Page 95 of To No End

Trace pulled me in close to him, and as the string quartet echoed the next waltz, he began to quickly shuffle us farther out onto the dance floor, and farther from Nix so he would not be able to hear us. I knew Gia could handle him, but I would eventually have to come back to her aid. Trace moved us through each of the steps, practically carrying me along the way as my mind raced with possibilities.

All I could utter was, “I’m…I’m so sorry. I messed up, didn’t I?”

Trace squeezed my hand to reassure me.

“The dress didn’t help, but even I know that your beauty goes beyond some feathers and frills. Who wouldn’t want you?”

Trace continued to twirl us through the countless number of people on the dance floor. I found no relief in his compliment.

“What do we do now?” I said, worried.

He leaned into me, speaking very calmly, “Stick to the plan. Now we know exactly who he wants. Gia needs to shift to look like you, but that means you can’t risk being seen near one another again. Find a way to stay far apart, and she can handle him.”

I breathed a small sigh of relief and relaxed minutely in his embrace. The music seemed hollow and drowned out as a world of golds and yellows spun in swirls all around us. The dancing lessons had paid off.

“Varro and Nori are in place to handle the nanny and children. Cairis has moved to the upper level to prepare for watch duties. The plan is still good, Cress.”

When the song came to an end, he held my hand out as he pulled away and acknowledged me with a bow. Then he lifted my fingers to his lips and kissed them—while staring directly back at Nix.

“What are you doing?” I chastised.

“Making sure he wants you. Males are jealous creatures, and they especially don’t like others touching what is theirs.” He nodded and then stepped away.

I watched him go, and that’s when I noticed he was donning all black. The usual. But there wasn’t a hint of his tattoos anywhere. He had glamoured them completely out of sight to keep his true identity well-hidden. Each of us were focused on mental shields and small glamours. With all the training, it didn’t require too much energy or focus to keep it up for a while. Gia was the one who needed the real endurance to pull this off.

I turned on my heel and began to make my way back to her. I had to find a way to convey that the plan was still intact. When I arrived back at her side, she smiled cheerfully, sipping her champagne, and Nix handed me mine. I was grateful for a drink to calm the nerves and cool me down, but Saryn’s words echoed in my mind: “Be careful of ingesting anything handed to you.”

Since Gia didn’t adhere to the rule and hadn’t dropped dead from poison, I figured it was safe and lifted the glass to my lips. Suddenly, I felt Nix’s warm hand resting on my lower back.

“You’re quite the dancer, Astrid. I had hoped to be the first in line, but I guess we’ll consider the fellow in black a warm-up.”

I let out a small fake laugh and nodded at him sweetly, realizing I would need to play along with this seduction for the time being. I lifted two fingers to my head and pressed them against my temple just for a second before bringing my hand back down to my side. To most this looked like I was developing a headache, but Gia would recognize the signal. It meant that I was going to briefly let down my mental shields and give her access to my mind.

I conveyed through my thoughts the instruction Trace had given me and as soon as I saw her deliver the return signal my shields were back up. Nix grabbed my hand and I passed my empty glass back to Gia.

“You two enjoy yourselves. Astrid, meet me at the ladies’ room afterward.”

Nix was smooth and charismatic. He danced even better than Varro, but the feel of his hot breath on my neck and the way his hand wandered too low made me feel sick to my stomach. I did not envy Gia. Her role as the bait was not a pleasant one, and I would gladly give it back.

I tried to focus on the fact that he was handsome and took comfort in the blade adhered to my inner thigh. I ran my fingers along his velvety jacket, noting the rich merlot color.

His dark brown facial hair was trimmed neat and short. His deep brown eyes weren’t anything special, but they matched perfectly with his slicked back hair. He smelled of foreign cologne. Not a natural scent, like Trace. I leaned into him, letting his body press against mine, knowing that this would be exactly what Gia would do.

Trying to muster more confidence, I snaked my fingers behind his head and ran my fingers through the hair at the nape of his neck. I could feel him stiffen in delight, but this was all just a game to me. A means to lower his defenses.

With him focused on dancing and the feel of our bodies now closer than ever, his mind was an open window for me to peer into. There I found lustful thoughts, but they were not sweet or kind. This host who was charming on the outside was anything but in that imagination of his. Whether it was myself or Gia, we could not let him be alone with us or in control. Shivers went down my spine at the thought. He felt the goosebumps on my skin under his hand.

“Do I make you nervous, little bird?”

The nickname sounded gross coming from him, especially after I’d seen thoughts of just how he wanted to treat this little bird. It was clear he liked his females innocent, pliable, and willing. Everything I wanted to say back to him was the opposite of that. I had to stay focused. Be what he wanted. Do what Gia would do.

I leaned into his ear and whispered back sweetly, “No, but I am a bit chilled. Will you keep me warm?”

I pressed my peaking nipples into his chest, letting him feel me. That got his attention. As the song came to an end, he twirled me one last time and ended with me in a dip. When he pulled me back up to meet him, I remembered where Gia had said to meet her.

That’s when we heard the chiming of the bells. We knew this meant that guests needed to transition to the terrace if they wanted to see the Canary Veil.

“Come, Astrid, let us see if the sky truly is canary yellow.”

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