Chapter 14
LUCAS
“So who is this new arrival that everyone seems to be talking about?”
Delilah Hampton's question was innocent enough, but it was something I wanted to avoid and had been doing so for the past few hours now.
Yes, everyone did seem to be talking about her, and I couldn't exactly blame them. She was wearing a red gown—the same red gown that I unzipped from her body to get to her corset. I was pretty sure she had a tight corset underneath—the same corset I loosened up and touched with my fingers, even though those same fingers wanted to touch something more—
“Weren't you the one who escorted her to Prince Benjamin earlier?”
Because it was an honest question and avoiding it would seem more suspicious, I nodded my head once. “She came alone since her father couldn't make it, so I decided to do the honor. I don't know much about them other than that her father's very wealthy and closely related to their king.”
“Hmm. She sounds interesting. That's nice of you. I didn't know you had it in you, Your Highness.”
Her tone was flirtatious, something I was used to as we'd always conversed like this whenever we attended the same events. Delilah loved flirting with men, not just me in particular, and it had only grown more rampant after her husband died and she was free from their arranged marriage. I was pretty sure she did more than flirt with some of the eligible bachelors, and I wasn't going to deny that I did some partaking a few years ago, too. But it was a one-time thing, and we both decided we were better off friends.
That didn't stop the rumors from circulating, though, as everyone other than Benjamin thought we were secret lovers. We didn't mind the gossip because it provided me some time off without bachelorettes hounding me, and it gave her even more freedom to feast on her men in secret.
The urge to look at a certain someone was strong, and finally, I gave in to said urge and glanced at where I thought I heard her laughter. She was surrounded by some of the princesses, listening to her as she spoke animatedly and had them laughing a few seconds later. It sounded like a joke, and she just delivered some punchline, and the desire to find out exactly what they were talking about stayed with me for a while. Unlike her earlier nervous expression, she looked pretty relaxed now, her posture perfect and her body looking as light as a feather. It was almost like she was meant to be here.
Almost like she was meant to live like this.
“You’ve been staring at her for quite some time now.”
Not missing a beat, I shot Delilah a look. She wasn’t jealous, just curious, but I still needed to dissuade it. “Like you said, she sounds interesting.”
“Hmm. She seems like she knows how to have fun, unlike many other boring royal women.”
She did give out that aura, and I could tell that it drew people around her. That was good because it would allow the chance for the impostor to open up to her.
The bad thing about it was that women weren’t the only ones noticing.
A man I knew from a nearby town, a baron, approached her after a while, bowing and introducing himself. He took her hand and kissed it, and I watched as pink stained her cheeks at the gesture before she introduced herself back. She seemed to be nervous again but kept on babbling—which, in turn, seemed to amuse the baron, and I could feel his desire for her practically radiating in the air as he took the back of her waist and drew her to the dance floor.
Something dark and heady settled in my belly as I watched them on the dance floor, the baron obviously flirting and Liz responding shyly. Outrage came, and I tried to reason out that it was outrage that she was dancing with someone else rather than the crown prince. Belatedly, I looked in Benjamin’s direction and found him staring in amusement at the scene.
But that wasn’t what had me worrying.
It was the look of hunger that flashed before he effectively pulled it back in.
“Delilah, would you be so kind as to excuse me for a moment? I wanted to speak with my brother.”
Delilah shrugged. “Go on. I’m a social butterfly, and I’ve just spotted a very handsome gentleman I wanted to chat with.”
I grinned. Then I left her to her devices and strode over to where Benjamin was standing, keeping my face relaxed as I watched the scene with him.
“Liz is adjusting well,” he said.
I didn’t want to talk about Liz. “You looked hungry for a moment.”
His relaxed expression tightened. “I am.”
The look I sent him was sharp. “Since when?”
“Since this ball started, and it’s getting worse.”
“Can you last for a few hours longer?”
“I might end up eating one of the guests. Mother wouldn’t like that.”
The queen would probably throw a fit and order everyone who witnessed it executed. The thought of such a scene made my head pound, and I stifled the urge to rub it with my fingers.
“Damn it, Ben. This is why I told you to hold your reserves for nights like this. You wasted your free nights when you ran away.”
“It’s done, okay? Quit scolding.”
To anyone who saw us, we might as well be talking about the weather for how pleasant we both looked. But frustration was slowly building up inside me—at Benjamin’s increasing carelessness, at the alarming rate his hunger was building up, at the inconvenience this was going to cause everyone.
“Will sex fix it?”
He tilted his head. “Maybe.”
“Maybe?”
“I don’t know anymore. It’s been getting harder every single day.”
My gaze strayed sideways, eyeing his side profile. “You seem to keep enjoying it, anyway.”
Amusement flared in his eyes again, and his gaze fixed on the dance floor. A frown marred his mouth. “I don’t trust that guy.”
“Who?”
This time, it was him who shot me a look. “Can you check on her? He’s been known to do shady things with women.”
“Why are you so concerned?”
“Because we got her in this situation.”
“I’m not her damn babysitter.”
“Fine. If you don’t do it, I will.”
The thought of Benjamin going over there, then taking Liz somewhere, had the darkness rising inside me again, and it took every effort for me not to snarl at him. When I was relatively calm, I did my best to keep my voice even. “No. I’ll do it.”
“Thank you. I don’t want to see her hurt.”
“What’s it to you, Ben?”
“It’s called concern, Lucas.”
It was a jab. I nodded calmly. “Fine. I’ll do it, like I said. Go find someone and do your thing. Then come back here all sated and make sure your hunger’s gone.”
“The guests...?”
“I’ll handle them, too. Just go.”
He didn’t need to be told twice. Benjamin shot me a grateful look before slipping out of the hall, and I shot his retreating back a glare. Now that he was gone, I should be mingling once more with the women, seeing to how they were and putting my pleasant expression on. But none of that was appealing at the moment, and I knew I was close to brooding just standing there.
Anger was also building up—a by-product of the darkness that was rising, along with the irritation at what a certain someone was getting herself into. Without thought, my gaze went in that direction again, where I found the baron leaning in to whisper to her ear. They were dancing, not close, but enough to warrant some stares.
His hand settled on her back, and he drew her close.
I was moving before I could think about it—one step, then another, walking towards them without much thought. Someone blocked my path, and I almost roared before I realized it was Delilah, who was giving me a puzzled look.
“Delilah?”
“I don’t know what’s going on, but you look like you’re about to kill someone. I don’t think the queen will appreciate it if you make a scene.”
She was right. The fact that she could read my expression told me someone else could, too, but as if she understood my thoughts, she shook her head.
“I just know you well enough, and I think the queen would, too.”
I nodded, feeling assured—but not enough to stop the way my body practically vibrated. I shot Delilah a grave look.
“I’ll be fine. Thank you for your concern.”
She gave my wrist a squeeze, then wandered off. I was pretty sure that movement was going to cause some talk again, but obviously, we both didn’t care. I schooled myself to appear calmer.
Then I kept walking.
Liz was laughing at something the baron was telling her, the sound melodious and making my stomach tighten. I fought against it and quickened my strides until I reached their side, effectively stopping their dance. They both looked at me—the baron with wariness, Liz with surprise.
“I apologize for interrupting,” I forced myself to say, and the baron nodded.
“It’s no interruption.” He sounded forced, too.
Not wasting any time, I turned to Liz. “Can I ask for your time for a minute? Your father is on the line and wants to speak with you.”
Interest gleamed in the baron’s eyes, and I had a feeling they were discussing her imaginary father at one point. She pretended to appear surprised, then delighted, before warmly excusing herself from the baron and coming with me. We stood at a respectable distance, not speaking, and I could feel her shooting me the same puzzled look that Delilah shot me earlier. But I didn’t look at her, not here in public, not when I knew I was beyond the point of being calm.
I took a quick look around and found that the queen was too busy talking to someone to notice whatever was going on. That was just as well. She hadn’t been introduced to Liz, either—a deliberate move, so that the princesses wouldn’t think Liz was being favored and would open up to her more. That was my only glance back as we kept walking out of the hall, with me walking fast and Liz hurrying to catch up.
We reached another hall, then one of the empty rooms nearby. It was a small meeting room, with a rectangular oak table and chairs. I closed the door once we entered.
Then I whirled on her.
“Is that how you do your job? By flirting with the first guy you see?”
The puzzled expression disappeared, to be replaced by shock. “What?”
“You heard me.”
“I wasn’t flirting,” she voiced out, looking confused. “He asked me to dance.”
“And you’re supposed to be dancing with the prince.”
“Not when I’m supposed to make the princesses believe I’m not that interested in him.”
“Did you enjoy the baron’s attention, then?”
She took a step forward. “What’s it to you?”
The bold, almost aggressive question took me by surprise and had me stepping forward, too. The hunger was back, bigger and stronger and pulling at my body in different directions. It wasn’t hunger to feed—rather, it was hunger for her, an accumulation of our days together when I wanted to touch her but couldn’t.
And now, someone else was touching her.
The words were out of my mouth before I could stop myself.
“Maybe I just don’t like seeing you whore yourself out.”
I wanted to take it back, wanted to tell her I didn’t mean it. But it was too late. A stricken expression enveloped her before she paled, then took a step back.
And I knew I’d just made the biggest mistake as I watched her hand come up.