Perhaps all I needed was a few glasses of wine to see a future with my husband.

My husband.

Thinking about him like this now is somehow different than it was before. And maybe it is the alcohol, or maybe—just maybe—it’s something more. And whatever that more is makes my stomach turn cartwheels at the thought of dancing with him. I’m not certain if the heat I feel in my cheeks is from the wine or from the thoughts I’m having about finally spending the night with the man standing before me.

“Shall we dance?” William gazes into my eyes, smiling as widely as I’ve ever seen.

Before I have the chance to respond, he’s whirling me onto the dance floor.

The band is playing a lively tune—a traditional Rosvalian folk song. I look up into William’s eyes. “Do you know this one?”

He grins as he takes my hand and spins me around. “Of course I know this one.”

“Really?” I laugh. “Because we’ve already missed two partner trades.”

His gaze never leaves mine. “I don’t care.” He loops his arms around my waist, pulling me tightly to him. “Do you know this one?”

“I think I do.”

He’s still moving us about the dance floor, though he’s completely ignoring the steps of the traditional dance. “You’re so beautiful.”

“Thank you.” I smile. “I think you might want to avoid drinking any more of the free beer tonight.”

His grin widens and he pulls away to spin me to the cue of the song, though we aren’t following any of the other moves.

“I think you were supposed to pass me to the right just now.”

He pulls me close to him again, wrapping his arms even tighter around my waist this time. He tips his head to whisper into my ear. “I don’t care.”

“I think the other people dancing might care—”

“I think the other dancers will afford a newly married man a chance to hold his new wife.” His lips brush against my cheek before he tilts his head to speak into my ear again. “You really are beautiful, Justine.”

My cheeks burn at the compliment, but perhaps it is just the wine. “Thank you. William, I—”

He kisses my cheek again. “Your people love you, you know.”

Something hardens in my gut. “I’m not so sure about that—”

“They do. I’ve worked hand in hand with them for the past two weeks and they have nothing but wonderful things to say about you.” His lips brush my cheek once more before he kisses my jaw, then my neck.

I draw in a sharp breath and my neck arches involuntarily. It must be the wine, because my entire body suddenly feels warm.

He pulls away to look into my eyes again. “And what’s not to love? You’ve devoted your life to them—”

“I haven’t, though. I—”

“But you’re willing to. You put their needs before your own. You—”

“William, let’s not.”

“Let’s not what?”

“Find ourselves arguing at this establishment—in front of everyone here. They came to celebrate the end of harvest, not to hear us bickering for the millionth time.” Thankfully, the tune changes to a slower melody, and I pull myself closer to him, resting my head on his shoulder to look away from him.

We dance for what seems an eternity, and I can’t help but think I might be able to dance like this with him forever.

His arms slide up my back into something of an embrace. “I wasn’t attempting to start another argument, Justine.”

I say nothing, but I know his use of my name means he’s likely telling the truth.

“They really do love you.”

I shake my head against his shoulder but still say nothing.

“You’re going to make them a fine queen.”

I close my eyes. William probably has no idea what he’s even saying—if he’s not drunk, he’s at least not thinking clearly. He doesn’t understand. My family is never going to allow me to be queen. They’ll never let me have the required four male heirs, and even if I could somehow manage to get the antiquated laws changed, my father and brother would certainly find some way of keeping me from ever ruling this land.

Clearly, this is something William and I should have discussed before we decided to marry. And I might have, had he given me the chance. I’m almost sorry I agreed to my father’s plan now—the one that has me leaving Rosvalia in a few months.

I suppose I haven’t thought much about what it will mean to my people should I choose to leave. And what kind of princess does that make me? I already know the answer—it makes me exactly the same as my wretched family, thinking of my own desires before the needs of the citizens of my country.

But I’m in an impossible situation. As much as I might want to make things work with William, I have no power to change anything. And even if I could somehow change things, I’m still not sure he wouldn’t betray me, the same as has happened before. Even if I could manage to allow myself to fall in love with the man holding me in his arms, it wouldn’t be worth it in the end. As soon as he finds out what happened to me, he’ll leave. He’ll leave me alone with my family, and I’ll be no better off than I was before. I’ll probably be even worse off—left alone with a broken heart.

No thank you.

I turn my head so that he might hear me. “I’ve already told you, I have no intention of becoming queen.”

“I know.” He smiles, tipping his head slightly to brush his lips over mine. “I know.” He smiles against my lips. “Have I told you how much I enjoy kissing you?”

I can’t help but smile. “You’re drunk.”

“Possibly.”

“I think it is more than a possibility.” I laugh. “We should return to the palace before we embarrass ourselves.”

The tune changes again, this time to another traditional dance. “I think I’d like to stay a little longer. This is one of my favorites.” He grabs my hands and turns me about, leading me across the dance floor again.

“You’re skipping the partner trades again.” I laugh. “If this is one of your favorites—”

“It is. And I’ve already told you, I’m not letting you go.” Something changes in his expression, and it’s obvious his words have more than a single meaning.

“William—”

“You can fight me. Argue with me. Hell, you can punch me if you like.” He pauses, looking into my eyes for a long moment. “All I know is I’ve spent the past two weeks apart from you, and I’ve done nothing but think of you. I missed you, Justine. And I’m not going to let you go again.”

“I…” I can’t think of a response. I’ve missed him, too, certainly. But I hadn’t been able to put my finger on why. We do nothing but argue—except, apparently, when there is alcohol involved. Maybe that’s why Mother began drinking—to be able to tolerate Father…

But what William and I have doesn’t seem to be anything like the relationship of my parents. They might tolerate each other, but we…we almost like each other, I think. And perhaps we could grow to be more. I certainly respect him more than I do my own parents—the man has sacrificed his life for the past two weeks to serve the Rosvalian people. He seems to care about them more than my own family does. What more could I ever ask of him?

But now is not the time for romanticizing our relationship, even if I could someday be persuaded to care for him more than I imagine I should allow myself.

He spins me across the floor again before pulling me tightly to his chest. “Let’s just dance a little longer, Princess.”

The wine is most definitely getting to my head. I laugh. Maybe I am afraid of allowing him to get too close to my heart, but at the moment, I don’t seem to care.

He presses a soft kiss to my lips. “I’m going to make love to my wife tonight.”

My cheeks burn, but my heart begins to thump nearly out of my chest. It’s exactly what I want, even if I can’t admit it to him yet. I want to love him—and I want him to love me. I’m just not sure how I can get myself to allow him beyond the steel wall I’ve built around my heart. I’m not sure I’ll survive if he crushes me the way I’ve been crushed before.

But I can’t deny it—I want him. More than I’ve ever wanted any man. “William—”

“I’m going to make love to you. I’m going to show you why we belong together. I’m going to…” He glances behind me at the same time I feel a tap on my shoulder.

I hear a voice in my ear. “May I cut in?”

William drops my hands, taking a step to my side. For a moment, I think he’s going to let the man interrupt us to dance with me, but then I see his hands ball into fists. Before I know what’s happening, William charges at the person behind me.

I turn just in time to hear the crack of William’s fist against the man’s jaw. William pounces on top of the man and begins pounding him in the face again and again.

My stomach drops to my toes as I realize what’s happening, and I seem to be frozen in place, watching the scene unfold in slow motion. It takes me a moment to realize who it is William is attacking.

My former lover—the man who betrayed me. James Camden.