Page 65 of Broken Prince

Luca sighed, tightening his mask around his face. “Okay, time to put your mask on. Just a few rules.”

I frowned as I put on my mask. “Rules?” I thought we were here to have fun; rules didn’t predict anything fun…or anything safe. “Is it…dangerous?”

I could not see his face anymore but he pursed his lips as his shoulders tensed. “No, you are safe with me, always.”

The certainty in his voice made me relax and even without these words, I’d felt it with him after our rocky start. Luca Montanari made me feel safe.

“I feel safe with you,” I admitted. I was not sure if it was the masks or what, but it was easier to say things when we were hiding like that.

His eyes heated up as he studied me. “Stay beside me all evening, okay?”

I nodded.

“If anyone asks you to dance, you refuse,” he added seriously.

“But I'd love to dance.”

“And that’s why I’m here.”

Somehow I couldn’t picture him as the dancing type, my broken, angry man… I kept forgetting he had a life before all this and based on the little things I found online, it was quite a busy one.

“Sure, I will stay with you.”

Luca got out of the car and extended his hand to help me out. As soon as I stepped out, he grabbed my hand and intertwined our fingers, sending a flash of electricity up my arm and down my spine.

Was this a normal thing? I never felt anything like that with any man before. I suspected it was just a Luca thing.

We walked up the few stairs to the house and just stepping into the hall felt like stepping into another world. It felt like stepping in some kind of palazzo with the high ceilings, white marble, and gold undertone. Everything was overly luxurious.

Luca stopped us in front of a security desk and extended his card.

“Mr. Benetti, welcome to the party.”

I threw Luca a side-look as he bowed his head. What was up with the fake name?

He turned around and we walked into a huge ballroom that looked more like some kind of carnival than anything else.

The party was already in full swing; Luca had made us late on purpose. There were women dressed as birds in high golden cages, jesters on the side, and a man dressed as a king sitting on a golden throne at the end of the room.

“This is…”

“Ostentatious? Vulgar? Ridiculous? Narcissistic?”

I chuckled. “I was about to say unbelievable.”

“Yeah…that too.” His hand tightened on mine and I looked up before following his eyes to a group of three men sporting some weird cross-neck tattoos.

“Do you want to dance?”

I nodded once as he took me to the dance floor and made me swirl.

I gasped, grabbing his big shoulders as we swayed to the rhythm of the music. I didn’t expect him to dance so well, being so big and wide, and yet, he was Luca Montanari… I suspected there wasn’t much the man couldn’t do if he put his mind to it.

The more we danced, the closer he held me, I could feel his heartbeat against my chest.

“I like you, Luca Montanari,” I whispered despite myself and his pace faltered ever so slightly, the only sign that he heard me.

When the song ended he grabbed my hand again. “Do you want to see something cool?”

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