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A quick glance around reveals couples positioned in a similar manner, though not nearly as close as we are. The ladies who watch us have their mouths parted in a scandalized O.
When I look back up at Remy, there is a smirk planted solidly on his lips. The same smirk I’ve seen a thousand times over. It’s a reminder of who he’s always been, even if I allowed myself to forget that in his rare earnest moments.
Part of me can’t help but feel natural in his arms, but the larger part wants to knee him in his manhood for wantonly flirting with a stranger.
As far as he knows, anyway.
“My stepmother chose it,” I respond. “Though, I must admit it is rather clever. Look how well we match — again,” I add, giving him a tight-lipped smile in return.
“That’s how I knew it was you. Should I tell you what I intend to wear tomorrow so you’ll be more prepared, or shall we leave it to fate?” His deep voice rumbles from his chest to mine, and it’s an effort to remember that I’m angry at him for lying just as much as I have.
Hypocrite that I am.
“Ah, yes. Let’s see what the fates have in store for us.” My tone is dry, and I remind myself that I’m supposed to be selling the idea of marriage to Lady Aika, or at least not deterring it.
The music swells, and Remy leads us in the Starlight Dance, a slow, intimate one that I am grateful for, considering my fragile footwear. He sweeps me across the dance floor, making me feel lighter than air and angrier than a rabid crow.
Get it together.
It’s a good thing I’m quick on my feet, or I suspect the shoes would have splintered already. I can hardly make a show of wooing the prince if I’m hobbling, though, and Mother never would have ruined her own plan that way.
She is nothing if not exacting, so it must be possible to keep these more or less intact.
“I’d like to get to know a little bit about you, considering our upcoming nuptials,” Remy says smoothly, gently spinning me away from him and pulling me back in, closer than before. If we had danced this close the first time, I would have figured out who he was sooner. The faint, familiar scent of his shaving oil would have given him away.
“What would you like to know?” I ask.
“What do you like to do for fun? We should get an idea of the kinds of... activities we’ll be enjoying together.” His words are laced with flirtation, and I would stomp on his foot if it wouldn’t hurt me far more than it did him.
Instead, I glance up at him through my thick, artificial lashes and pretend to swoon.
“I’m sure there are many things we could enjoy together once we’re married, Your Highness,” I say in a coy voice that makes me want to stab myself.
Remy’s mask shifts upward as he raises his brows at my suggestive tone.
“Indeed. And I am sure there will be plenty of time for that, but I was hoping to have a better understanding of your hobbies,” he says, clearing his throat.
I feign a blush, taking the excuse to giggle into his muscled chest. “Of course, my prince.”
“Do you like to paint?” he asks after the next spin.
I blink.Does he actually want to know this? Hesitantly, I give him the standard polite answer.
“I do, but I need more practice.” It’s technically true. I doneedmore practice. I just don’t care enough to get any.
He nods his head as if he is only barely listening, which leads me to wonder again why he asked.
“How about embroidery?” Is that amusement in his tone? Is he being boring on purpose? “Many of the ladies at court seem to be taken with needlework.”
Meticulously torturing a man with a sharp blade counts as needlework, right?
“Sometimes,” I allow. “There’s always so much to do during the day that I rarely seem to find the time.”
Instead of looking disinterested with my banal chatter like I expect him to, his features glint with interest, and I’m left feeling like I’ve missed out on the joke.
He opens his mouth to ask something else when the music pauses, signaling an end to our dance. He looks up sharply, like he wasn’t prepared for the song to be over.
Like he doesn’t want it to be, which makes one of us, because I need a moment to clear my head.
Or at least to fetch a couple of drinks.
