Page 13 of Take My Throne

“Can you blame us?” Archer’s eyes flash with anger. “We thought we’d found a way to keep you safe from your father. If he hadn’t come along, you’d be with Romy right now. Tell me you wouldn’t be happier engaged to him than married to Lucas.”

I open my mouth to reply, but Archer talks over me.

“And if you were still engaged to Romy, I might have been able to find a way to get you out of that engagement. I was working on it, you know. I had plans. None of them matter now. Instead, I’m reduced to snatching what little time I can with you. It’s not enough. It’ll never be enough.”

“I know,” I whisper, knowing exactly how he feels. “But what can we do? I’m married and my father has me well and truly trapped.”

“We’ll just have to take each moment as it comes, I guess.” Archer shrugs as the song comes to an end and the DJ puts on another slow song. Archer moves to get close, but someone pulls him back.

“I think it’s my turn now, don’t you?” Declan asks. “Unless Ivy has any objections?”

“No.” I beam. “It’s good to see you, Declan.”

“See you later, Ivy.” Archer bows and kisses my hand before disappearing off into the crowd, leaving me with Declan.

I put my arms around his neck, and he put his around my waist. Taller than me, I have to look up to talk as we dance. He really is gorgeous.

“Who did you bring to the ball?” I ask. “Won’t she mind you slow dancing with me?”

“The only person who might mind is Lucas and I don’t care about his opinion,” Declan smoothly replies. “I decided not to bring a date with me tonight. I had a few people dropping some heavy hints, including Ally and Taylor, but I wasn’t interested. Even though I knew you’d be here with Lucas, I wanted to be free to spend time with you if the opportunity came up and look at us now. Dancing like we haven’t got a care in the world.”

“I don’t know that I’d go that far…” I smile up at Declan, feeling all warm inside. My boys are all here on their own, and I didn’t have to cope with seeing them in someone else’s arms. It’s selfish of me when I am with Lucas, but I don’t care. I love all my boys and it will kill me when the time eventually came for them to move on and find someone else. Someone who didn’t come with my complications.

“Lucas seems to be having a good time.” Declan nods over to where Milly and Lucas were slow dancing together. “Him and Milly look good together.”

“They do, don’t they?” I rest my head on Declan’s shoulder as I watch my husband with Milly. He’s acting like the perfect gentleman he always is; one arm around Milly’s waist, their hands clasped, like they are ballroom dancing together. They seem deep in conversation. Knowing Lucas, he is likely pumping her for information about the Knights and sweet Milly is naïve enough to give it to him.

Declan runs his hand over my hair, kissing me gently on the top of my head. I close my eyes and lean into him more. I desperately want to leave with him, spend some quiet time together, but with my father here, not to mention all his guards, I have no choice but to stay at the dance until it’s time to go back to the Archaic mansion.

Before I even realise it, a tear is trickling down my cheek. I dash it away with the back of my hand, hoping it hasn’t ruined the beautiful makeup Nola had worked so hard on.

“Hey.” Declan put his hand under my chin, tilting my head to make me look at him. “It’s okay, Ivy. Everything’s going to be okay.”

He leans forward, kissing the tear away. Then he kisses the tip of my nose and I can’t hold myself back any longer. I stand on tiptoes and kiss him. Properly. In front of the whole room.

But I don’t care. I want to be with Declan. I want to be with Archer. I want to be with Romy. I want to be with all of them, men who aren’t beholden to my father and who saw me for me, not a pawn to be used to further their own ambitions.

“What the hell’s going on?”

Declan and I break apart as I feel someone grab my arm to pull me away.

“Lucas!” I gasp as I realise my husband has seen us and he is not happy.

“Hey, man. It’s okay.” Declan puts his arms out in a gesture of placation. “We weren’t doing anything.”

“Didn’t look like it to me,” snarls Lucas. “That’s my wife, you had no right to kiss her.”

“I’d say that was up to Ivy to decide, wouldn’t you?” Declan gazes at him coolly, daring him to do something. “It’s not like you weren’t having fun with someone else.”

“I was just dancing with Milly. I didn’t kiss her,” Lucas points out. “I would never kiss her.”

“And you can never kiss Ivy. A piece of paper isn’t going to make her fall for you. Sorry to break this to you, but her heart is taken,” he replies with a cold glare. “and we are not fucking giving her back.”

“How dare you!” Lucas pulls back a fist to punch Declan, but I get between them, yanking Lucas’s arm down.

“Stop it!” I look at Declan over my shoulder. “The pair of you. Let’s go to our private room to cool down, Lucas. It seems like we could all do with some time out.”

Lucas glares at Declan, who smirks back, but he allows himself to be guided off the dance floor and back to my father’s private room.

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