Page 51 of Dancing in the Dark

“Seraphina?” Justin inches closer, his brows sitting high on his forehead. “It’s possible I’ve overworked you to the point of shutting down.”

“I’m so sorry.” I press my hand to my warmed cheek and swallow a groan. “It’s been a long day. I really should’ve been less distracted at dinnertime.”

His lips twitch with a look that borders on paternal disapproval. I imagine this is the look he burns his daughters with every time they do something he considers careless. “It’s almost time for speeches. Ambassador Zhao is three-quarters of the way to drunk, and Markum seems to think if he follows me around enough, I might pat his head and call him a good boy.”

I choke on my soda water and spit at least half a mouthful back into my glass. Oh my gosh. Could I look like more of a fool tonight? “I think I’m officially tiptoeing toward delirium. I might head to the kitchen in a moment and see what I can scrounge together before the speeches begin.”

“Mmhm.” He snatches a crisp white handkerchief from a nearby table and offers it from the tip of his finger. “But before I let you escape, I feel it's important I seize this moment while Markum’s all the way across the room, laughing at jokes told in a language he doesn’t understand, to ask you again: what’s up with him?”

I carefully wipe soda water from my chin and drop my hand to my stomach. “He’s a…” How does one say ‘bottom of the barrel swine bastard liar,’ while still sounding like a lady? “I consider him a professional brown-noser. A man who wants praise, even if he didn’t earn it, and isn’t all that opposed to stepping on someone else to get it.” I glance across at the guy who throws his head back and laughs. He does not know Chinese. “I’d be surprised if he didn’t gun for your job someday, since being mayor would make him feel awfully special. But if he takes that seat?” I bring my focus around again. “If he becomes your successor, I’d expect him to manage the city with about the same finesse as Tribble did.”

“So… corrupt,” he murmurs. “Weak policies. Expensive social events.”

“Precisely. He wants all the fun parts of a job, but none of the hard work.”

“I see.” He digs his hands into his pockets and rocks back on his heels. “So now that I have your professional opinion, I’d like your personal views.”

“Oh, I don’t⁠—”

“I already know of your prior relationship.”

Snapping my lips shut, I feel the warmth flooding my cheeks and spreading down to color my chest.

“Engaged, Seraphina?”

I gulp the heavy ball of dread settled deep in my throat and know I can’t ignore his question altogether. I can’t keep my mouth shut, and I can’t tell him no. I respect Justin in a way I’m not sure I’ve ever respected any man of authority in my life. Ever. “Uh… Y-yes, sir. We were engaged for a short while.”

“And?”

Damn, damn, damn him for asking for more. “We hit a rough patch shortly before we were due to marry. I asked for space and time alone to deal with those things, which I suppose translated to sleep with whoever you want, Anderson. It’s a free-for-all. I don’t mind.”

“Mm.” Justin’s cheeks flex in my peripherals. His eyes burn a few degrees hotter than a moment ago. “But it wasn’t a free-for-all?”

“No. I’m one of those crazy people who expects loyalty in a relationship. Sleeping around, regardless of rough patches, was a deal-breaker for me. Fortunately, it appears he and I are both capable of setting the personal aside for the sake of harmony in the workplace.”

“Right.” He drops his gaze and stares down at his shoes. “To his face, we nod and placate and ensure the work is being done. Behind his back, we call him a professional brown-noser, back-stomping, praise-addicted nobody who wishes he was cool enough to sit with the popular jocks.”

“I mean…” I try so hard to stop the curl of my lips. “I didn’t call him a nobody. Or mention the cool kids’ table.”

“I’m sorry he did that to you.” He brings his focus around and stops on my face. “Loyalty shouldn’t be a luxury one must beg for. It should be the earliest building block brought into every relationship.”

“Eh.” I wish I had pockets to drop my hands into. I wish I could slump and groan. But my dress simply won’t allow it. “I’m glad he showed me who he was before we married. Detangling oneself from an engagement, while painful, is significantly less complicated than extracting oneself from a marriage. The second requires a judge. The first, two middle fingers pointed to the sky, and a witty goodbye remark you hope zings exactly right.”

He chuckles, nodding in my peripherals. “This is true. And though I’m certain you already know it, I feel the need to say so anyway; This was Markum’s loss. He fumbled someone he never deserved in the first place.”

“Aw, well…” Stop blushing. Jesus. “Thanks, I guess. I appreciate it.”

“I already disliked the man. Now, I’ll laugh at his expense each time I’m forced to look at his ass-face. What an idiot.”

My eyes flare wide with surprise, but then my phone dings with an incoming text and, as I tug it from the small clutch hanging from my wrist, I spy Charlie’s name flashing on my screen.

“Mm. Another potential idiot.” Snickering, Justin studies the hundred-person event we executed with military precision. “Though I won’t lie, I’m rooting for him.”

“Really?” I pay more attention to my tumbling stomach and the mild itch in the backs of my eyes. Not my phone. “You are?”

“After decades spent arguing inside a courtroom, I like to think I can categorize folks relatively quickly and easily.” He tips his chin in Anderson’s direction. “I knew I didn’t like him, even before you told me those things.” Then he shifts his focus to Ambassador Zhao. “Even if we hadn’t gone on a deep-dive research mission, I can tell anyway that he’s a family man. A professional who genuinely wishes to do good things for his country.” Slowly, he draws his eyes around and stops on mine. “You, Seraphina, might be the very best professional decision I have ever made. I picked you for a hard worker from the onset, I called the George Stanley often enough to annoy Chief Mayet, and since I knew she wouldn’t voluntarily take my calls, I also got to see how you’d conduct yourself when stuck between a rock; me, and a hard place; Minka.”

Yeah. Those sure were the good ol’ days.