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Thorne jerked his arm, and the color drained from Owen’s face.

I caught Thorne’s arm, not wanting him to get into trouble because of me. “Thorne, stop.”

He released Owen immediately and stepped back beside me.

Owen cradled his hand against his chest. He stared up at Thorne, breathing hard.

“I just want him to go.” I didn’t want to give Owen the opportunity to say anything more. Something told me Thorne would believe me, even though no one else had. But I wasn’t willing to take that chance.

Thorne raised one brow. “Looks like you caught a break. Too bad. I was looking forward to caving your face in.”

Two members of Corvus appeared out of nowhere and shoved Owen toward the gate.

“You’re leaving,” one of them told him.

Owen didn’t fight them like Dylan had.

Thorne snickered at the sight of Owen running away before calling to his members.

“Make sure you escort him properly.” There was something hidden in his tone that I couldn’t quite make out.

“Yes, sir,” they said in unison before chasing after him.

“Are you all right?” Thorne asked.

“Yeah, I think so.” I was surprised by how true that was.

But one question still bothered me. Why were they here?

Had two of the men who’d framed me that night just happened to show up at the same party as me? The more I thought about it, the less it added up.

The bell rang again, signaling the start of the next game. I looked down at the crown on my card that Ronan had pointed to earlier.

“I’ll take you there,” Thorne said with no hint of jealousy in his voice. He kissed the top of my head.

A knot formed in my stomach. What did it mean that they were all so willing to share me with each other?

“You don’t mind?” I asked, unable to meet his gaze.

His thumb traced my jaw. “Not with them. Not when I know how good they make you feel.”

The knot unraveled as the warmth of his words washed through me. Excitement bubbled up inside.

I was finally going to see Ronan.

Thorne took my hand, and I entwined our fingers and held on. He squeezed my hand in return and kissed me. It wasn’t like the rushed kisses from before. It was soft and sweet, a whisper of a promise against my lips.

He waved off the guide who’d been following a few feet behind me and led me down the path himself.

As we got closer, anticipation pushed aside my questions about why Owen and Dylan had been invited.

Thorne smiled, all teeth, when we reached the third tent. “Have fun.”

The door opened behind me before I could respond.

Chapter 7

Such a good girl