Page 53 of Riftborne
I could still feel his eyes burning a hole through me.
“Happy to do it. I’ve grown tired of seeing the same styles and designs recycled over and over at these gatherings.”
“I should have known you had a personal stake in this.” A small laugh escaped my lips. I couldn’t help it.
The alcohol. The ridiculous dance. The absolute absurdity of me, Fia Riftborne, being at a ball for Esprithe sake. It was all too much to process.
He pointedly ignored my remark. “Her attention to detail is quite impressive.”
“Yes, it should be. That is her focus after all.”
“I picked up on that,” he murmured before dropping me into adramatic dip that sent my heart lurching. When he lifted me back up, our bodies collided, and a mixture of shock and fire raced through me. I was staring straight into his emerald eyes, our faces nearly touching.
“Laryk,” I gasped at the sudden movement, immediately regretting it. My cheeks flushed as his first name tumbled out of my mouth so easily, like we were friends or something. I wanted to crawl into a cave and die.
Damn cocktails.
He raised an eyebrow. “Careful, now.”
I felt his arms go rigid, but he brought his face even closer, brushing past my cheek and lingering near the lobe of my ear.
“Don’t let the Guard hear you call me that,” he whispered.
I nodded instinctively and tried to hide how breathless I felt. My head was spinning. I was going to crumble to the ground. His arms tightened around my waist as the song ended, almost as if he was hesitant to let go.
“We should probably get back to Osta and Mercer now.” I looked down, shuffling out of his grip.
As my body cooled from the absence of his touch, a thought drifted into my mind.
You’re still a mouse in a sea of serpents.
Just because he was playing nice tonight didn’t mean any of it was real…
But for some reason, it was harder to convince myself of the truth I’d clung to for my entire life. It had to be the alcohol. It was making me vulnerable, making me act like a fool. And that could lead to dangerous situations.
I repeated the thought, trying to make it stick.
“Dinner should be starting soon. We can gather the two of them and head to the banquet hall.” He cleared his throat and adjusted his collar before offering me his arm. He pulled me across the room in the direction of the bar.
Osta gave me several highly suspicious and unnervinglymischievous looks upon my return with Laryk, causing me to nudge her a bit too forcefully with my elbow. She let out a low snicker that only I could hear.
The four of us made our way up the staircase after reconnecting, and Osta took the opportunity to tell me about her conversations with the ladies of Nobility.
“All of them seemed receptive, really. Some of them were actively looking for an in-house seamstress. Which would be a great stepping stone to opening my own label one day.” She squeezed my hand tightly as the words tumbled out. “Lady Soleil and I really connected, I could tell. Bless Niamh, I am just so happy. I don’t know if I’ll be able to stop smiling tonight.” She shook her head and looked down, trying to contain herself.
“I’m so proud of you. You deserve this.” I squeezed her hand back and she squealed as we reached the top of the stairs.
“I just… I don’t know how to thank you for this.” Osta’s eyes found the floor. “You’ve managed to do for me in one night what I’ve been working towards nearly my entire life.”
A pang of guilt surfaced in my chest. Because as much as I wanted to be the one to help her, to save her from Thearna, this wasn’t my doing.
It was his.
Laryk had used his position and power to help a Riftborne. Something I would have never before thought possible.
He had killed one of his own…
“Fia, Osta, you’ll both be dining with the other members of my faction. I’ll show you to your seats.”
