Page 82 of Forever Touched

ADALYN

“A ball, a ball, we’re invited to a ball!” Octavia shrieked, bouncing up and down in the foyer. “I’m so excited that I couldpuke!”

I grimaced, certain she wasn’t exaggerating for once. She was definitely blood drunk, and if she vomited, I would be the one to clean up the mess.

“Yes, but what am I going towear?” Georgina huffed. “How am I supposed to have a new dress made inoneday?”

The only one not in a tizzy was Mistress. She continued to stare at the invitation that had arrived just before sunset, reading the words over and over again. I pretended disinterest, my focus on dusting the foyer.

As her two daughters dramatically twittered, she slowly set the gold-embossed invitation on the foyer’s round table and said, “Georgina. Octavia. Go on ahead without me. I need to have a word with Adalyn.”

I froze, the duster poised over a Tiffany lamp. My hand began to shake, and I quickly lowered the duster to the table.

Still twittering about the ball and what they would wear, neither of the sisters noticed how tense their mother had become. When the door shut behind them and their voices faded, the silence that settled over the house was deafening.

I tried not to show my nerves, but I knew my heart was beating faster than it should.

“Come here, Adalyn,” Mistress said.

I did as instructed, clasping my hands together to hide their trembling.

When I stood before her, she whipped up a hand and grabbed my chin. “Did you have something to do with this?”

“No, Mistress.”

“The Faircrofts have never once been invited to attend a function hosted by the royal family. Even when my dear Richard was alive, the king and his sons never acknowledged our efforts to be included in the aristocratic class. The timing of this invitation can’t be a coincidence, especially since they wantyouto attend. What did you say to the prince when he took you? What does heknow?”

“I didn’t tell him anything, I swear. Ican’ttell him anything.”

She gave my head a little shake, spitting out, “Don’t play me for a fool, Adalyn. Did you feed him information while heclaimedyou?”

“I didn’t! I promise.”

“Well, you must have donesomething,” she hissed, releasing my chin with a frustrated huff. “We’ll have to discuss this later. The past three days at the club have been hell, and we can’t afford for you to miss another shift. You still reek of the prince’s claim, but we’ll just have to hope your clients missed you badly enough not to care. Come. You’re riding with me tonight. I’m not letting you out of my sight, especially now that we know Prince Everett still has an interest in you.”

She grabbed my arm and hauled me toward the front door, not giving me a chance to protest. Despite how hard I tried not to panic, my heart started to pound like a runaway horse. She was taking me back to Dreamscape. To the place that had stolen my identity. Mysoul.

Somehow, I’d managed to survive that hellhole for the past threeyears, but now that Everett was in my life, everything had changed. My perspective. My will to live. Mydreams.

I didn’t think I could return to the place that had taken so much from me. Didn’t think I could pretend to be someone else anymore.

Everett wanted me. Not Star.Adalyn. And he was doing everything in his power to save me from this life.

He wouldn’t understand if I returned. If I slept with my clients again, I knew he wouldn’t be able to forgive me.

I was hissoulmate.

Our bond was sacred, and to willingly defile it was worse than stabbing him in the heart with a silver blade.

He wouldn’t understand.

He wouldn’t understand.

As Mistress shoved me into her car and peeled away from the house, my mind was a riot of thoughts. How could I get myself out of this without making her suspicious? If she sensed that I no longer agreed with her mission, she’d thrall me so hard that I’d have no choice but to reveal everything I knew. She’d figure out that Everett was on to her scheming, that he and I were soulmates, and realize that I was too much of a liability. That it was better to cut her losses andkillme so I couldn’t be used against her.

It would be so easy to kill me. She wouldn’t even have to do it herself. But I couldn’t help thinking that everyone would be better off if I died. If I no longer existed, Mistress couldn’t use me anymore. Everett and his family would besafe.

So distracted by my dark thoughts, I forgot to contact Everett about my current situation. We were halfway to Dreamscape when I heard his voice in my head say,Where are you? You’re not in the house.

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