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“You’d be surprised. You’re officially a Lady of the Court now, and a handful of Dukes and Earls are still staying on the castle’s lower level. If you choose to join the festivities, you could have suitors knocking at your door as early as breakfast.”
“And you want to be my first?”
“Our clock is ticking. I want to spend as much time together while I still can.” He reaches for my hand and kisses the back of it. “See you soon, little bird.”
Bash is out my door and whistling down my hall. I listen for him to stop and knock on someone’s door but the sound carries until it disappears. Once I’m sure he’s gone, I shut myself in the room and run to the bathroom. My bladder is aching with impatience, and finallygetting to go is heavenly. I have just enough time to wash my hands and twist my hair into a braid before needles prick the back of my neck.
I peek around the corner into my bedroom, and my door opens. Slowly. Quietly. Like whoever is on the other side doesn’t want me to hear them coming. I tip-toe run to my nightstand, where I left Bash’s dagger, and ready myself to throw it.
Riot steps into my space, eyebrows arched. “Are you always so violent?”
“Do you always walk into someone’s room without knocking?” I shout, the adrenaline leaving my veins. I thought he was Graves. Truthfully, I wish he was. I doubt Bash would punish me for accidentally killing an intruder after everything that happened last night.
“I saw Sasha in the hall and figured since she wasn’t in your room, you must be ready.”
“So, you just walked in unannounced? I could’ve killed you!”
“But you didn’t, so let’s call it a win and get this morning over with.”
I grab Bash’s coat and slip it over my shoulders, ignoring the questioning glare Riot levels me with. What I wear and whose coat I have is none of his business. “Can we go by the ballroom before we leave?”
“Why?”
I slip the boots Bash brought me on. Even without socks, they’re the most comfortable pair I’ve ever worn. Warm. Snug. Supportive. It’s like he had them made for my feet. I walk a few paces, testing out the heel height and my balance. I jump once, just to feel what landing in them might be like. I hold Bash’s knife—because let’s be serious. Ten inches is a mini sword, not a dagger. “I can’t go anywhere with this. It’s too bulky.”
“Princesses don’t carry weapons,” Riot says dismissively. “You’ll be fine.”
“It’s a good thing I’m not a princess then.” Point for me. “But the one I lost last night was special. It was my father’s. I dropped it when Commander Graves…”
I swallow thickly and resist the urge to touch my neck. I may not have a scar from that night, but I’ll never forget what it felt like to have my throat split open. Or the look of challenge in Graves’s eyes when he realized he could do it again.
“I doubt it’s there. Everything was cleaned up, and all the bodies were removed last night.”
“Where to?” My heart races. I can’t lose that blade. It’s the only thing I have of my dad’s.
Riot presses his lips together and grunts. “Some things are better left unknown.”
Because he knows I’ll go searching. I don’t think last night’s poisoning was an accident. Given the way Riot is eyeing me, I think he knows I’m putting pieces of this puzzle together. Too bad I don’t know what I’m looking at yet. “Is my uncle among the dead?”
“No. Sutherland Hargrove is in the dining room downstairs, enjoying the breakfast spread.”
I touch my stomach, noting the rumbling sensation under my hand. I gorged myself on sweets and wine last night, but it all came out rather suddenly and I’m not sure I trust anything coming from the Crown’s kitchen just yet. Not after last night.
“Could we stop by a bakery in town?”
“Is the food we offer not good enough for you?”
“Has anyone told you you’re an ass?”
This earns me a chuckle. To my surprise, the sound is kind of cute. Riot smiles for the first time since we’ve met, and I’m shocked at how nice it is. “I’ve heard it a time or two.”
I button my jacket even though a flash of heat flushes my skin. “I’m not surprised. We should go.”
I walk past Riot like I know where I’m going, then freeze in the hallway. I think we came from the left last night. But maybe it was the right. And where are the stairs? I vaguely remember climbing a set of stairs. Or was that when we went to the library?
“This way, princess.”
The nickname rolls off his tongue with condescending ease, and it sends a furious roll of heat through me. I take a deep breath and remind myself that I only have to put up with the prick for an hour or two. When we get back to the castle, he’ll go his way and I’ll go mine. I’ve survived flirting and nearly seducing men worse than him. I can handle one outing.
