“Thank you, sir,” Ruth fusses with a cute, wrinkled-nose smile. “My family and I are honored, truly.”
There’s a beat of silence that turns the air thin and unbreathable. I look back at Aurick, who is staring at Ruth without blinking. “I bet you are.”
Ruth glances at me anxiously and laughs, her discomfort changing the color in her cheeks and causing her soft-brown eyes to flee to a new focus point.
Changing the course of thickening silence, there’s a new note of a violin stepping into the beginning of a song. Men and women line up as if this is a routine dance that everyone has known since birth.
“Shall we?” Aurick turns to me, arm extended.
“But I don’t know the steps.”
“And that’s why you have the best leading dance partner here.” His eyes bore into mine confidently, like the silver light of the moon shimmering over the surface of a resting ocean.
“Okay.” I sigh and share a glance with Ruth. “Have fun.” She waves me away.
Aurick holds my hand by my fingertips, upright and proper, as we move through the arranging dancing partners.
Two ovals of men and women have formed side by side in the center of the dance floor. Each couple locks elbows and holds the opposite hand. Aurick and I mimic this gesture in the line of our oval. With the beat of low bass, we step forward with a clap of heels and shoes to the music. The orchestra follows after every low thump from the bass.
After three steps of this, we face our partners, and our bodies join as closely as possible. His breath quickens before we move again, now in a circular motion with the slow stretch of the violins, rotating around other partners, like slow cogs spinning in a machine. It takes me a moment to see how beautiful this is, how carefully orchestrated the dance goes, and the blend of colors from each dress that bleeds into one another with the flow that carries us around the ballroom.
He places a quick kiss on my cheek and then twirls me away. My body collides like an ocean wave against the jagged rocks along a cliff, and fireworks burst inside my chest as I arrange the puzzle pieces of his face. I see lips, full and plush with stubble along the jawline, tan glowing skin, and the eyes—I know these eyes. Warm, burning firewood.
“Dessin…” I whisper, following a gasp.
A smooth, mischievous, partial smirk creeps over his lips. “Hello, Skylenna.”
I swallow down my shock. I realize my feet are moving along with his to the rhythm of the crowd. Somehow this feels natural. This feelsrightdancing with him.
“What are you doing here?” I finally say. “How did you—” My breath speeds up and catches in my throat. I look around frantically. What if someone sees him? What if someone already has? Is he planning something? Some elaborate scheme he won’t tell me about?
“Relax.” He lowers his voice, and his eyes rest solely on me. “I came to enjoy the festivities,” he murmurs, leaning in close enough until his breath tickles my cheek. Desire swirls in my belly like water circling a drain.
“Tell me. Why did you come?” I say.
He narrows his eyes and furrows his brow. A smile that only he can make blooms across his face. He doesn’t answer.
“You look happy to see me,” he finally replies. We move around another couple. At the stroke of a low, growling violin, Dessin dips me along with the other men. I hover low to the ground with my hair grazing the floor. I let my head fall back, seeing some women smiling and others closing their eyes.
“Depends,” I breathe out, “are you here to dance with me or ruin the night?” He lifts me back up, dragging my body tightly against his.
“A little bit of both.” He nods. I catch a slight whiff of spearmint in his breath.
“Don’t ruin the night. Enjoy it with me.”
He tightens his hold on my lower back, and I can’t ignore the electric sensation that erupts where his touch is placed on my body, as if our wires have crossed, entwined, and the tingling currents settle under my skin. He leans in, lips grazing my ear. “It is difficult to focus on why I came when your hips are pressed to mine.”
