Protect the Prince (Crown of Shards #2)(98)

Dominic smiled. “I should have said this before, but you look absolutely stunning, Everleigh.”

“And you look very handsome yourself.”

He stared at me as we swayed from side to side. “You seem a bit distracted. What are you thinking about?”

I couldn’t tell him that I’d been scanning the crowd for Mortan assassins, so I shrugged. “Nothing in particular.”

The corner of his lips curved up into a small, crooked grin that was so much like Sullivan’s that it made my chest ache. “Ah, you just broke my heart. I was hoping you were thinking about me and how well we move together.”

“Of course,” I murmured. “You are a lovely dancer.”

That wry smile curved his lips again. “Just not the man you want to be dancing with.”

I didn’t see the point in lying. “No.”

Dominic nodded. “I can’t say that I’ve ever been truly jealous of Lucas before, but I feel a faint twinge of it when it comes to you.”

I raised my eyebrows. “Only a faint twinge?”

He shrugged. “There’s no use being jealous when you know that something is forever beyond your reach, and you are definitely beyond my reach, thanks to Lucas.”

His voice was light and flirty, but his gaze flicked to the right and locked onto Rhea, who was talking with a handsome nobleman.

“Just like Rhea is forever beyond your reach?” I asked.

He shrugged again, but I could smell his ashy heartbreak.

“It doesn’t have to be that way. You are the crown prince of Andvari. You should marry whomever you want. And if the nobles don’t like it, then tell them to fuck off and go haunt someone else’s court.” I paused. “As long as it’s not mine.”

He chuckled, thinking that I was joking. “My current fiancée might take a bit of umbrage at that.”

“I’m not going to marry you, Dominic. I was never going to marry you.”

Surprise flashed in his eyes, and he finally realized that I was serious. His steps slowed, and he stopped dancing, right there in the middle of the floor.

“What do you mean, you were never going to marry me?” Dominic asked, his voice growing sharper and more suspicious with every word. “What game are you playing, Everleigh?”

I hadn’t meant to say so much, but I couldn’t take my words back. Even more than that, I didn’t want to take them back. I was tired of lying to everyone, especially Sullivan. Besides, if Helene and the Mortans didn’t strike during the ball, then I would have to confess my scheme. Dominic deserved to hear the truth from me, especially since he and Rhea were also suffering because of my lies.

I opened my mouth to tell him everything when a familiar voice cut me off.

“May I have this dance?”

Sullivan stepped up beside his brother. Like Heinrich and Dominic, Sullivan was dressed in a short, formal gray jacket, but he was easily the most handsome of the three men. His dark brown hair gleamed under the lights, and his eyes were as bright and blue as I’d ever seen them. But even more than that, there was an intensity to him, a fierceness that whispered that he wouldn’t be denied what he wanted tonight, and I couldn’t help the hope that flooded my heart that he still wanted me.

Our gazes met and held, and Sullivan studied me from head to toe, heat sparking in his eyes.

“You look exquisite tonight, highness.” His low, husky voice slid across my skin and made something hot and hard coil deep inside me.

“So do you, Sully,” I murmured. “So do you.”

All around us, people kept dancing, although whispers rippled through the crowd. Sullivan asking his brother for a dance with me, his newly announced fiancée, had already set the nobles’ tongues wagging.

Dominic glanced back and forth between the two of us, then leaned down and kissed my cheek. “Like I said before, there’s no use being jealous when you’ve already lost,” he murmured in my ear.

I looked at him. “Then you should go get the woman you truly want.”

Dominic stared at me a moment longer. Then he winked, drew back, and bowed to his brother. “She’s all yours, Lucas.”

Dominic winked at me again, then headed straight for Rhea. He didn’t notice Halvar trailing along behind him. Since Dominic was safe for now, I turned back to Sullivan and held out my hand.

“Shall we?” I asked in a low voice.

He stepped forward and curled one hand around my waist, even as he took my hand in his. The heat from his fingers scorched my own. “Yes, we shall.”

The music ramped up to a fast, lively reel, and we fell into the steps. We didn’t speak during the dance. I didn’t want to talk to Sullivan. No, right now, I simply wanted to soak up every little thing about him and pretend like this was our engagement party and that we could really be together, instead of the fact that I’d probably torn us apart forever with my lies.

The bright, sharp glitter of his blue eyes. The strong, warm feel of his hand in mine. The bunch and flex of his shoulder under my fingertips. His cold vanilla scent sinking deep down into my lungs. I concentrated on all that and more, so much more, until my heart was hammering in my chest even faster than the music was playing.

Eventually, the reel slowed down into a more traditional waltz, and Sullivan and I stepped even closer together, staring into each other’s eyes. The rest of the throne room fell away, and all I could see, hear, feel, and smell was him holding me close.