He turns to her and whispers something in her ear. His hand goes under the table and she leans into him, closing her eyes in enraptured bliss. Good god, what is wrong with him? And what’s wrong with me? Why do I feel sick that it’s not me he’s saying sweet things to…
I can’t watch anymore. I won’t.
I lean forward and pick up my things. “I’m ready to go,” I tell Jasmine.
She shakes her head at Luka. “He doesn’t deserve you.”
Chapter Six
My brother Jadon always knows the right thing to say. My hands shake as I Facetime him. He hates the phone, would much rather be outside practicing his sword work or riding his horse, visiting the poor people in our outlying villages and passing out food and clothes.
He’s just that way.
Good.
Kind.
Always putting others first.
Where I was always selfish, as my dad so “lovingly” put it, Jadon has always been deep-down good. The antidote to my temper. When I can’t see straight, I go to him.
“Edie,” he says first thing. He’s the only one I allow to call me that. His face crinkles up when he sees that I’m upset; his smile falls off of his face immediately. “What’s wrong?”
I start to cry and feel terrible because he looks so worried. It just makes me cry harder. “Did you know Luka Catano is the worst kind of person?”
“What do you mean? What’s happened?”
Jadon has spent time with Luka. They went hunting together with our father and Luka’s two years ago. He assured me then that it was a good match, that I’d be safe with Luka.
“He chases anything in a skirt. The first day I woke up in my new room, I saw him and Princess Nadia in their underwear. You know, Nadia Forbrush? Why didn’t his parents set him up with her? They seem like they’ve got a good thing going. Tonight he was flirting with someone I didn’t even recognize and he can’t stand me. He takes every opportunity to put me in my place. Saying we’re not married yet.” I wipe my eyes. The tears keep falling and won’t stop.
Jadon sighs. “I think he’s had some sort of relationship with Nadia off and on, but it would never work. And I don’t think he’s interested in anything more than, you know…being a guy.”
“You mean fucking around?” I say it with all the anger I feel and Jadon’s eyes go wide. “You’ve always been so careful with me. You especially, but all of you. You think I don’t know what’s going on despite being sheltered my entire life? I’ve saved myself for him and he’s slept with half the female population by now. I expected some of that, but not right in front of my face. How is this right?”
“It’s not, you’re right. Once he got to Kings Passage, he should’ve cut off all ties with anyone but you.”
“How about when he signed a contract to be engaged to me? How about then? I guess it’ll be okay then if I just go out and dry hump everyone in sight.”
“Eden!” Jadon’s voice cuts through and makes me jump. “Dry hump? What are you learning over there?” He chuckles and then swipes his face with his hand when he sees the look on my face. “Focus on school. You’ve wanted to go there your whole life. This is your chance to study with the best of the best. I’ll talk to Luka. I can’t promise he’ll listen, but I’ll try. Are you sure you’re not reading into the situation?”
“No, it’s all clear as day, trust me.”
“I’ll talk to him, and listen, if things don’t change, we’ll talk to Dad, okay? Keep me posted. I love you, Edie.”
“I love you, Jadon. Thank you.”
As always, by the time we hang up, I feel calmer.
I was just shy of fourteen when the contract was signed. We would marry at the completion of our first year at Kings Passage. Luka’s family countered with the amendment to marry when Luka and I turn twenty, which would be upon the completion of our second year. Our third and fourth year would be almost exclusively spent learning together, our classes specific to the industries of our countries. Agriculture, finance, and sociology based on the statistics of our countries would be the main courses, so we’d both be versed with the best approach to leading them.
At fourteen, having seen Luka’s pictures and watching video clips of him surfing in the Labyrinth Sea—well, I was spellbound. Under the notion that all of this was so romantic.
A fairy tale.
I would’ve agreed to anything just to be Luka Catano’s queen.
Joke’s on me.
* * *
The next week passes without any altercation. I keep my head down and my focus on schoolwork, just as Jadon told me to do. He’s right about one thing—I’ve always wanted to study here and I don’t want anyone, especially Luka, to divert my attention from that. I’ve been stuck with Farrow tutors up until now and while they were brilliant, I grew bored early on, my mind bursting with the need to expand past what they could or would teach me.
Luka attempts to stop me one day after our last class. He calls my name and I ignore him, walking faster. I think I’ve lost him and turn back to go to my room. He’s standing there leaning against my door when I walk up.
I sigh and punch in my code, making sure he can’t see it. “What are you doing here?”
“Why are you ignoring me?”
“It’s easier to not hate you if I don’t have to talk to you,” I tell him.
His head tilts to the side. “You don’t hate me.”
I bite my lip and open the door. “Pretty sure I do.”
“It’s all the sexual tension between us,” he says, smirking. “You don’t know what to do with that.” He runs his fingers through his hair and I watch the way his bicep bulges with the lift. He gives me a deadpan expression and I turn around, frustrated that he caught me looking. He puts his hand on my arm and I look at him over my shoulder. His fingers run up and down my arm and I wonder if he’s aware of my whole body tensing with his touch.
“You know nothing about me.” I walk away from him, setting my bag down and go out to the balcony.
He follows me out. “You’re right. So tell me something about you.”
I turn to him, a sharp retort ready, but he looks sincere and I swallow down my anger. “You don’t want to know anything about me,” I whisper.
“I do.” His voice sounds raspy and he swallows hard when I study him. “Come on, just one thing…”
“Autumn in Farrow is my favorite time of year. It’s the last hurrah before winter begins and once winter arrives, it’s there for what feels like forever. We have bonfires in the mountains and dare each other to get in the already frigid water, roasting marshmallows and shaking as we try to dry off. My brother always wins the challenge in the village to swim the farthest, but last year, my sister pushed him in the water after he’d finally dried off because she was so mad he’d beaten her again.”
Luka chuckles. “It sounds like you miss them.”
“I do. More than anything. I’ve never been away from them. I don’t like it.”
“I’ve never been close to my family. Well, except my sister, but even so…I wouldn’t know what missing feels like.”
“It’s an ache that never goes away. A feeling here,” I put my hand in the middle of his chest and tap three times. His hand comes up over mine and holds it. “A constant emptiness right here. Like a part of me is missing.”
He assesses me, his eyes not giving away what he’s thinking. When he swallows, it draws my attention to his throat and I pull my hand away.
“Sounds bloody terrible,” he says and I laugh.
“It is. But better than not having them at all. I don’t know what I’d do without my family.”
“You’ll miss them then…when we move to Niaps.”
The word we makes my heart stutter, and the fact that he’s talking about us being together with anything other than dread…
“I will,” I say quietly.
He nods. “We could stand to learn some of that loyalty in Niaps.”
He seems like he wants
to say more, but he doesn’t and we both turn to look at the water, watching the waves crash against the shore. It’s the most peaceful feeling I’ve had with Luka since we met.
After a few minutes, he pushes away from the balcony and turns to me. “Did your parents say anything to you about the obligations you’d have to fulfill as my fiancée? The meetings, banquets, charity lunches?”
“They mentioned it, yes. When will it start?”
“This Friday night. There’s a welcome reception at the conservatory at seven. Formal attire. Can you be ready to leave at 6:50?”
“You sound like you’re making a business transaction.” I try for a joking tone, but it comes out plaintive.
“It’s what we are, right?” His eyes are back to being bottomless oceans of blue that want to bury me and I turn back to the real ocean of water.
“Right.” I stand there for a moment feeling lost and decide I’ve had enough. I walk to the door. “I need to finish up some homework.”
“I’ll see you Friday.”
And just like that, all the peace is gone. The moment we had is lost.
Chapter Seven
When Friday rolls around, I have more homework than ever, have slept maybe a total of five hours over two nights, and the last thing I want to do is go out with a fiancé who hates me. Brienne hovers, knowing I have to be ready in half an hour and I still haven’t decided what I should wear.
“Why don’t you sit here and I’ll help,” she says when I’ve sagged against the armoire yet again. “First, your hair…”
I fall into the chair, grateful. When she starts her magic on my hair, I settle into a dreamlike state. “You really are good,” I whisper.
She holds up my makeup palette and I nod, happy for her to take over. I close my eyes, feeling more relaxed by the moment.
“Okay, open,” she says. She’s turned me away from the mirror and when I try to peek, she shakes her head. “Not yet.” She grins and I decide it’s not so bad having her around all the time.
“There’s a dress I can’t wait to see on you—one sec, I’ll get it.” She goes to the armoire and shifts the hangers to the side as she searches for it. Finally, she holds up the dress.
“This one.”
It’s a dress I managed to get past all the overdone dresses my mother’s seamstress made for me before I left. I smile and nod and Brienne lights up. She helps me put it on and it’s the perfect satiny glove for my curves. She steps back and laughs.
“Not exactly the reaction I’d hoped for,” I mutter.
“Oh no—I’m just imagining Prince Luka’s face when he sees you!” She claps her hands and I can’t help but get caught up in her excitement. “Here…” She turns me around to face the mirror.
I blink slowly…shocked by what she’s managed to create in such a short amount of time. I have the perfect smoky eye, red lips, and my hair is twisted into a low sweep of curls and twists. It’s the perfect juxtaposition to the sexy low-cut black dress with the high slit that nearly reaches my lacy thong.
There’s a knock at the door and Brienne steps back as I go to open it. Luka is looking down the hall when I open the door and when he turns to look at me, he seems to freeze. He stares into my eyes for the longest moment and when his gaze finally lands on my lips, they stay there for five long seconds. My heart must be beating out of my chest. His Adam’s apple bobs as he does the slow descent down my body. My skin feels every drag of his eyes.
He holds out his arm and I step forward, feeling like I’m sleepwalking.
Neither of us says a word as we walk to the waiting car. Out of the corner of my eye, I’ve taken in the details of his suit, the way he suddenly oozes power and intrigue, the intoxicating scent of him, his full lips puckered in thought, his brow furrowed ever since we got in the car.
I wish he didn’t look so perfect.
And that my heart didn’t pound every time I look at him.
“Are you okay?” I ask.
“I’m fine.” He hasn’t looked at me since we left my room.
“You look nice,” I tell him. I fidget with the clasp of my shoe and the slit in my dress widens, exposing my skin up to my thigh. He stiffens next to me and looks out the window.
“Cover yourself.”
“What?” I think I must have heard him wrong.
He motions with his finger, turning to look at me after he’s waved it around my leg. His eyes are breathing fire. “Cover. Yourself,” he orders between his teeth.
I stare him down. “No.” My insides feel shaky, but I don’t look away. “If you can’t handle yourself, look away.”
His eyes flare brighter and his whole body turns to face mine. One finger lands on my thigh and skates up my skin, slowly, slowly, until every inch of me is gooseflesh.
“You want to play with fire?” he asks, his fingers softly tracing their way up my leg.
His eyes drop to my cleavage and his tongue snakes out to lick his bottom lip. I watch every movement entranced, aching for something more.
Every part of me is reaching out for him without me moving an inch.
More.
I don’t dare move.
More.
My body begs for more and my heart begs for less.
He lowers his head and runs the tip of his tongue up the valley between my breasts, and I stop breathing altogether. When he makes his way up my neck and veers off to my ear, I turn, and his mouth is so close if I even inhale, our lips will touch. I test it out, breathing deeply, and our lips brush for the tiniest second, sending a jolt through me nonetheless. He stays close, his mouth hovering so it brushes mine with every breath, and when his lips finally claim mine, I collide into him.
It isn’t a soft, sweet first kiss.
It’s a crushing flood, a storm, an arrival.
My fingers grip his hair, pulling him even closer.
His fingers move up between my legs and I gasp when they swipe underneath my lace. I groan into his mouth when his fingers rub over me and then he slips one finger inside, thrusting one, two, three times, as he pulls back and stares at the way my lips fall open.
More.
Just as I choke down a moan, he lifts his finger to his mouth, popping it inside and licking it clean.
“I knew you were wet for me.” He leans back in his seat, leaving me cold and empty. Mission accomplished.
I stare at him waiting for him to say more, to come back and finish what he started, but he’s done. Point proven.
Humiliated, I turn away from him. The rage inside burns as I hold back tears for the next minute it takes to arrive at our destination.
When our driver opens the door, a crowd of people are waiting; photographers snap pictures, some getting in our faces, and the guards push them back at the last second. It’s more extreme than what I’m used to—Farrow is more subdued than Pravia.
“Is it true you’re engaged to be married?”
“When can we expect a wedding?”
“Have you chosen a designer for your dress?”
So many questions are shouted at us, but neither of us answer the reporters.
We haven’t given a statement about our engagement yet, but the rumors have been swirling for over a year now about it. I don’t know if it was my family or his who leaked it.
We get to the end of the walkway, and under an arch heavy with flowers, we stand and pose for what will be our first official photograph together. Since I still want to kill him, it takes everything in me to put on a smile and lay my hand on his chest as he winds his arm around my waist. When his hand ventures south, I grit my teeth.
“Move your hand an inch lower and I will make you suffer,” I tell him, never letting the smile leave my face.
“Don’t pretend you don’t want it.” He chuckles under his breath and squeezes my waist tighter.
The doors open and we’re greeted by another slew of people. The queen of Pravia waits on her throne, looking regal and stunning with her blood-red dress. When we meet her
, she looks at me with interest, but when she turns to Luka, she looks like she might inhale him.
“Such a beautiful couple,” she says, her eyes still roaming Luka. “Are the rumors correct—will you be marrying?”
Luka lowers his head and kisses her hand. “According to our fathers, yes.”
“And according to you?” she asks.
His voice softens and I can’t hear what he says next. Whatever he said makes her smile. Louder, he says, “If she’ll have me.” He looks at me then. “And on the way over here, she finally let me know she would.” His mouth twitches as he struggles not to laugh and all the blood rushes to my face. His grin widens as he watches my fury and then he turns to the queen. “You are the first to know.” He lowers his head once again and then moves by my side.
“I’m honored,” she says, still looking amused. “Enjoy your evening. Thank you for coming.”
“What did you say to her?” I ask when we walk away.
“You heard me.”
“No, when she smiled. What did you say?”
“I said since she wasn’t an option you would do.”
Chapter Eight
The dinner is mostly bearable. Good food, tolerable people, and then there’s Luka. Once we’re done eating, the music begins and most couples step onto the dance floor for at least one dance. When I’ve sat there for nearly an hour with Luka chatting up the couple next to him and acting as if I don’t exist, I decide to walk to the dance floor. It doesn’t take long for a guy to come up to me and ask me to dance.
“James Follows,” he says.
“Eden Safrin.”
His eyes widen, but he doesn’t comment on my name. “Would you like to dance?”
He holds his arm out and I accept gratefully, comforted when he places his hands on my waist. I let the music take over my mind for the few minutes we move around the floor and am in a daze when James suddenly freezes. The next thing I know, Luka steps in to take James’s place. I turn to thank James for the dance, but he’s already halfway across the room.
Downfall: Kingdoms of Sin, Book #1 Page 4
