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“How did you know?”
“As surprising as this may be, given the company I keep, I’m not a huge fan of arrogant, rude nobles.”
“As rude as you were to Lucien Finn, I’ve never seen any of you be rude to a servant,” I assured him. “Well, except for me.”
He still seemed displeased.
I went on, “Larena was being nasty, telling me everyone thought Danen only saw me as a daughter before he had Hanna. And then you stepped up and asked her name, and she said you’d met before, and you said that this time, you’d remember it.”
“And now I really will remember her name,” he muttered to himself. “I’d forgotten her when I forgot you.”
Every time he saidforgot you,it was a knife to my heart. I forged on anyway. “And then you made me dance with you.”
He scoffed.“Madeyou? You weren’t willing?”
“I knew it was a bad idea to dance with dragon royals,” I chided.
“Psh.” He held out a hand to me, and of course I put my hand in his and let him pull me close. He started to move us across the dance floor, his steps so sure that I let go and followed his lead. His hand felt hot against my waist.
He bowed his head, his lips close to my ear, and a shiver of desire ran through my body. “What happened next?”
“The dance stopped.” I pulled away, reluctantly. “I realized everyone was looking at us, and you said no, everyone was looking atme.That I was the spectacle, the maid dancing with the royal.”
“I said that?” His brows rose. “What a dick. Maybe I should be glad I don’t remember it; that would definitely haunt me.”
“It’s alright,” I said.
“No.” He shook his head. “It isn’t, Honor. Did I apologize back then?”
“Not in so many words…”
He groaned.
“But after the dance, I fled to the library. I was reading under one of the tables—I know it’s weird…”
“It’s a little weird,” he said, shaking off his embarrassment to smile at me. “But Lynx used to do that all the time as a kid, so it’s not that weird. Or rather, the two of you are weird in the same ways.”
The memory of one afternoon spent reading under the table with a freckle-faced, golden-haired boy rose up swiftly as a ghost. I’d known Lynx long ago, when Danen brought me here. I saved that to my mental notes to bring up with Lynx; did he remember too?
“I’m sorry,” Talisyn said, holding my hand. “I am sorry for every time I hurt you, purposefully or accidentally.”
“All this isn’t your fault, Tal.”
“That doesn’t make it any easier.” There was a glimmer of pain in his eyes, as if he regretted hurting me.
“Should we go to the library?” I asked.
“We tried bringing that memory back before, and it just made you sad,” he said quietly.
“I don’t mind,” I promised. I held out my hand, and he took it, the two of us walking together out of the massive ballroom and down the hallway, back to the library that held so many memories.
The library was warm, full of light glowing from the lamps that illuminated the long tables. But no one was in here now. I sank cross-legged in front of the table. “I was underneath it when you all came in, hiding away from the world, and then once I overheard you talking about how you thought I was a spy, I couldn’t exactly come back out.”
“Did I say you were a spy? I think I’m usually a better judge of character.”
“No.”
“Good.”
