Mazin looked at me then, a question in his eyes. He opened his mouth to say something, but instead a commotion near the door had us both turning our heads to look at the entranceway.
A loud laugh cut through the din of the party, and the cruel edge to it coupled with the raucous shouting told me exactly who it was.
Darbaran.
The guest I had been waiting for.
“What is he doing here?” Mazin stiffened, his stare drilling into Darbaran, who stood near the door with friends he’d brought along with him.
“The captain?” I said, trying to hide my humor behind faux innocence. Mazin had always hated Darbaran, and for good reason. The roach had preyed on the women in the palace. But Sanaya didn’t know that. Let Mazin be my rescuer if I needed it.
“He helped me recently and I am so thankful for the additional security he provided after my home was robbed.” I smiled at Maz as he continued to stare at Darbaran with venom in his eyes. “You don’t like him?”
Mazin snapped his gaze to mine, his face smoothing over again. “Darbaran used to be at the palace. He was captain of the royal guard. He… isn’t my favorite person.” He studied me, as if deciding how much he could trust me.
Not at all,I almost told him. Instead, I gave him my most wide-eyed stare, hoping that I conveyed naïveté.
He licked his lips and my eyes went straight to his mouth.
“May I be discreet?”
“Pardon?” I looked up at him. “Oh, of course.” I cleared my throat. “Do you know something about Darbaran I do not? After Casildo I’m terrified about who to trust.”
“You can’t depend on Darbaran,” he said bluntly, his mouth thinning. “I can’t say much more, but please don’t entrust him with your safety.” He looked so concerned I nearly laughed. Darbaran wouldn’t be able to harm me if he were surrounded by a thousand city guards.
I leaned toward Mazin. “And who should I entrust it with, then? You?” I said the word softly, and it sat between us like an anchor.
For a moment we stared at each other. I couldn’t tell if I had pushed the issue too far. But then Mazin moved closer, until we were only a few inches apart.
“If you like.”
I released a breath, my heart beating as if I’d been in battle.
He’d wanted a swordfight, and this was no different, but instead of talwars, the weapons we used were words. Our bodies. This was a battle of intimacy, of landing the right strike, testing your opponent. If you rushed ahead, if you put the wrong foot forward, you could lose everything. But I was nothing if not good at waging war.
I wet my lips. “And what doyoulike?”
He let out a low chuckle that went straight to the pit of my stomach.
“I’d like you to be safe,” he answered softly. “You did save my sister, after all.”
“And that’s the only reason?” I arched a brow. “Because I saved your sister?”
His eyes grew dark, and I could feel the heat from his body like it was drawing me to him, I a moth and he the hot flame. He flexed his hands and I stared down at the long fingers, hands I knew as well as my own.
“I am concerned for your safety, Sanaya.”
“And nothing more?” I breathed, pushing as far as I dared. I had never flirted before and I was starting to think I might be quite good at it. Except for the fact that I currently needed to fan myself in my elaborate frock, so heavily beaded I wanted to peel it off my skin.
“Would you like there to be more?” he countered, a smile playing about his lips, but a dark heat in his eyes.
Oh yes. That’s exactly what I want.
I tried to ignore how thick my tongue felt, or the loud hammeringof my heart. I let out a steadying breath. I could not allow him to get the upper hand here, not again. I was in control of this.
I walked to a nearby alcove and Maz followed, walking behind me as if I were leading him on a string.
“I find myself intrigued by you, Mazin.” My voice was soft and he leaned forward to hear. I gave a slow curl of my lips and moved farther into the shrouded alcove. “You protect your sister fiercely, you are loyal to your emperor, and you are worried for my safety.” I raised a brow. “And yet you are aloof—holding yourself at a distance. I can’t read you as I would wish.” I pressed my hands to my side to quell the jitteriness of my nerves, ready to give the whole thing away. A part of me wished I was more sophisticated with men, that I had more experience manipulating and seducing.
