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I felt the eyes shift to me at the announcement, and I refused to stop staring at the wine glass in front of me. I put on my best face of indifference because Cassius hadn’t refused the idea. The woman was a stark contrast to me. Maybe she was what he wanted to settle down with. She was a Princess for fuck's sake.
“Lavtan, you know Cassius’s opinions on marriage,” the king said disapprovingly.
“I do not think Flora and I would make a good pair.” Cassius glared at Lavtan. “I have no desire to marry her.”
Flora’s scoff had my eyes shifting to her. A smile escaped me at his declaration. “Then why am I here, Cassius?” she ground out.
“I don’t know. I did not invite you, Flora.” Cassius sighed heavily before his eyes finally looked at me. “My guess is Lavtan invited you, just like he did last time.”
Flora was fuming as her pretty eyes glared daggers at her plate of food.
The man next to me had shifted closer to me at some point. His thigh pressed up against mine and I shifted so he wasn’t touching me anymore. I grabbed my wine and sipped it but paused when the man’s hand rested on my exposed knee. Immediately I shoved his hand off, but he grabbed me again and squeezed so hard I nearly cried out at the pain.
No one noticed what was happening because Lavtan was still talking about Flora and Cassius merging two Kingdoms without caring that Cassius said no. I reached below the table and yanked his hand away pulling his finger back so forcefully he had no choice but to remove his sweaty hand from me. I stood quickly, my chair making a foul noise on the floor that halted the conversations around me. I glanced down at the end of the table and noticed there was an open seat next to Cassius’s siblings.
“Thea?” the king questioned.
“I’m going to move to the end of the table,” I muttered softly.
“Nonsense. That’s where the children are seated,” he chuckled.
“Well, I would rather be in the company of children than be seated next to a pig who can’t keep his hands to himself.” I laced every word with venom as I glared at the man next to me.
“Caleel?” the king questioned. “Are you making Thea uncomfortable by touching her?” I glanced at Cassius, whose eyes now swirled with blackness. His dark tendrils of shadows slowly crept towards us.
“Does it matter?” Caleel scoffed. “Women who dress like that are hoping to catch the attention of a male like me.”
“Excuse me?” Cassius stood up and slammed his palm down on the table making everyone jump at the clanking of the dishes. "If you touch her again, I will cut off both of your hands and send them to your parents.” Caleel looked at Cassius and then back to me.
“Sorry, Cassius, I didn’t realize she was your whore.” Caleel smirked as he got up. Within a second Caleel had drawn his sword and had it pointed at Cassius’s throat across the table before Cassius could attack. The king stood up with his hands raised.
“Now, now let's not make any rash decisions,” the king pleaded.
Caleel smiled at Cassius like the smug prick he was. I stood there watching as Caleel pushed the sword harder into Cassius’s neck causing a droplet of blood to run down from the tip of the blade. Cassius stared at Caleel with his fists tightly at his sides. Flora was frazzled as she watched it unfold. Possessiveness unfurled in me when I saw Cassius bleed. A deep need to protect what was mine overtook me. Using my foot on the chair Caleel had scooted out I slid it so hard into the side of his legs that he lost his balance with the sword.
He caught himself on the table, but I was already moving behind him. Before he could stand up, I grabbed a fist full of his hair as he leaned on the table. I pulled his hair so hard that he was staring at the ceiling. My dagger pressed to his throat. He hadn’t dropped his sword and it still pointed towards Cassius. Cassius was watching me closely.
“Drop the sword,” I demanded. When he refused, I moved my dagger and slammed his face into the plates shattering them. The room was dead silent besides Caleel’s heavy breathing and small whimpers of pain. He dropped the sword as I yanked him up by his hair again. My blade pressed harder into his throat. My eyes shifted around the room to horrified looks. No one dared move or say a word to me.
“If you ever point a weapon at Cassius again, I will fill our dinner bowls with your blood and send only your head back to your Kingdom.” I hissed loudly. “Now apologize to him for cutting him.”
Cassius stood there watching me without moving a muscle.
“I’m sorry, Cassius.” He whimpered like the coward he was.
“Very good.” I mocked as my dagger spun in my fingers before stabbing his hand to the table. His pained sobs echoed in the dining hall. “That’s for thinking you can touch something that doesn’t belong to you.”
I grabbed my dagger and yanked it from his hand before wiping his blood on the shoulder of the nice jacket he wore. Stepping forward caused my leg to fall out of the slit of my dress and I put the dagger back into its place. Cassius’s eyes stared openly at my exposed leg. Any gold that had been present in his eyes was gone.
“Caleel and Flora, your time visiting is over. You are not welcome back,” the king hissed. “I should have your head for daring to hurt my son.”
They scuttled away out of the room, and I held my head high as I glanced around. Haden was smiling brightly at me like that was great entertainment. My eyes shifted to Cassius who stood angrily by the table. The dark tendrils of shadows swirled around him. No one said anything. His eyes glanced over me before turning and walking out of the room. I followed him without thinking. He must have heard me because he stopped dead in his tracks but didn’t turn towards me.
“Cassius…” My words were cut off.
“Do not follow me,” he demanded. “It’s you I am trying to escape from.”
I hated that I didn’t know if his warning was malicious or not. He likely hated me after everything I said to him, and I couldn’t blame him. Not after I had seen us in a new light with the memories plaguing me. Maybe I should apologize, but my throat caught any words that might have escaped. He was deathly still like he was listening for me to leave or try to come to him.
