Page 92 of Rise of a Fallen Man

How did he feel about me?

Salas had been my rock in a stormy sea from the moment we met. He’d been my steady, unshakable support to lean on both in my thoughts and in real life. I knew he cared about me. But love was such a new feeling to me. I barely recognized it in myself. How could I tell it in others?

Meanwhile, our time together ticked away with every note of the waltz. It’d end soon, and I hadn’t said anything to him yet. We twirled around the dance room, Salas following my lead with unexpected lightness and grace.

“You’re a pretty good dancer,” I blurted out.

“For a man my size, you mean?” he teased.

“I didn’t say that.”

“But you thought it, didn’t you?” He chuckled as I dropped my gaze. “You’d be right, though. With my size, I need to be exceptionally good at this. Imagine if I stepped on a woman’s foot. She’d probably be left with a limp for the rest of her life.”

Why was it so easy to talk to him about anything or nothing? I wished this dance would never end, and I feared it would end too soon. It was ending already.

“Salas, I...”

What could I say here, in the middle of the dance floor, surrounded by the court that was always hungry for gossip? What could I do if my obligations tied me more effectively than chains?

The last notes of the waltz died, leaving us in a momentary silence. Couples bowed to each other, parting. Yet Salas still held my hand.

“What bothers you, Princess?” he asked, acutely attuned to my moods, like always.

I couldn’t give him an honest answer. With only the two of us left on the dance floor now, all attention was on us.

“I never realized before how short the waltz was,” I said with a neutral smile.

He bowed, leaning forward and bringing my hand to his lips in an elegant gesture.

“Meet me at the old barracks when the ball is over,” he said so quietly; I stared at him to make sure I hadn’t imagined hearing it.

He gave me one of his warm, comforting smiles and walked away without waiting for me to lead him back to the gladiator group.

Meet me at the old barracks...

My heart leaped with a thrill at the chance to see him without the entire palace watching us.

But how could I do it?

An even more important question was—should I?

Not even the strongest emotions could change the course of our lives. In our case, love could only bring pain and heartache, and in Salas’s case, a threat to his freedom and possibly his life.

It was reckless of me to fall in love with him. It’d be heartless to drag him into it with me.

My love was mine to bear. Alone. And in silence.

Chapter 24

Salas

Itold her to meet me here because I wanted to see her, and I had a feeling she wanted to see me, too, without the attention of the court. The dance had been way too short. It took everything I had to let go of her when the music ended.

But would she show up?

I couldn’t answer that question with certainty.

Ari knew what she wanted to be, and she built her life accordingly. I loved that about her, her unwavering sense of direction and her faith in her purpose.

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