“Well, that’s unfortunate.” We glide across the dance floor. Odgar is unexpectedly light on his feet. “I thought you’d have stepped on my feet about a thousand times by now.”
He grins. “There’s more to me than meets the eye, Princess.”
Obviously… “Don’t tell me the Warrior Prince of Uldarvik takes dancing lessons.”
His face lights up mischievously. “Fine, then I won’t tell you.”
I squint at him, and he winks. I swear my skin heats.
Clearing my throat, I reach up to pinch the leather that’s peeking out from under his collar. “Tell me this, then,” I say. “Are you wearing armor beneath your formal attire?”
He barks out a laugh so sudden and loud that it draws the attention of people around us. Odgar clearly doesn’t care. “I’m always in armor, Princess.”
“Always? Even while you sleep?”
He spins me out and back in again. “Even while I sleep.”
I raise a brow, dubious. Then a playful smile turns up one corner of my lips. “Certainly not while you bathe?”
He grins at me. “You’re just trying to think of me naked.”
I let my eyes roam his broad chest. “I will neither admit to nor deny that statement.”
He dips me and I yelp, making him chuckle. I hold on to him, afraid he’d let me fall to the floor, but he sweeps me up into his arms again and across the dance floor. “You will be more than welcomed in Uldarvik if ever you decide to step out of this castle, Princess.”
“Call me Carys,” I say.
“Carys.” His deep voice reverberates in my chest, and the way my name sounds rolling off his tongue makes my skin tingle with delight.My lips part to request that he repeat my name—purely to ensure that he says it correctly,of course—but Tiernan rushes from wherever he was standing to where we are now. Seconds later, he focuses somewhere in the distance, and I follow his line of sight to… Durvla.
She’s leaving tomorrow, and I had Tiernan remain on duty tonight rather than give him the night off. Granted, he didn’twantthe night off, but I should’ve insisted.
“Excuse me for a moment,” I tell Odgar. “I need to have a word with my sentry.”
Odgar flourishes, bowing so deeply that the leather armor beneath his shirt creaks. “I’ll be waiting, Raven Princess,” he says.
I hesitate for a moment, questioning the nickname. But then I roll my eyes, even as a smile creeps onto my face. I stride toward Tiernan. “Major Kilkenny?”
He bows slightly to me. “Your Highness.”
“You’re dismissed for the night.”
He blinks rapidly. “I’m—I don’t… what?”
I can’t recall ever seeing him at such a loss for words. “Dismissed,” I repeat. “You’re officially off duty for the night. Change out of your armor and come back. As aguest.”
He balks, battling internally. After a moment, he asks, “Is that an order, Your Highness?”
I scoff at him. “If that’ll get you to shut up and get out of that damn armor, then yes. Also, I have one more order, and it’s nonnegotiable.”
CHAPTER 37
Durvla
Roasted potatoes,mutton, and hearty gravy are piled onto my plate, courtesy of Ellynne. As much as I want to dig right in, it’s already impossible to keep track of the chatter around the table without having to look down to attend to my plate. My head swivels left and right, trying to take in as much as I can, trying to respond appropriately as needed. Ellynne introduces me to Vaughn, and he introduces me to someone else. Lips move rapidly, laughter ensues, and I find myself utterly lost in an overwhelming sea of conversations that simply wash over my head like turbulent waves.
My shoulders are tight, my stomach knotted up as I fear missing words that should be obvious—as I fear being outed on the night right before my freedom.
As the night draws on, the Feast attendees move back and forth between partaking in the foods and gracing the dance floor. Ellynneis whisked off to the dance floor by Vaughn at one point, while I sip from the same glass of wine I’ve had since escaping Iywan’s scrutiny.
