ache in her bones that just felt plain wrong. She’d plead a headache and go to bed early, and then there would only be the wedding tomorrow and the reception, and then she wouldn’t have to see Yannis again. Wouldn’t have to sense his near hatred in every look, in every single word.
She’d almost found the courage to stand, had almost found the words she needed to say, when the music suddenly changed tempo, the orchestra switching to a waltz and an air of hushed expectancy falling over the crowd. Her brother beat her to her feet, took his fiancée’s hand and pressed his lips to the back of it. ‘Come, cara, they await the dance.’
‘But surely that’s after the wedding—at the reception.’
‘Not all of these people—’ he waved his hand around the room ‘—will be able to be here for the reception. Many are villagers who have performed a special task or who will be busy themselves tomorrow, preparing the flowers or working in the kitchens. Tonight is our way of saying a special thank you to them.’
Sienna smiled and nodded. ‘Of course. Then we mustn’t disappoint them.’ She took his hand and stood, and the crowd burst into applause, cheering as Rafe led Sienna to the dance floor and folded his soon-to-be wife—Montvelatte’s soon-to-be Princess—into his arms. She went as if she belonged there, their bodies moving as one to the music, their eyes on each other, their love a palpable thing.
To love someone so much and to have that love returned… how must that feel? Marietta sighed as she watched them effortlessly glide around the dance floor as one. Now, with the eyes of everyone in the room on them, was her chance to escape. She pushed her chair back, reaching for her purse in the same motion.
‘You look different,’ came a deep voice from beside her, the words innocent enough yet the tone accusatory. She looked around, surprised that anyone in the room had eyes for anyone but the couple on the dance floor, but then Yannis didn’t possess eyes so much as pointed barbs that launched out and impaled her, arresting her escape mid-flight. She swallowed, her back straightening, refusing to be cowed even if her ability to stand had once again deserted her.
‘You mean with my clothes on?’
His expression grew darker and harder, and she bit down hard on her bottom lip, wishing she’d managed to form the words in her brain before she’d allowed herself to utter the retort. The look on his face was enough to tell her that the last thing either of them needed was a reminder of that night.
But what did he expect? His attitude had hardly been conciliatory from the moment he’d walked into the room and his gaze had first connected with hers. Why shouldn’t she go on the attack when he obviously needed to realise how ridiculous his petty grudge really was?
‘I meant you looked older,’ he growled once he’d recovered.
Of course that was what he’d meant.
She forced a smile to her lips, but there was no forcing it any further than that. ‘Did you? That sounds so much better, thank you.’
‘You know what I meant,’ he snarled.
‘It has been thirteen years. Is it any surprise I’ve grown up a bit since then?’ Out on the dance floor the Prince and his bride-to-be spun together, two halves of a whole, totally absorbed in each other, totally oblivious to whatever tension existed beyond their world. Marietta watched their effortless glide with an envious eye.
‘Have you?’
She looked back at him, the vision of her brother and his wife making her lose her train of thought. ‘Have I what?’
‘Grown up.’
She dragged in a breath, oxygen destined to fuel the fire already burning inside her. ‘People change with time, Yannis. Maybe you should try it one day.’ There was no point staying any longer. She stood, determined this time to leave. It would be easier this way. She wouldn’t have to plead a headache. Yannis wouldn’t require any explanation at all. He’d just be happy she was gone.
But Yannis was standing, too, and blocking her way. ‘Where do you think you’re going?’
‘I’m leaving.’
‘You can’t leave yet.’
He had to be kidding. ‘I’m sorry, but I’ll do whatever I damn well like. So if you wouldn’t mind getting out of my way?’
‘It’s Rafe and Sienna’s rehearsal dinner.’
Now her breathing was more impatient than ever. ‘Don’t you think I know that? I was here for it, remember? I’m not the one who blew in late.’
A muscle tightened in his jaw. His eyes grew hard and even colder. ‘Maybe not, but that doesn’t mean you can avoid your responsibilities now.’ He gestured towards the dance floor. ‘Your brother clearly expects us to join them.’ He extended a reluctant arm to her. ‘Shall we?’
She blinked up at him, her head already moving into a shake. ‘You must be mad.’
And then he nodded in the direction of the dancing couple, and she followed his gaze to where Rafe was spinning his wife-to-be around the dance floor. ‘We are expected to join them.’
A lump lodged in her throat, and she swallowed, trying to shift it. He expected her to dance with him? To be escorted around the dance floor in those arms tonight? No way. It was one thing to be expected to do it at the formal reception, but there wasn’t a snowball’s chance in hell that she would do it tonight. She didn’t have the stomach for it. ‘I’m sorry,’ she said, clutching at her earlier excuse. ‘I’m afraid I have a blinder of a headache. I really have to go.’
One dark eyebrow arched as he frowned, disapproval and something else skating across his eyes. ‘You’re afraid.’
She stiffened at the accusation, resenting the challenge, resenting even more the glimmer of truth his words contained. ‘Afraid you’ll make my headache worse?’ she answered, twisting his words to her own purposes. ‘Oh, I’ll admit there’s every chance of that.’
A muscle in his jaw twitched. ‘I’m sure you can tolerate the inconvenience if I can.’ His words sounded like gravel on gravel, scraping away at the scars left all those years ago until the flesh was raw and tender and she could almost taste the blood seeping fresh from the wound. ‘And don’t think I would ask you if I didn’t have to, but others are waiting for us before they can dance, so tell me, are you coming willingly, or do I have to drag you to the dance floor?’
So he wanted to dance with her as much as she wanted to dance with him. She wanted the time to roll that thought around her mind, to find out why the concept wasn’t as satisfying as it should be. But there was no time because he was right—heads were turned, people were watching them expectantly, waiting for them to join the happy couple. She looked back at him, to the dark-as-night eyes that now held an ‘I told you so’ glimmer of triumph and she didn’t answer, couldn’t bring herself to. Instead she just strode past him, her chin held high, not caring if he chose to follow her or not, half wishing he wouldn’t so that in spite of the audience waiting, she could just keep walking.
He followed her. She didn’t need to turn around to know he was right behind her. She could sense his proximity, feel the heat generated by the man just as surely as she could feel the tide of her sapphire silk gown swirling around her ankles as she strode purposefully
