Page 104 of A City of Flames

“Confident, are we?”

“Always, Goldie.”

“If I win you won’t be anymore.”

“Well, if I lose, I take it with pride, unlike you.”

I glower at him then huff out a breath. “Four fours.”

“You know I’ve noticed something with you.” He cocks his head, pursing his lips. “Whenever you’re flustered, more of your freckles come out.”

I want to touch my skin, race to a mirror to check, but I don’t want to give him that satisfaction. My fingers grip the cup tightly as I say with force, “I’m not flustered.”

A shake of his head, smiling down at his hand. “You’re only proving me right, Goldie. Five fours.”

Solaris, it’s like he tries to do this on purpose.

Gus chuckles at that, and others murmur, clinking their mugs.

Exhaling sharply, I count my dices. He’s said five fours, while I have one, if I’m to call him out as a liar, he could have four fours, and my one will count as a five, making him win. Deciding to play on luck and a bit of fakeness, I let my eyes dart across the room as if on high nerves. “Six, sixes,” I say quietly, taking a gamble.

shifters now laugh at me for bidding so high, and Darius’s smirk darkens with a sense of sensuality to them. He leans forward. “Liar,” a velvety whisper that heats the back of my neck, up to my ears.

Keeping my eyes level with him, we both lift the cups revealing our dice. His show three sixes and two fours. Equaling the bid to six sixes with mine.

I’ve won.

For once, I’ve won.

shifters cheer incredulously, and the excitement that flurries through my veins is endless as Darius’s brows rise at the total of the dices. When he lifts his eyes at me, I’m smirking just like he was.

“What a foul mortal you are,” he croons.

I grin wickedly. “Only the best against a dragon pig.”

“I’d like a go with the mortal,” a young golden-haired male says, squeezing between others. He shoots me a wink, making me scrunch my nose. “Minus the question bet you made, I’d rather the nudity.”

Brave of him to go after I’d beaten Darius and how unfortunate for him to believe I’d undress over this game. With greedy eyes, his hand goes to the cup that Darius’s palm still lies over but—

“I’d advise against touching the cup,” Darius says with fierce lethality in his tone as he slowly glances up at him. “Cutler.”

Cutler gulps, nodding uncontrollably. “Right, sorry, Darius,” he mumbles causing me to stare wide-eyed as he retreats. Gus drags him by his neck and others away, muttering something about being idiotic.

I roll my eyes at that and force a smile at Darius. “You owe me five answers now.”

“Once you have the questions, you’ll get them, don’t worry, Goldie.”

Doubtful, his playful tone makes me believe otherwise, but as I go to glare, music swarms through the air, and I lean to the side as shifters join the center of the tavern. Some play on the flutes creating an upbeat tempo along with the gitterns and drums.

“What are they all doing?” I ask, and Darius swivels his head around.

“What does it look like, Goldie?”

I carry on staring as female shifters shake their gowns and stomp their feet on the ground.

Dancing, they’re dancing.

Darius gets up and extends his hand out to me, and I blanch.

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