Page 343 of A University of Betrayal

The thought sharpened my awareness of reality, but only a little, because Miles wasn’t done yet.

“To be theperfect daughter.”

His expression had become more serious. So serious, as if he was trying to warn me about something. And I couldn’t tear myself away from his gaze.

This time, Miles had me in the palm of his hand. Whatever he was up to, my attention was his.I was his, for the moment. But he would never know that.

Arcade (feat. FLETCHER)

Duncan Laurence, FLETCHER

The slow music forced us to dance closer. Or was it him?Was heforcing me to come closer, pressing his hand even harder against my body as if he wanted me?

My heart leapt, sending a wave of unfamiliar tingling through my entire body, followed by pulsing warmth.

I felt his hand slide down further, so slowly that the goosebumps that spread over my entire body caused a renewed rush of heat in my chest. I had given up trying to fight the fluttering in my stomach. Unfortunately, he was a handsome man who touched my body like no one else had done before.

He probably didn’t even realize what he was doing to me, especially when he pulled me even closer to him, sealing the tiny gap between us.

“Your life would be a lot easier if you didn’t always listen to your father.”

Fogged by his words and the unfamiliar body language, by the whole dance, the words hit me with unexpected intensity and like a sharp sword.

“Our fathers seem to have one thing in common.” He laughed softly, and it really looked good on him. “They both have an image of us in their heads that they would like to turn into reality.” He slid his other arm down to my waist as well, forcing me to rest both my arms on his shoulders as he swayed me back and forth to the softening violin melody, slowly spinning us across the hall.

He seemed focused on me, as if the others really weren’t there. And everything else slipped into the background for me too.

“My father is still trying,” he finally said in an even quieter voice.

It sounded like he didn’t want to talk about it. And yet he did.With me.With his rival.

“Do you know what he is missing?”

He laughed again, but this time it was different. It seemed dismissive.

I shook my head, curious to hear what he would say. I hung on his lips,hungryfor answers and information about him, his past. A dark strand of hair slipped into his face, reminding me how close I was to him.

“My will.”

He said it almost silently, so I had to focus on his lips to make sure what he just said really came out of his mouth.

I was shocked.

He was obviously comparing himself to me. And whatever was going on between him and his father... he was relating it to me, comparingmetohim,myfather tohis.

I still didn’t know what to say. He had just opened a tiny little crack of an unknown door for me and I couldn’t handle it. I hadn’t even expected it. How was I supposed to react? All he had just accused me of was wanting to please my father and submitting to him.

Except that was how I had grown up and as a member of the pack, that was my goddamn duty. Obviously, Miles had forgotten that my father was also myAlpha.

When I realized my eyes were still glued to his lips, I looked up at him with hot cheeks and caught his eyes glued to my slightly open mouth.

We weren’t dancing anymore. Miles had stopped dancing.

“Wedecide how far we allow them to break us, if we let them turn us into what we are not supposed to be. And sometimes it takes us longer to realize that they’re playing with us, that we’re not as important to them as we thought we were. And then we disappoint them. Again, and again. Until the disappointment becomes a routine for them, and they only use you to tell you what you could have been...”

He stopped talking abruptly. The serious look had given way to a confused, almost hurt expression. Then he broke eye contact.

I had fallen silent inside.

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