Involuntarily, I glanced at Kent and caught myself just in time, lowering my gaze.
His arms were folded over his chest, his piercing dark eyes followed every move I made.
“I need to think about it.” I cleared my throat.
“Milady, I hope I can trust your discretion.”
“You shouldn’t worry. Your secret is safe with me.”
Instead of answering, Lord Rutterford took my hand and placed it to his lips, not taking his eyes off me, even for a moment.
When he moved away, it only took a minute before Lady Corliss took his spot.
“My dear child, I see you had some time chatting up with Lord Rutterford. Did he say something interesting?”
“Lord Rutterford complimented my dress.” I turned taking in her pleasant face with fine lines below her almost artificially still eyes.
“Is that so? Men usually pay little attention to trivial things like that. May I recommend Lord Edsel Adger as your dance partner?” She made a gesture and the young man immediately stepped closer.
I only had enough time to erase the annoyance off my face before the youngest son of Lord Adger took my hand. We barely spoke when he pulled me toward the dancing couples.
“Lady Alina, let me tell you how much your presence ... your grace...” he mumbled, wetting his lips and swallowing hard, “... is overfilling me with joy.”
“Thank you,” I said, looking anywhere but at the young man.
“Your beauty knows no limits.”
I stared at him confused.
“Every word you say is music to my ears.”
“Are you... Why do you want to marry?”
“Excuse me?”
“Well, I thought . . . You are very young.”
“I am only four years younger than you.”
Four years younger?That meant that he was sixteen years old.
“I am in line to get the position of councilor next year.”
“Councilor?”
This time I did a poor job concealing my disbelief, and the boy immediately turned his face.
“The Queen is old and sickly. She doesn’t come out much. The last time we saw her was the beginning of the spring celebrations. The councilors are the ones who have real power. In many ways, the council is more important than any descendant of the red dragon.” He stared at me without blinking.
Oh gods, I really irritated him.
“No doubt.”
We tried several more topics and ended up following the dancing routine in complete silence for the rest of the song.
"Thank you for this dance. It was a magical experience. One I will cherish until the end of time," Lord Edsel said, surprising me when he spoke.
"Likewise." I curtsied and looked away.
