Chapter 22
Chapter Twenty-Two
W hen Max said we’d see Kingston later, he meant for a good ol’ fashioned Camelot Court party.
Max revealed the party theme with a smile on his face. While laughing . No scowl, no rage, no nothing to compare to the guy who’d refused to dance with me because it might lead to cutting off his leg.
So. Fucking. Dramatic.
If Kingston measured his success as King by only one thing, that needed to be it. Because Max Dread, hater of all things Camelot Court? The recluse, the villain, the asshole?
He was actually enjoying himself.
We looked absolutely ridiculous, and that was a large part of why, but it didn’t matter.
Old songs from the nineties, ones my father had loved singing along to on the radio, blasted through the sound system inside the parlor.
I let myself get swept up in the fun of it all, too.
Hands above my head, hips rolling in time with the music, I danced mostly with Izzy. I’d dragged her on the dance floor after everything at the thrift store, refusing to let the possibility of what-ifs keep us from enjoying our time while we had it.
It wasn’t over until it was over, and for now, we were fine.
We were better than fine, because Izzy was an excellent dance partner, and she had a few of my favorite old-school dance moves hiding in her repertoire.
Our hair—well, that was what it was.
But our outfits were fabulous.
Izzy looked like Britney Spears in her white pants and bright pink crop top. I embodied Cher from Clueless in a red dress with a white feather boa. I looped it around both of us as we danced, laughing more than I’d expected I would.
One by one, the rest of the Ladies threw in the towel and joined us on the dance floor.
By the time Kingston arrived, everyone was in a good mood.
And it only got better.
Izzy squealed in surprise as the rest of the Knights walked through the doors, joining us for the occasion.
I spotted Landon and swiveled my hips to show him what he’d been missing.
His answering smile weakened my knees.
He wasted no time joining me on the dance floor, and he finally showed me more of those dance moves he’d mentioned at the first party.
Skin slick with sweat, we writhed in the sea of couples while I locked eyes with Max across the dance floor. I wanted a repeat of the first dance in more ways than one. Only, this time, I wanted to be sandwiched between my two Knights.
And Landon knew it. “They might not be able to join us. It might draw suspicion, but Kingston planned ahead if you want to see him.”
I scanned the party and spotted Kingston dancing with one of the other Ladies. Unexpectedly, jealousy flooded my emotions, clearing away everything else. A low growl under my breath gave away the hint of possessiveness that rose at the sight of him with Morgan.
Even though I was pretty sure I didn’t have anything to worry about with her.
It was him that bothered me.
Dancing with other girls right in front of me after what had happened? It seemed like a boneheaded move for someone usually so intentional. And it was the opposite of how to get the desired response from me.
“Oh yeah.” I snorted. “It looks like he’s waiting with bated breath just for me.”
“Quinn—”
“It’s fine.” I pulled away from him and jerked my chin toward the exit. A quick glance assured me no one would overhear me, but I dropped my voice anyway. “Bathroom. I need my inhaler.”
I didn’t wait to see if he followed me, but I wasn’t surprised to find him waiting outside the bathroom for me once I’d finished. And washed my hands about three times.
Which was totally normal because hand hygiene after using the bathroom was important.
It only got pushed aside if a broody Knight barged in unexpectedly, and that was one time.
Grumbling to myself, I shook my head at Landon’s attempt to explain. “I don’t want to talk about it. Not right now. I just…want to dance.”
His sympathetic smile, while meant to make me feel better, only drove home my stubbornness. But since arguing with me to see reason once I’d dug my heels in hadn’t worked out for him in the past, he let it go. He offered to grab us drinks while I waited.
And Max swooped in to capitalize on his absence.
“You owe me.”
Laughing at that idea and his surly demeanor, I arched a brow. “Excuse me?”
“Let’s go.”
My eyebrows shot to the roof as I stared at his offered hand. “No way…You’re serious?”
“Yep. Requested a song that’s not on the approved playlist and bribed the pledge to play it next.” He couldn’t keep the satisfied smirk off his face, but schooled his features when he realized it. “Don’t give me a chance to change my mind.”
I took his hand, glancing around the room once. But no one was paying attention to us.
For a minute, as Max led me onto the dance floor while no one in the room batted an eyelash, I swore I’d entered some kind of twilight zone.
He spun me around under his arm before he grabbed my waist, draping my hand on his shoulder.
I gripped his bicep with the other. With my mouth still hanging open, I waited for an explanation.
He didn’t offer one, so I pinned my stare on him. “You said you couldn’t dance at these parties. I believe limbs were actually threatened.”
“I said I don’t dance . I never said I couldn’t.”
Staring down at me, heat built in his onyx gaze. Even though he held me away from him like it was our first high school dance.
I smiled up at him. “But…won’t people get suspicious?”
“Nah. I took a page out of Kingston’s book.” He huffed, like admitting that had taken genuine effort. “Figured I owed him one after he let me be the escort today.” Shaking his head, he chuckled at the memory. “Fucking priceless.”
I rolled my eyes. “Following someone’s good example isn’t paying them back. But I still don’t know what you mean.”
His brow furrowed. “He didn’t tell you?”
When I glared at him, Max grimaced. “Right. Sorry. But this is a good secret, so I figured he’d shared it.”
“Nope. Still in the dark.” I raised my eyebrows pointedly, waiting for him to clue me in.
He sighed. “ This counts as paying him back, then. Kingston brought back the tradition of asking all the Maidens for dances at the first two parties.”
“Yes, a misogynistic tradition I’m well aware of, but?—”
“He danced with all of them so he could dance with you without suspicion, Princess.”
My breathing hitched.
“Sorry. Like I said, I thought you knew.”
I shook my head because even though I’d had the information from Izzy, I hadn’t put it together. It had seemed simple at the time. Another Camelot Court by-law meant to get the Ladies to submit to their King .
I hadn’t wanted to see the truth because, with how angry I’d been, making it black and white had been easier.
But the truth was rarely black and white, more often existing in shades of gray.
It came down to what was known at the time.
Perspective.
And it looked different in the light than it had when I was in the dark. Like everything else Kingston had shown me about his heart.
Max tipped my chin up, his mouth twisting into a frown as he tried to figure out how to make it better.
But he’d already done the only thing he could do to help. Reminding me why I wanted answers. Bridging his own divide to give me information that helped me with Kingston. And being here, suffering through all the dances he’d had to dance, so he could share this one with me.
I applied the same outlook to our moment as I had with Izzy, and focused on enjoying the time we had together.
Laughing our way through them, Max and I shared not one but two dances. First, with him exaggerating the distance between us, as if a snooty chaperone circled our bodies. On the lookout for wandering hands.
We behaved. Barely.
Then, the music changed to a perfectly named song, even if it was out of place for the party theme. “ I Don’t Dance …” I smiled. “How fitting.”
He twirled me, so quickly I didn’t see it coming, and he pulled me in close. Sliding his palm to my lower back, he pressed in as he rocked our bodies. With his eyes locked on mine, the rest of the room faded away, and the only thing that existed was his voice, singing along with the song.
Bringing back memories and feelings I hadn’t felt so powerfully in over a year.
An emotion so big it threatened to burst through my heart swelled inside me, and I didn’t care who was watching. I didn’t care about all the reasons I shouldn’t. I rested my head against his chest and closed my eyes, letting him sing and sway us to the music.
Some things were simple.
Some truths were black and white.
And whatever happened—whatever came next—in Max Dread’s arms, I felt safe .
His voice rumbled softly in my ear. “You’ve got me in the palm of your hand…”
I met his gaze, nodding as emotion lodged in my throat. “You’ve got me, too. You know that, right?”
“Yeah, baby.” He spun me once and brought me back to wrap me in his arms. “I got you.”