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“What is he dressed as?” I hissed at Athena, who cupped her hand to her ear. I had to shout the question from close quarters, only to be disappointed by her palms-up gesture showing she had no clue.
A fae lady dressed in bronze wearing a mask shaped as a lion crashed into me, giggling wildly. I tried to sidestep her, but the white cat with a baby lion mask, yanked along on her leash brought me up short. Darling Hercules sent me a pointed complaint that none of this was in our original bargain. I sent him a rush of affection and gratitude, promising a grander role for him soon.
“Goliath,”he replied.
Heaven help me, I agreed on the spot.
Starling nearly put my eye out with one of the spiky mane things on her mask when she embraced me and shouted in my ear to follow her. Taking my hand, she dragged me through the spinning dancers, threading us through the tumultuous crowd with easy expertise. Starling in her element—who knew?
And then.
There he was.
I stopped, breath harsh in my throat, barely an arm’s length from where Rogue lounged against a wall, head turned away to watch the dancers. He wore all black, of course, but tight, molded to his long, lean body like a loving glove. When he turned to look my way, as if sensing my regard, a mask with the face of the Black Dog stared at me.
Only the eyes were cobalt blue instead of amber.
Did he recognize me? I couldn’t tell. His gaze dropped to my exposed cleavage, drifted down to survey the rest of me and rose again with easy lust. Those dianthus-edged lips curved in a sensuous smile that could have been for any woman. But the look floored me. Arousal flooded me, my nipples hardening and my vulva spiking with a sudden ache as the tender tissues surged turgid with blood. With it, came the magic.
Oh my Lord Rogue. He sure did it for me like no one else.
He held out an elegant long-fingered hand and I took it. Leading me onto the dance floor, he slipped a familiar arm around my waist and pulled me close, pressed tight against him so my nipples chafed against the dress as we danced.
And danced and danced.
Expertly, he waltzed me around the dance floor, the throb of the music matching the three-four beat of his heart, which thundered through me, a foghorn penetrating the night. I sent a brief, heartfelt thank-you to Fafnir, ironically enough, for teaching me the steps, then gave myself up to Rogue’s embrace.
He stared into my eyes through our masks, never looking away, even as we spun in circles. I was hot and wet just from this much, but now I knew to embrace it, pulling the magic to me with the sweet desire. He smiled, a half twist of the lips on the left side of his face, as if he could feel what I did, but otherwise…
Otherwise, there was no indication that he knew me at all.
Except the cord between us. The moment he touched me, it reeled in tight, gluing me to his arms. It felt like home, being with him again, and I confess that for a while I simply reveled in it.
Then it occurred to me that he held me with both hands, our bodies pressed together, in violation of our agreement. Just as with all the agreements he’d broken. I imagined those just added layers to Titania’s hold on him.
I reached out to find his thoughts and met a blank wall. No, not blank. A thick, ropy and oily barrier. The now-unmistakable stamp of Titania’s interference. I searched Rogue’s eyes, looking for some hint of the man I knew inside.
Nothing nothing nothing.
If he hadn’t given Starling that horseshoe ornament, I would have despaired in that moment.
“Rogue?” I had to say it loudly, over the hubbub, but he seemed not to hear me. I leaned up closer to put my mouth nearer his ear, but he turned his head and, like a snake striking, captured my mouth with his.
The kiss held all his usual devastating power, but with a certain remoteness. He never stopped carrying me through the steps of the dance, even as he plundered my mouth with a remote and ruthless lust he’d never—even in his darkest moments—shown me before.
I managed to wrench my lips away, but he held me still with that alien strength, smiling at my futile struggles to escape him.
Then he released me and I nearly stumbled. His renewed grip around my wrist steadied me. He turned and, dragging me along by the hand, pulled me through the teeming crowd and to foot of Titania’s throne.
With a little shove, he pushed me to the floor and swept a bow to Titania. “Look, my queen, I’ve brought you a present.”
Part V
Breakthrough
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Chapter 24
