Chapter 35 Kinda Killer #2
Lucian studies me for a moment. “Captivated by you long before I was scared.”
A servant passes by with a tray of wine, but Lucian doesn’t move.
“Careful, Prince,” I say. “You’re not supposed to want someone like me.”
“Darling,” he says under his breath, “I don’t think there was ever a world where that wouldn’t happen.”
I stiffen. My heart slams against my ribs.
Darling.
Lucian, breathless and impulsive, says at once, “Dance with me.” A few heads turn in our direction as he lowers his voice. “Before I do something far less appropriate.”
I tip my head back, lips curving. “Like what?”
He offers me his hand as the orchestra swells louder behind him. “Use your imagination, Althenia.”
“It won’t be pretty,” I say as I slide my finger into his.
His breath brushes my cheek as he leans in, his fingers curling tight around mine. “Nothing I feel for you is.”
Lucian grabs my waist, guiding me to the middle of the room. The dance floor is empty, and he pulls me as close as he can with the multiple petticoats I wear. But the way his hands glide along my waist tells me he has no problem getting around them.
His hands rise along my sides, making my breath catch in a way that’s too obvious for our audience. He outlines my collarbone with one hand, draws a finger up my neck, and then returns to my lips.
My hand rises up his back. Gooseflesh covers his skin as I glide my fingers into his hair. We’re doing a simple waltz, but… it’s not that simple.
Lucian leans in closer—far more than he should in public.
“The next time I kiss you,” he murmurs, “I want to remember it.”
I can’t hide my small smirk. “Cocky of you to assume there’ll be a next time.”
He shrugs, his eyes dark. “I hope, desperately, that there is.”
I can’t believe we’re here again, so close to where we left things off last time. It’s almost like Mom was wrong—the circumstances don’t matter.
It’s almost like we could forget one another over and over again, yet we’d always end up intertwined.
But he doesn’t know that. Not yet.
I want him to know that.
I glance at his lips. He smirks. His eyes are mine, watching me watching him.
“You’re terrible at pretending like you don’t want me, Althenia.”
I meet his gaze. “I’m not going to be the one to give in.” I lean closer, pressing my chest to his—indecent in front of the crowd. “If you want it, show me how bad.”
Lucian’s eyes widen, darkening at the challenge. He lifts my hand above my head and moves suddenly. I spin, my dress billowing in the ballroom as he guides each step.
He stops just as abruptly, pulling me flush against his chest before dipping me back. His face hovers above mine, his lips a breath away. They curl.
“You flatter yourself too much,” he says. “I’m a prince. The pillar of self-control.”
I bring my hands to his chest, wrapping them around his neck and threading my fingers into his hair. “You sure look it,” I whisper with a smile. “Pull me up… or don’t.”
He sucks in a deep breath, his eyes on me.
His lips move closer.
I win.
Then, through the room, a shout rings, “Are you kidding me?”
Lucian pulls me upright, his hand around my waist. Alec stalks toward us. But Lucian doesn’t let me go.
“First he aligns himself with the Nepenthes!” Alec screams, his voice like a rallying cry.
I look over Lucian’s shoulder. The room has frozen; people stand around the tables at the back, nursing their glasses from a safe distance.
Alec twists, shouting, “Then he dances with the girl who tortured my sister, like he wants her in his bed.”
The violins falter, and the room falls suddenly quiet.
Lucian rests one hand on my lower back as he raises the other. “Now, now—”
“This is bullshit!” Alec cries, throwing his wine glass to the floor. A murmur ripples through the room.
Lucian clears his throat as shadows wisp between his fingers, swirling at his feet. They rise, gliding like smoke over Alec’s torso before settling at his neck. Lucian doesn’t use them—not yet. But he will.
The same way I would.
“Speak about Desdemona like that one more time,” Lucian whispers, a click in his jaw, “and I won’t be so inclined to diplomacy.”
“Yeah?” Alec steps closer, the shadows still slinking around him. “But one time is all right with you? How about I get everyone in the room to call your girl a bitch, but only once?”
Lucian moves toward him. I think he’s going to say something to calm the situation, but instead, his hands wrap around the collar of Alec’s shirt, shoving him across the room.
Alec pounces back quickly. He moves forward and punches Lucian in the face. I move forward as Lucian shifts, holding his jaw.
“Don’t touch him,” I say, voice low.
“Why? You gonna torture me like you tortured my sister?” Alec stalks closer. A couple of Folk from the sidelines walk toward him—probably his stupid friends.
I take a step back, my head down. Behind them, Lucian moves closer. “If you know what I did then surely you know this isn’t smart.”
Alec jumps for me, and Lucian holds him back, twisting Alec’s wrist tight.
There’s a snap. All of Alec’s friends jump on top of Lucian.
I pull at their shirts, scratching, trying not to use magic, but none of them budge.
Not until Lucian’s shadows slink toward the boys, wrapping around their throats.
It takes a few moments for the boys to move away, choking.
Lucian meets my gaze. I offer him a hand.
“Let’s get out of here,” he says.
I nod, pulling him up. But that’s when Hogan steps forward, standing between us. I imagine he will pretend to de-escalate the fight, but he turns to Alec.
Hands him a knife.
“For Belle,” he says.
Hogan meets my gaze.