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Theodora never gets drunk.
But then again, I rarely do. Maybe the pressure of this year is crushing her just as much as it’s crushing me, and she’s seeking the same reprieve I came here to seek.
“Are you too lofty to say hello?” she asks in a withering tone.
The music is louder now. Earlier, everyone was still sober enough to worry about getting caught. Now, though, everyone is too far gone to care. If the party gets discovered and broken up, I don’t even think I’d be terribly heartbroken. I’m so tired lately I could fall asleep standing.
Not too tired to respond, with verve, to Theodora’s blatant attack on me.
“I’ve been standing here for the past hour,” I say with a wave of my hand I hope comes across as nonchalant. “You could have come up at any point.”
“You saw me come in. You could’ve come up to me.”
“I’ve come here to let loose and relax after a rough week of deadlines, not to pay tribute to you like some sycophant in your royal court.”
“So much for all that talk about getting on your knees if I asked you to,” she says in a mocking tone.
“You weren’t asking me about getting on my knees. I’ll get on my knees for you anytime, Theo. I’ll do it right now, if you like, right here in front of everybody.”
She bristles. “I’m not asking you to. I’m asking you for some common courtesy.”
“Common courtesy is not screaming at your friends at a party.”
“I’m not screaming, and we’re not friends.”
“Don’t lie.” I step closer to her. “Where’s all this anger coming from, Theodora?”
“I’m not angry.”
“Then what’s the problem? You wanted me to say hello, well, here. Hello, my lovely Theodora, how do you do?” I give a flourish. “There. Have I satisfactorily soothed your bruised ego, goddess of wrath?”
“I’m not your Theodora or a goddess of wrath, and rich of you to mention my ego, Lord Blackwood.”
“Why are you starting an argument with me?” I ask, drawing closer to her.
As I speak, I’m suddenly reminded of Iakov’s line about fucking without touching.
I turn my head and realise Iakov is long gone. Smart of him, I suppose. He probably didn’t want to risk getting caught in the crossfire.
“Are you feeling worked up, Theo?” I ask, turning back to her and pressing closer to speak in her ear. “Are you feeling…frustrated? Like there’s an itch deep inside you that you can’t quite scratch, and maybe fighting me will soothe the itch?”
She flinches back. “What are you talking about?”
“I’m talking about the strange, irresistible urge you felt to find me and draw all my attention to you with the flimsiest excuse imaginable. Look deep inside yourself, Theodora, and you’ll see what I mean. It can’t be that hard—everyone except you can see it.”
“I’ve no idea what you’re talking about. You’re just spewing off nonsense sentences, as usual. Don’t worry, it’s not your fault. I suppose it’s how one ends up when one is raised by politicians.”
“Oh, you love a good deflection, Theodora, don’t you? You never have the guts to fight back, but you’re too scared to take a hit, so all you ever do is deflect. That’s why we always draw, that’s why it’s forever a stalemate with you.”
“You’re drunk,” she says with an angry burst of laughter. “You’re making no sense whatsoever.”
“And you’re drunk too.”
“I’m not drunk,” she lies. “I came here to claim my prize. Or have you already forgotten?”
She’sdefinitelydrunk.
A stone-cold sober Theodora would never claim a kiss from me. A stone-cold sober Theodora would never let me draw her into such a ridiculous argument. A stone-cold sober Theodora would never lose control like this and let me pluck the harp strings of her emotion to make such intoxicating music.
