When the Heart Falls(132)

There's no thought, no planning. I just lunge forward and yank his hat back from the guy, who looks at me in surprise before disappearing into a swarm of people.

It happens in the blink of an eye, and I stand, holding Cade's hat, my heart pumping fast, the adrenaline rushing through me.

Cade looks at me and then at his hat. "That… that was amazing. You were lightning fast. Where did you get those reflexes?"

I shrug, as shocked as he is, and hold out his hat. "Here."

He reaches for it, then stops. "You know what? Why don't you wear it?"

"Really?" He's never let me wear it before.

"Yeah."

My heart pitter-patters. "Really?"

"Come on now, before I change my mind."

Giggling, I put the hat over my tiara, not caring that it completely clashes with my costume. "How do I look?"

"Beautiful." He tilts the hat on my head and lets his hand fall to caress my face. "But then, you're always beautiful."



The auditorium is packed when we arrive at the party, with every imaginable costume represented, from the super scandalous to the outrageous. Animals, historical characters, book characters, sexy vampires and pirates all mingling, drinking, laughing and dancing.

There's a live band playing music that I don't recognize, but they're pretty good, the music a blend of modern rock and punk. At the end of a set, the lead singer speaks to the crowd in French. "We've got a special guest performer. Let's give him a hand." A tall man in a black suit takes the stand and says "Thank you," in English, then sings a slow song that I do recognize.

Cade offers me his hand for the third time since we met. "May I have this dance, my Queen?"

I attempt an awkward curtsey in my dress. "Yes, my King."

We sway to the music, one of his hands on my waist, the other gripping mine. I think back to our first dance, how I imagined being a princess at a ball, and now I'm here, dressed like a queen, dancing with… I look at his super sexy cowboy outfit and have a hard time imagining him in a King's royal robe, but still, he's my King for the night, if nothing more.

As the song crescendos, the distance between us lessens until our bodies are pressed together, moving in rhythm with each other. I move his hat from my head to his so I can lean in closer. With the heels I'm wearing, I'm tall enough to rest my head against his shoulder, his bare skin hot and inviting as my lips brush against him. In his tight jeans, his response is hard to hide, and I push my hips against him, enjoying the feel of his arousal and wishing we weren't in public.

The dancing lasts for hours. Slow dancing and fast dancing, touching and barely kissing, like the world's most torturous foreplay without the promise of, well, the actual play. The balls of my feet might have to be surgically removed tomorrow, the pain in them intense, but I ignore it and focus on other sensations. On Cade. Cade and I.

Le sigh.

When the band takes a break, so do we, and I have to confess my feet could use a rest.

"I need a drink," Cade says, still holding my hand. "Want one?"

I don't realize how thirsty I am until he asks. "Yes, please."

I find a seat at a table and scan the room for Jenifer, massaging my tortured feet. She's dancing with a guy in a crow mask, grinding against him the way I'd wanted to grind against Cade, had we been alone.

Still, I worry about her and her choices. When she sees me she smiles and drags the guy over to me. "Winter, remember Duke?"

I hold out my hand to shake his. "Of course. Nice costume."

Duke doesn't shake my hand. Instead, he kneels down and kisses one of the rings that came with my dress.

Looking over his head, I mouth "Impressive," to Jenifer, who smiles and gives me two thumbs up. She looks happy, and I hope she really is.

Duke leans back up. "Thank you, my Queen. It's good to see you again. Jeni never stops talking about you."

"She doesn't?" I didn't realize they spent so much time talking. Oh, bad Winter. I need to be more gracious with my thoughts. At least she's trying.

"Never," Duke says. "But she says good things. Thank you for taking care of my Jeni."

His Jeni? Something about his possessiveness triggers warning bells in me, but I can't say why, or how it's different than me calling Cade My Cade, or Cade referring to me as his. "You're welcome. Now go my subjects. Go entertain yourselves."

"You want to get drinks with us?" Jenifer asks.

My throat is parched, and I don't see Cade anywhere. Maybe he had issues in the bathroom. "Sure. I just need to keep an eye out for Cade."

When we get to the bar, Duke orders for us. "Two shots of rum. Winter, do you—"

"She doesn't drink alcohol," Jenifer says, interrupting him.. Her eyes shift to me. "And I'm proud of her for it."

"Soda, please." I push myself onto my tiptoes, despite the burning pain, and look around the room trying to spot Cade's hat.

Where the heck is he?

The lead singer of the band returns to the stage with another announcement, this time speaking in English. "We have a guest performer, ladies and gentlemen. He's wrangled wild horses into submission and ridden bulls bent on killing him. Welcome, the Texas Ranger, the Cowboy from the West, the one, the only, Cade Savage."