“I’ll extend my apologies to His Highness later,” Winter told her with a lifted eyebrow.
Over her head, he briefly caught Sydney’s eye. The two exchanged a knowing look. Still no sign here of the one they needed to see—Connor Doherty. Maybe he didn’t attend parties like this. He would have to find a way to bring up the man’s name.
They met a couple more of Penelope’s friends in quick succession. The music changed, the tempo mellowing into something slow andsultry, and as an open area of the floor filled with other couples, Winter pulled Penelope in for a dance. Here, at last, the crowd around them dispersed a bit, although he could still see people casting them long glances from every part of the room. Nothing he wasn’t used to.
Sydney glided off the dance floor to a corner near the wall to give them space. Her eyes still followed their every move. Winter found himself catching her gaze every time they turned.
“So, Miss Morrison,” he said as they fell into step with the music, “grade me. On a scale of one to ten, how did I score for your birthday performance?”
Penelope blushed red enough for him to tell even in the low light. “Is ten the highest or the lowest?”
“Ten would be going on the best holiday of your life.”
Her smile turned into a giggle. “You get a nine, then.”
“A nine!” Winter pushed away with a look of wounded shock on his face. “You don’t think I was as good as the best holiday of your life?”
Penelope covered her mouth with one hand as she laughed. Her eyes turned down shyly. “One point deducted only for being too brief.”
He put his hand on the small of her back. “Fair enough.”
They danced a little longer in pleasant silence. Winter let himself be awed by their surroundings. But instead of looking pleased at his amazement, Penelope seemed to withdraw again, that stiffness returning to her step. He looked back down at her.
“Don’t take this the wrong way,” he said, leaning closer and lowering his voice. “But would you mind if I offered you a small assessment?”
“What?”
“I noticed something.”
“And what’s that?”
“You have tension in your dance step.” He pulled her back a little and turned with her. “When you move to the side, see? Like you’re resisting the move.”
She blushed again, embarrassed this time. “Sorry. I’m a little, ah… nervous around you.”
He could feel her shaking slightly in his arms. “I used to do the same thing early in my career,” he reassured her. “That’s the only reason why I noticed. My choreographer used to get on my case all the time over it.”
At that, she met his gaze fully. “Don’t tell me Winter Young was afraid of the stage.”
“Oh, terrified. I used to tremble before stepping onstage before a packed stadium. It drove my choreographer nuts. So the first thing I ever learned was to fake a sense of ease. To most people, I looked relaxed. But I knew the stiffness was there.” He quieted, then studied her. “Sometimes it takes a nervous person to recognize one.”
Her smile took on a rueful tint, and he felt her relax a little toward him, as if grateful for his acknowledgment. “I’m sorry,” she started to stammer out, “I don’t mean to be—”
“One should never be sorry on her birthday,” Winter replied, and she laughed again. Lessons from Sydney and their week of training streamed through Winter’s mind.Always make the people around you trust you.
“I didn’t take you as one who also felt so conscious in the presence of others,” she said at last. With the way she phrased it, she didn’t mean the crowds around them, but the invisible, all-present hand of one person.
“You’re talking about your father, aren’t you?” he asked.
She gave him a small smile and turned with him so that he could plainly see Eli’s security watching them against the walls. “Don’t you feel exhausted, being watched all the time?” she murmured.
Winter cast a meaningful look in Sydney’s direction, and found himself momentarily distracted by the way her dress caught the low light. “By that one? Extremely exhausting. But at least I’m in good company.”
Penelope regarded him with a new expression in her eyes. Something about their conversation had made her shoulders relax, had helped a bit of ease trickle into her footwork. As if she’d found a kindred spirit.
“Then let’s go somewhere with fewer prying eyes.” She paused for a moment and took his hand. “Come on.”
“Where are we going?”
